Observing its 20th birthday, NAFTA continues to play a key role in developing trade between the U.S. and Mexico. Troy Ryley, managing director of Mexico with Transplace, outlines the issues that shippers doing business in Mexico face today.
Organizations need an agile supply network to be able to respond to unplanned events and continuing market volatility, says Jake Barr, CEO of BlueWorld Consulting. Barr explains what an agile supply network encompasses and outlines steps that companies can take to build agility into their supply chains.
The heads of Canada's two national railways say there's no need for "burdensome and ill-advised" new federal measures meant to speed up deliveries of grain on the Prairies.
It's fair to say that some mouths dropped in some quarters when word got out that the vice president of supply chain for McDonald's in the UK said he had handshakes rather than formal contracts with key suppliers. In dispensing with the written word, the fast-food chain formed long-term relationships with its partners in food, packaging and distribution, and included them in planning – even helping to set prices and volumes. Said Warren Anderson, "We don’t have contracts, but we do have our very assured supply partnerships with our food and paper suppliers," he said. "A gentleman’s handshake is just as powerful here."
Doug Waggoner, CEO of Echo Logistics, talks about Echo's rapid growth and shares insights on growth strategies that transcend changing economic conditions.
XPO Logistics has grown dramatically, both organically and through acquisitions, including most recently those of Pacer and NLM. CEO Brad Jacobs talks about the integration of these companies and XPO's overall growth strategies.
The rise of e-commerce means that companies must re-think where and how they construct distribution facilities, says Bob Silverman of Jones Lang LaSalle. Silverman notes how other market trends also are impacting facility planning.
