It’s all in the numbers

A company’s freight spend often represents between 2% and 10% of its total expenses. Formany companies in the manufacturing, distribution and retail sectors, their freight spend hasa direct impact on the company’s bottom line… It’s all in the numbers

At a recent transportation industry conference, an executive of one of Canada’s major freight carriers was quoted as saying that within the next 25years, the transportation industry will be controlled by 15 global transportation organizations. What struck me as amusing is how many times I have heard the same prediction over the years… Competing with […]

The safety and dependability of your company’s supply chain can “make or break” your company. A supply chain is only as strong as its weakest link. A failure to deliver your company’s products on time can shut down an assembly line and result in fines and lost revenues. While product recalls (i.e. toys, pet food, […]

Jeff Rubin, a respected CIBC World Markets economist has predicted that crude oil will hit (US) $150 a barrel by 2010 and $200 a barrel by 2012. This would translate into $7 a gallon in the US or (Cdn) $2.25 a litre, twice current levels. His arguments are that world oil production has stagnated at […]

As economic indicators improve, there is growing interest among carriers to restart some of their infrastructural systems improvement projects that had been postponed due to cost cutting. A typical question is simply, “What TMS (Transportation Management System) should I buy?”… Which TMS is best for you?

Every company that ships products to customers on a regular basis – and which does not now employ some form of automated transportation management and execution system – can reduce costs and improve customer service by adopting the appropriate TMS solution. It is rarely a question of whether a TMS should be used; it is […]

Freight pricing has been an interest of mine for many years, particularly the pricing of less-than-truckload freight. This somewhat ambiguous category encompasses shipments weighing typically between 100 and 10,000 lbs. A white paper entitled, The Path to Density Based Pricing: Connecting Domestic LTL Pricing to the Global Supply Chain, published by SMC3 in 2008, places the current status of LTL pricing in the […]

The North American intermodal freight system is being transformed. The Class 1 railways are in the process of making significant investments that will reshape and revitalize this important mode of transport… Intermodal tsunami coming to North American transportation

Companies that exhibit Best Practices in Transportation tend to be those that are led and managed by excellent people who part of a well planned organization structure. Transportation is one of the pillars of supply chain management. In small organizations the leader of the transportation function needs to be well schooled in the key elements of supply chain management. […]