Looking at safety statistics, it's easy to conclude that the loading dock is one of the most hazardous areas of your operations. A quarter of all accidents occur there. The majority of these accidents result in the dreaded back injury that, according to OHSA, ultimately ends up costing U.S. companies upwards of $80bn dollars annually.
The rise of just-in-time manufacturing has created a revolution across the supply chains of many industries, including electronics components. But there is a negative.
Modern-day slavery is a human rights violation hidden in the shadows of our globalized markets. Today, it is estimated that tens of millions of adults and children are living in conditions of modern-day slavery around the world.
The Chanler Group, an environmental law firm, reached a settlement on behalf of its client with a Chinese manufacturer of products alleged to contain a reproductive toxin, commonly known as DEHP. This is reportedly the first time that California's Proposition 65, or any American consumer protection statute, has been used as a basis for international prosecution. The Chanler Group and its clients expect this to be the beginning of a new trend, where overseas manufacturers are held accountable for the products they provide for American consumers.
Huawei, the Chinese telecom equipment maker that has been blocked from the U.S. market because of concerns about its alleged ties to China's government, is now pushing for global cybersecurity standards.
Automation appears on its face to be a sound strategic move for a distribution center. But turn the clock back a few years, and vast expensive warehouse automation projects were notorious for proving in practice to be inflexible gridlocks, a bottleneck in the flow of goods heading from factories to customers.