In a move to bring white-glove asset tracking in house, Southwest Airlines has unveiled Cargo Companion, a cellular-based device that can track shipments as well as monitor temperature, humidity and other useful information. It is being targeted at shippers of high-value perishables, time-critical parts and irreplaceable items.

Aljex Software Inc., a vendor of software and systems for third-party logistics providers and carriers, is offering free accounts to carriers and brokers willing to serve as beta testers for software improvements.

CTL Global Inc. has opened a new warehouse in Bensenville, Ill. The facility was designed to meet the needs of the company's clients while accommodating future growth within its final-mile delivery division, Continental Transportation Solutions.

Aberdeen Group has published a slue of new reports from its various practices on such topics as sales and marketing effectiveness, IT infrastructure/storage and virtualization, and supply chain management.

Nearly one-third of distribution centers are entirely outsourced, according to the survey-based Supply Chain Metrics Report released by the Tompkins Supply Chain Consortium.

Inttra, an electronic commerce network for linking ocean carriers and shippers, is expanding its service to include members and customers of the WorldWide Alliance.

The newest versions of Epicor Software Corp.'s enterprise resource planning (ERP) application and business software sold under the Epicor iScala brand will both support Microsoft Corp.'s SQL Server 2012.

Avnet Inc., a distributor of electronic components, computer products and related technology, has opened a full-service technology integration center in Joinville, Brazil.

Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. has opened new service centers in Wisconsin and Southern California. The Duluth Service Center, located on five acres in Superior, Wis., will serve customers in Twin Ports and more than a dozen cities in northern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin, the company.

In 2011, the business analytics market extended its post-2009 recovery with another stellar performance by growing worldwide revenues 14.1 percent year over year. International Data Corporation forecasts that it will continue to grow at a 9.8 percent compound annual growth rate through 2016 to reach $50.7bn. Helping to drive this growth is media attention focused on Big Data, putting broader business analytics on the agenda of more senior executives.