Dan Cassler, assistant chair of the Information Logistics Technology Department at the University of Houston, offers an update on supply-chain sustainability - and details both the benefits and pain to be derived from such efforts.

HighJump Software has forged a strategic alliance with Speech Interface Design (SID) to provide voice-recognition technology to distributors and manufacturers.

Kewill has developed version 5.0 of its Kewill Trade software, which manages the direct dispatch of goods from supplier to customer or store, for multichannel, catalogue and internet retailers.

Air China Cargo has begun scheduled freighter flights from China to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

DB Schenker Logistics has opened an office in Sochi, Russia, host city of the 2014 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Aldata, a vendor of software for retailers and distributors, has introduced Aldata Mobile Shelf Execution.

I.D. Systems Inc., a vendor of wireless technology for managing high-value assets, has introduced a tool for providing insights into the performance of industrial vehicles in manufacturing and distribution facilities.

Manufactured exports - a bright spot of the U.S. economy in recent years - are set to surge. Combined with jobs created as a result of reshoring, higher U.S. exports could add 2.5 million to 5 million jobs by the end of the decade, as manufacturers shift production from leading European countries and Japan to take advantage of substantially lower costs in the U.S., according to new research by The Boston Consulting Group.

Logility Inc. has made available a new application that enables SKU-level planning for products where traditional forecasting techniques are ineffective.

Cognex Corp. has incorporated 2DMax+ software for barcode reading into its DataMan 100 and 200 fixed-mount readers.