The Top Stories in Surface Transportation in 2019

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The Top Stories in Surface Transportation in 2019

5 years ago

Here is my annual recap of the major trends that shaped the Surface Transportation industry during the past year. 1. The Reboot – The Trucking Industry goes into a Freight Recession in 2019 After a booming first three quarters of 2018, the trucking industry contracted in the fourth quarter; by mid-April of 2019, it became […]

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Mid-Year Report on the Freight Transportation Industry

5 years ago

These are the major developments shaping the freight transportation industry in North America in the second half of 2019. 1. We are entering a period of Economic Uncertainty Despite a climate of record low unemployment levels, low inflation, a positive ISM manufacturing index and other encouraging economic indicators, the US Federal Reserve cut interest […]

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Will Shippers and Carriers ever be able to Trust Each Other?

6 years ago

It is hard to believe that a decade has gone by since the Great Recession. Those of us in the Freight Transportation Industry at that time remember the sharp drop in business activity and freight volumes. This encouraged many shippers to conduct multiple freight bids during that period to use (abuse) their freight rate […]

Engage your Business Partners in your Supply Chain Decisions

6 years ago

Carrier costing models have evolved over the past couple of decades. Freight rates are based on the complete set of transportation-related processes at origin, in transit, and at destination, to serve each client. To effectively manage freight expenses, shippers must have a full understanding of all three elements. Shippers with weak shipping order procedures and […]

Are We Heading Into Another Freight Recession?

6 years ago

Global Economic Outlook Early this month, the International Monetary Fund downgraded its outlook for growth in the United States, Europe, Japan and the overall global economy and pointed to heightened trade tensions as a key reason. U.S. trade talks with China continue without resolution, and there are indications that the rate of Chinese economic growth […]

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A Checklist for CEOs Seeking to Control Freight Costs in 2019

6 years ago

The subject of rising freight transportation costs has come up on the earnings calls and quarterly reports of almost every publicly traded manufacturer and retailer in 2018. This has been a very challenging year as many transportation expense budgets were shattered by a host of variables including a driver shortage, the ELD mandate and a […]

The New Realities of Procuring Freight Transportation Services

6 years ago

Those of us who came into the freight transportation industry in the 80s and 90s remember when there were distinct sets of service providers. There were small parcel carriers, LTL carriers, full truckload service providers and rail carload operators. Of course, during slow times, truckload carriers would move some large LTL shipments. The small parcel […]

The 10th Anniversary Surface Transportation Summit Will Address many of the Key Issues Facing Professionals in this Industry

6 years ago

Ten years ago, my colleagues at Newcom Business Media and Dan Goodwill & Associates set out to create a high quality educational and networking event for Transportation Professionals and Decision-Makers. From humble beginnings, the conference has evolved into Canada’s premier event in the Surface Transportation Industry. The Surface Transportation Summit now attracts hundreds of Logistics […]

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An Action Plan to Optimize the Money Spent on Freight Transportation

7 years ago

In my last blog, I identified one of the recurring problems we encounter in working with shippers on a day to day basis, namely a lack of complete and accurate information on their freight transportation activities and expenses. I would argue that “you cannot manage what you cannot measure.” Good quality freight data is […]

Manage your Freight Spend Data to Improve Your Profitability

7 years ago

For the past 15 years, my colleagues and I have been working with shippers throughout North America to help them save money on freight transportation. In 2018, this cost has hit the radar screens of CEOs, as the tightness in freight capacity has placed upward pressure on freight rates. Many shippers have been experiencing rate […]