Global Trade Management

Open or Closed Supply Chains: Which Way to Go?

July 23, 2012

Supply chains are just as susceptible to faddish behavior as anything else. We're social animals, so we tend to follow the crowd - especially if we believe that the crowd has a competitive edge. That's why so many companies flocked to China over the last couple of decades, in search of ever-cheaper sources of production. Or why outsourcing became such a hot trend over that same period of time.

Avnet Opens Technology Integration Center in Brazil

July 23, 2012

Avnet Inc.

Avnet Inc., a distributor of electronic components, computer products and related technology, has opened a full-service technology integration center in Joinville, Brazil.

New Rules for Bio and Pharma Industries: A Briefing

July 20, 2012

SupplyChainBrain

Mike Cleland, vice president of NorthHighland, discusses what biotech and pharma companies need to do to comply with new regulations for tracking products throughout the supply chain.

U.S. Vessel Imports Drop 3.7 Percent in June

July 20, 2012

Zepol Corporation

Zepol Corporation, a trade intelligence company, reports that U.S. import shipment volume for June, measured in TEUs, was down 3.7 percent from May, but is up 4.4 percent from June 2011. Similarly, Q2 of 2012 has topped last year at this time by 4.7 percent. Although there was a drop from last month, June had the second-highest TEU imports so far this year, outdoing January by a slight 1 percent. Last year saw a comparable trend in the summer months with a moderate dip in June, but spikes in July and August.

Tapping Into the Rising Consuming Class as Hundreds of Cities Develop Worldwide

July 18, 2012

McKinsey

Cities have long been the world's economic dynamos, but today the speed and scale of their expansion are unprecedented. Through a combination of consumption and investment in physical capital, growing cities could inject up to $30tr a year into the world economy by 2025. Understanding cities and their shifting demographics is critical to reaching urban consumers and to preparing for the challenges that will arise from increasing demand for natural resources (such as water and energy) and for capital to invest in new housing, office buildings, and port capacity.

Retail Organization Urges East Coast Ports and Longshoremen to Avoid Work Stoppage

July 18, 2012

RILA

In a letter sent today, the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) urged the International Longshoremen's Association and the United States Maritime Alliance Ltd. to reach a contract agreement well in advance of the September 30 deadline in order to prevent a disruption to the flow of goods and the lasting economic affects that would result.

Study Conducted by Three U.S. Universities Suggests Ways Pentagon Can Cut Billions

July 18, 2012

University of Tennessee

As with most government agencies, the U.S. Department of Defense faces intense pressure to be more efficient in how it spends tax dollars. Building greater trust with defense contractors might be the solution, according to a new study sponsored by the U.S. Air Force and co-authored by professors from the University of Tennessee, Auburn University and the University of Alabama.

FPS Lanka's Project Forwarding, 3PL Arm Sets Up New Logistics Center

July 18, 2012

Famous Pacific Shipping Lanka

Projects FPS, the new project-forwarding and third-party logistics arm of Famous Pacific Shipping Lanka, has created a dedicated logistics center at the Port of Colombo in Sri Lanka.

Blue Ridge Debuts Integrated Data-Analytics Tool

July 18, 2012

Blue Ridge Inventory Group, LLC

Blue Ridge Inventory Group, LLC, a provider of optimization and analytics applications in the cloud, has introduced an integrated analytics tool, designed to help supply chains capitalize on data trapped in their software.

Of Zippers, Matzos and Closed Supply Chains

July 16, 2012

Robert J. Bowman, SupplyChainBrain

We like the term "supply chain" because it suggests a tightly interlinked series of steps that results in the uninterrupted flow of product from the raw-materials stage all the way to the consumer. But the word "chain" also evokes a burden, and that's how many companies have come to view their operations in recent years. Hence the mania for outsourcing everything from design and manufacturing to logistics.