Logistics Matters with DC VELOCITY

Our guest on this week's episode is  Troy Basso, VP, Fleet Maintenance at Quantix.  We have witnessed the spike in diesel fuel prices over the past year, and those prices and a desire to turn to more environmentally-friendly fuels have led some companies to move to electric vehicles for their fleets. What does it take to transition from diesel to electric power for a fleet’s trucks? Our guest...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Mark Dancer, CEO of the Network for Business Innovation. He is a speaker for two sessions at next week's CSCMP EDGE conference in Nashville. He shares some of his insights and previews his presentations, including his view that supply chains are not really broken, but are being reborn. He also discusses the need for resilient, responsive, and regenera...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Melissa Williams. She is an independent owner-operator truck driver. She shares why she was interested in becoming a trucker and what life on the road is like for a woman driver who owns her own rig. Peak retail season is fast approaching and retailers are trying to figure out whether shoppers will be returning to stores after two years of heavy pandemic-i...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Simon Geale, chief procurement officer at supply chain consultancy firm Proxima. China has been suffering under a severe heat wave and drought, with daily temperatures in many regions above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). The heat has shut down factories on top of the Covid-related shutdowns that are part of China's zero-tolerance Covid ...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Mark Ford, chief capacity officer at BlueGrace Logistics. As the trucking industry continues to ride out the uncertain economy, it puts pressures on small fleet carriers to steer carefully to adjust to the volatility. He discusses the current status of the trucking sector and the effects on small fleets and owner operators.  What steps can they take to ass...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Dan MacGregor, co-founder of Nexxiot, a global digitalization and IoT company. As supply chains are about to enter into peak season, we ask: Are they ready for the busiest time of the year? MacGregor talks about the current state of supply chains and what technology can do to streamline operations. The FDA has announced new regulations on shipping certain...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Tom Nightingale, CEO at AFS Logistics. He addresses how inflation, fuel surcharges, and other economic pressures are affecting freight markets. He offers perspective on Q3 performance and what to expect for freight as we head into peak season. The recent changes at the U.S. Postal Service are reflected in its latest earnings report. One of the new changes...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Kenny Vieth, president and senior analyst at Americas Commercial Transportation Research Company - better known as ACT Research. He discusses his company's predictions of an economic recession in the first half of 2023 and how the trucking industry is already teetering on recession. What does this mean for freight markets, and what can companies do to...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Chris Shimoda, vice president of government affairs for the California Trucking Association. He is here to discuss California's Assembly Bill #5, better known as AB5. Until just a couple of weeks ago, the law had been tied up in appeals since it was passed in 2019, but it could soon go into enforcement. Essentially, it redefines contract workers'...

Our guest on this week's episode is  Senthil Rajagopalan, president and COO of Profit.co. When consumer demand goes up sharply, manufacturers ramp up production to meet that demand. But it does not all happen at once. Often, they produce more than is needed and not always with the right timing. That creates a bullwhip effect for our supply chains. Rajagopalan discusses the impacts of the bull...

Our guest on this week's episode is Ian Khan, writer, futurist, and founder of The Futuracy Group consulting organization. He is also a CNN Technology Futurist, a contributor to Forbes, Business.com , Entrepreneur, and Accounting Web. The importance of supply chains has been shown during the past few months, and it really is the people behind them that make the difference. How will working in...

Our guest on this week's episode is Christopher Tang, the UCLA distinguished professor and Edward W. Carter Chair in Business Administration and also the faculty director of UCLA's Center for Global Management. We have all seen product shortages this summer, including a well-publicized shortage of infant meal formula. Professor Tang discusses what is causing shortages, both from supply c...

Our guest on this week's episode is Dimitre Kirilov, president of consumer services for Montway Auto Transport. A shortage of qualified drivers has been a reality for years in the trucking industry. With the low unemployment rate, it does not appear that the tight market for drivers will get any better. Our guest talks about what trucking firms need to do to attract new drivers and to retain...

Our guest on this week's episode is Glenn Richey, the Raymond J. Harbert Eminent Scholar and chair of the Department of Supply Chain Management at Auburn University's Harbert College of Business. We have seen the huge spike in fuel prices over the past couple of months. Are these higher prices here to stay? What has caused the price surges and is there anything that can be done by govern...

Our guest on this week's episode is Jonathan Dawley, president and CEO of Kion North America, a leading manufacturer of forklifts and other material handling equipment. Dawley is also chair of this year's National Forklift Safety Day. Sponsored by the Industrial Truck Association (ITA), this is a day set aside each year to promote safe practices around forklift operations. ITA organizati...

Our guest in this week's episode is Alex Saric, chief marketing officer at Ivalua. He is here to share about new research that has just come out that shows how better collaboration with suppliers can help to minimize supply disruptions, improve sustainability efforts, and promote innovation. He shares details on these findings and more. Gartner's annual list of the Global Supply Chain To...

Our guest in this week's episode is Jim Carlisle, the head of the technology and business solutions vertical and the automation fund at Thomas H. Lee Partners. T.H. Lee has recently acquired or been a major investor in some of the supply chain industry's biggest names, including AutoStore, Fortna, MHS, FourKites, and RightHand Robotics. He speaks to why supply chain companies are so attr...

Our guest in this week's episode is Mike Bush, head of communications and brand for Next Trucking, a digital freight broker. As automation and robotics continues to impact supply chains, the question remains: Where we will find the technicians and robotic engineers the industry needs to keep the technology running today and advancing to new capabilities tomorrow? Bush talks about his company&...

Our guest in this week's episode is Zac Rogers, assistant professor of supply chain management at Colorado State University. We are hearing conflicting reports of what is going on in freight markets.  Some carriers are struggling with high fuel costs and fewer shipments while others are enjoying record profits. Are we about to enter a collapse of freight markets as some analysts are predictin...

Our guest in this week's episode is Nicole Glenn, founder and CEO of Candor Expedite. She is the recent recipient of the 8th Annual Distinguished Women in Logistics Recognition  by The Women In Trucking Association (WIT), Truckstop.com , and Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA). She joins us to talk about the current state of the transportation sector and where she believes the ind...

This is the 100th episode of Logistics Matters. Our thanks to our guests, sponsors, and listeners for making this a successful podcast series. Our guest in this week's episode is Michael Mikitka, executive vice president of the MHI Knowledge Center and the Warehousing Education and Research Council (WERC). He discusses the roles of both organizations in education and professional development....

Our guest in this week's episode is Susan Boylan, senior research director in logistics and customer fulfillment at Gartner. Today is Earth Day, a day each year when we reflect on our planet and the impacts that we make on the environment. Transportation and supply chains are among the leading sources of greenhouse gasses. Is the industry making any progress on sustainability goals? What more...

Our guest in this week's episode is Dawn Tiura, president and CEO of SIG (Sourcing Industry Group), a membership organization of companies involved in sourcing raw materials and finished goods. She discusses the impacts of China's Zero-Covid policy of locking down major cities to slow the spread of Covid. The latest example is Shanghai, China's most populous city. Unfortunately, the...

Our guest in this week's episode is Kathy Fulton, executive director of ALAN, the American Logistics Aid Network. Logistics companies are stepping up to make a difference in Ukraine. She talks about ALAN's role in trying to bring together those logistics companies that have resources available, such as transportation, to help relief efforts in Ukraine and neighboring nations where refuge...

Today we're repeating our March 18 episode on postal reform for those who might have missed it. We'll be back next week with a new episode. We'll talk about relief efforts for Ukraine and the many refugees that are crossing into Poland and other nations with Kathy Fulton of the American Logistics Aid Network. ------------------------------ Our guest in this week's episode is fo...