May 2008 Contents

Cover Story

PROCUREMENT PERFORMANCE

ANDREW COX provides an explanation. Why are some industry sectors able to achieve higher procurement performance levels than others?

Most senior procurement managers want to know how competent their organization is compared with others. This means that they need to know how m...

Market Moves

CDN – THE NEXT BUZZWORD IN SUPPLY CHAIN?

Bringing different companies together in Combined Distribution Networks (CDNs) can produce significant gains in supply chain performance, says Raymon Krishnan.

The Logistics & Supply Chain Management Society (LSCMS) has commissioned research in the area of Combined Distribution Networks (CDNs) and the ...

Portfolio

REVITALIZE EXISTING SYSTEMS

After many years of service, material handling systems may no longer adequately meet today’s demands. Upgrading an existing system may be all t...

INTEGRATED PRINTER TARGETS MOBILE WORKERS

The PW50 from Intermec is a rugged work-board printer that provides a convenient, integrated solution to simplify operations for workers in Di...

PLANNING FOR COMPLEX ENVIRONMENTS

Targeting complex manufacturing environments in the process industries and fast moving consumer goods, ILOG Plant PowerOps 3.0, the latest ...

GPS BOOSTS LOCATION-BASED PRODUCTIVITY

The MC70 Enterprise Digital Assistant (EDA) from Motorola now comes in a GPS version to enable location-based productivity for field based emplo...

Strategy & Business

'THE PROCUREMENT FUNCTION MUST BE TRANSFORMED'

If procurement continues to be focused on reducing costs and negotiating price reductions it is destined to remain an isolated and insignificant component of the business, says JASBIR SINGH.

Five years ago, if you told a CEO or CFO that the head of procurement would become a direct report, you would likely have drawn suspicious gla...

SMOOTH SAILING

By KENNETH BYBJERG. Faced with the challenge to keep their vessels constantly on the move, ship owners have to ensure a ready and reliable supply of spare parts.

Today, some 90 percent of the world’s commerce moves across oceans, seas and rivers. With increasing globalization, the demand for capacity to ...

Track & Trace

LASER OR IMAGER?

Deciding which bar code scanning technology – laser scanning or digital imaging – is right for your application requires careful consideration of a variety of factors.

Over the past few decades, bar code scanning has become the data capture technology of choice, enhancing processes in virtually every industry ...

Handling & Storage

MOVING THE AGV WAY

By BOB TREBILCOCK. Automatic guided vehicles can replace lift trucks or conveyors to move product safely around your facility.

Whether you're working in a warehouse or manufacturing plant, how you move product from Point A to Point B will have a lot to dowith the product...

LOOKING AHEAD

Officially unveiled at this year's NA2008 material handling show in Cleveland, the industry's first industrial mobile robot tugger is already producing good returns for early adopters.

GENCO Supply Chain Solutions is North America's second largest provider of supply chain services. In GENCO's reverse logistics center in Grove ...

HOW FLAT IS FLAT?

Slower speeds and shorter lifespans for vehicles are two consequences of that warehouse floor not being flat enough. So just how do you get to the right flatness level?

Flat is flat, right? Well, not necessarily. When it comes to concrete floors, there are degrees of flatness. They range from "conventional" to ...

FUEL CELL FUTURE

Fuel cells have been making news in the lift truck industry for several years, and now they're being implemented as a power source forautomatic ...

Vertical View

DRIVERS OF THE INDUSTRY

By TRANSPORT INTELLIGENCE (Ti). Along with design and production excellence, logistics is increasingly recognized as a factor in the success of the world's automotive manufacturers.

Over recent years, logistics has risen up the corporate agenda of almost all vehicle manufacturers (VMs). Most now either have programs in plac...

Industry News

INTERCONTINENTAL EXPRESS FROM TNT

With customers in the high-tech, equipment and machinery and healthcare sectors increasingly moving large volumes of high-value goods between S...

3PL SUMMIT ADDRESSES KEY ISSUES

The Asia Pacific 3PL Summit, held over three days in Singapore in April, provided a valuable, interactive platform for the industry to connect,...

MOBILE APPROACH TO COLD STORAGE

They may be more expensive compared to conventional pallet racking systems, but the increased capacity (over 100 percent) enabled by mobile rac...

YCH RECOGNIZED FOR SUPPLY CHAIN SECURITY

Singapore-based YCH Group has become the first end-toend supply chain management (SCM) provider in the world to receive international supply c...

UPS SUPPORTS DISASTER RELIEF

UPS has announced that it is contributing more than US$1 million (7 million RMB) in cash and in-kind support to the earthquake relief efforts i...

The Logistics & Supply Chain Management Society

Having been successfully launched more than three years ago, the 4th Annual Logistics Awards will be expanded to include the 120,000 plus Logist...

Editors Comment

DRIVE MY CAR

Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney was in the news again recently. The long-time advocate of once alternative pursuits such as vegetarianism and environmen...

C-Level Conversation

CHALLENGING CUSTOMERS

Today's customers are looking for proactive partners with the expertise to challenge established ways of operating supply chains and to suggest solutions that will increase performance and reduce costs, says TONY HOTINE, Regional Manager, Maersk Logistics. He talks to Bob Gill.

Tony Hotine was recently appointed as Regional Manager, Maersk Logistics Asia-Pacific. Based in Singapore, he is responsible for both the suppl...