Supply chain

Exports of recyclables, a key backhaul commodity for container lines, could decline again this year due to global COVID-19 issues, especially in India.

Food shippers and their logistics providers expect consumers to continue shopping online for groceries and cooking more at home even after COVID-19 vaccinations allow a return to restaurants and other dining venues.

E2open’s acquisition of BluJay Solutions is its first since going public in February and gives it more TMS firepower, broader sales reach in Asia, and bolsters its ability to upsell to global forwarders.

project44 has followed its March acquisition of visibility provider Ocean Insights with another deal for competitor ClearMetal, whose customer base is primarily large global manufacturers.

DAT Freight & Analytics said carriers using its load board to find spot market freight will be able to use FourKites’ electronic logging device to provide visibility to shippers.

The speedy addition of new port transloading capacity in New Jersey shows the heightened demand from shippers to avoid congested rail ramps and tight drayage capacity.

Vanguard Logistics has begun providing forwarder customers direct access to rates via Freightos’s WebCargo product, a shift designed to expedite the quoting and booking process.

Exports of paper and forest products fell by double-digit percentages in 2020 and volumes could further slide in 2021 because of China’s tougher environmental stances on recovered paper from the US.

US consumers haven’t finished remodeling homes yet, and high demand is drawing more imports from China and Southeast Asia.

Transportation management systems are widely used by shippers, but transportation consultants contend that because software architecture has changed, cargo owners may be better off cobbling together independent tools to meet their needs.

The National Industrial Transportation League said that the Shipping Act needs to be updated to address the many issues that US shippers have faced over the last 10 months.

Convoy is expanding its drop-and-hook program to cover more spot freight, a move that lets shippers negotiate demand variability without sacrificing the efficiency benefits of pre-staged loads.

After 10 consecutive months of record or near-record import volumes, and seaport-dependent supply chains struggling with congestion, developers this year are focusing on traditional warehouse and import distribution space.

Logistics software startup Splyc is using automation to tackle what it sees as a major issue in container logistics technology: the speed with which information is passed from one system to another.

A new funding round for Zencargo is a further signal that the digital forwarding model has legs in a market where turning to a logistics provider to incorporating data in planning decisions has become the norm.

Optimal Dynamics, a technology provider that helps truckload fleets optimize the deployment of their assets, has landed a large early-stage funding round led by well-regarded venture firm Bessemer.

European digital freight broker sennder has continued its acquisition activity by buying a Dutch dedicated fleet broker to add to its growing network.

Acknowledging the limited authority of the Federal Maritime Commission, new chairman Daniel Maffei wants to take stronger action on so-called unreasonable detention and demurrage.

An integration with transportation software provider MercuryGate connects Trucker Tools to broker users, but also gives it a more direct link to shippers.

The list of container lines able to quote rates and accept bookings through their websites has expanded over the past year, with Singapore-based Ocean Network Express now giving shippers and forwarders such tools.

As truckers and shippers build their own chassis fleets, technology is being introduced to maintain and repair their equipment at the lowest possible costs.

While OEM suppliers and their transportation providers should expect down lines and slower production to weigh on growth, auto aftermarket suppliers are expecting the opposite. 

The importance of integrating rate management capability into a forwarder operating system has driven Descartes to acquire German software maker Portrix, the third such acquisition by a widely used forwarding system in recent years.

New pollution rules approved by the Southern California air quality regulatory board are expected to add about 3 percent to the cost of warehouse operations in Southern California, but not result in cargo diversions.

BluJay Solutions’ acquisition of a rail transportation management software provider rounds out its solutions for shippers that struggle with coordinating rail shipments with movements in other surface transportation modes.

Perishable shippers seeking to wean themselves off a reliance on brokers have a new venture-backed platform that connects them directly with a network of pre-vetted reefer carriers.

As shippers wrestle with atypical constraints on labor and heightened distribution performance demands, venture capital firms have backed warehouse analytics software vendor CognitOps to help them connect disparate systems.

A partnership between AscendTMS and uShip to combine instant LTL capacity with truckload capacity is designed to enable shippers that typically struggle to secure space from LTL regional and national carriers.

project44’s expansion into Asia and a new partnership with a risk management platform signify its aims to augment the number of use cases for transportation visibility.

Drewry is partnering with procurement software vendor Freightender to reinvigorate its procurement services product for shippers in an ocean freight market beset by rapidly changing pricing dynamics.

A detention case involving Evergreen Shipping, Yamaha Motor, and a drayage provider is drawing the attention of the Federal Maritime Commission, which is reviewing the application of its detention and demurrage rules.

The rise of Amazon, Flexport, and other digitally native logistics providers has forced midmarket and enterprise forwarders to upgrade their visibility, analytics, and user interface tools, a mandate Logixboard has oriented its software around.

Mediterranean Shipping Co. piloted an electronic bill of lading with 100 customers, leading to its rollout of a digital BL product designed to increase accuracy and security of the crucial shipping document.

Seattle-based FlavorCloud is designed to enable small e-commerce brands to more easily and profitably sell goods to international consumers through discounted parcel rates and automated customs applications.

DSV continued its growth-by-acquisition strategy with the takeover of Agility’s logistics division that will increase its annual revenue by almost 25 percent.

Limited capacity and strong demand on air and ocean trades out of Asia allowed Kuehne + Nagel to build a solid first quarter.

Third-party logistics and software firms such as C.H. Robinson Worldwide and Blume Global are broadening the use of technology to drive emissions out of supply chains, increasingly for smaller customers as well as global corporations.

Panasonic’s acquisition of widely used supply chain solutions provider Blue Yonder will give the software company broader reach into Asia and connected device data.

A lack of teeth in the offline freight contracting process has led to chronic capacity availability problems, but freight marketplaces see a path to use buyer-seller rules to redraw the terms of engagement.

Retail brands are turning to niche logistics providers to help them fulfill growing direct-to-consumer sales both in their own stores and via online channels.