P.M. Executive Briefing - Mar. 24
This Afternoon's Headlines:
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AceFusion.com Offers Logistics Management
Singapore-based AceFusion.com announced an initiative to create an Internet portal focused on supply chain management, particularly in the realm of fulfillment.The portal, called Fusionhub, will serve as a central point of access for shippers, warehouse operators, forwarders, and carriers seeking an e-business solution for domestic and international logistics.
"By fusing the best Internet technologies available, [Fusionhub] provides an open, integrated solution to businesses and their logistics suppliers across geographical and national boundaries," said an AceFusion.com spokesperson.
The site is intended to offer improved fulfillment accuracy to logistics providers, greater control to customers, and strengthened accountability to shippers. Journal of Commerce (03/24/00) P. 21; Bangsberg, P.T.
Trucking Companies Trying to Cut Fuel Costs
Trucking companies have developed various methods to conserve fuel in the face of rising gas prices.Columbia, S.C.-based G&P Trucking has asked its drivers to reduce their speed and not let the trucks idle, and the company's trucks turn off automatically after six minutes of idling. According to South Carolina Trucking Association President Rick Todd, companies track engine efficiency and gas mileage with onboard computers, and trucks used for certain tasks, such as long hauls, may be outfitted with the proper equipment to optimize mileage.
United Parcel Service conserves fuel by having drivers turn off engines during delivery stops, using global positioning systems to track routes and determine the most efficient way to go, and using a long- and short-term fuel purchase program in an effort to maintain consistent fuel prices.
Other methods used by UPS are tracking jet-fuel prices in different locations, so it can fuel its fleet at the lowest prices, and using alternative-fuel vehicles. The State (Columbia, S.C.) Online (03/24/00); Thomas, Maurice
I-10/610 Roadwork
Part of westbound Interstate 10 in the New Orleans area will be shut down between 5 a.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday; trucks will leave the highway at Airline Drive and may reenter at Clearview Parkway.Both directions of I-610 will be shut down Sunday between 5 a.m. and 7 p.m., with the westbound I-10 exit to West End Boulevard shut down Sunday afternoon. The closures are due to asphalt work. New Orleans Times-Picayune (03/24/00) P. A2
Delaware Bill Would Create Trucker Tax Credit for Fuel
Delaware state Senator Harris B. McDowell (D-Wilmington) is sponsoring a bill that would allow a one-time 8.4% income tax credit for owners of trucking outfits based in Delaware, which can be taken on corporate or personal taxes. The senator intends the credit to help small companies hit by high diesel costs.The Delaware Motor Transport Association is backing the bill, which has already gained some co-sponsors and is set to go to the energy and transit committee Wednesday. Newszap.com (03/23/00); Grant, Ken
RESEARCH ALERT - USFreightways Started at Buy
Bear Stearns began coverage of USFreightways, giving it a buy rating and a target price of $50 a share. The company is "well positioned for the new economy," including business to business e-commerce, said analyst Ed Wolfe, who predicts "continued strong yields during 2000 at least." Reuters (03/23/00)Who's a Shipper? Who's Not?
An organization that provides packaging for infections materials to be transported to the organization's laboratories asks hazmat transportation attorney Lawrence W. Bierlein whether that role makes it legally responsible as a hazmat shipper. Bierlein responds that it does, because the statute giving hazmat regulation power to the Transportation Department refers not to a "shipper" but to a "person causing hazardous material to be transported in commerce."He writes that shipper may have many tasks, including classification, proper packaging and markings, or arranging transportation; different tasks may be performed by different entities, and the government will probably examine each of these entities to decide which is chiefly responsible for improper shipments.
Bierlein concludes that contracts should specify the tasks performed by each party as well as the consequences of incorrectly performing specified tasks. Transportation & Distribution Magazine Online (03/00); Bierlein, Lawrence W.
Across the Pond
Smaller companies are gaining opportunities to expand abroad as restrictions on global commerce are abandoned and markets and economies become more interconnected. Reasons for launching an overseas operation include sales expansion, establishing a bigger presence in a new location, improving foreign marketing management, and cutting expenses for labor.Schneider Logistics has started an office in the Netherlands, its first in Europe – due, at first, to a request by Racine, Wis.-based Case Corp., an existing customer with manufacturing plants in Europe. Schneider Logistics planned to provide transportation management, engineering, and computer services, both for its current customers with operations in Europe and for European companies.
The Netherlands was selected because it is centrally located in the continent and workers with the proper skills were available there. Schneider Logistics soon won a contract with TRW Automotive to support TRW's supply chain on a pan-European basis. Schneider Logistics Europe focuses on the customer, not the country, said managing director Eric Fox.
Other companies have gone abroad in search of more qualified employees, to have a location nearer to customers, and to ensure that the supply chain is managed efficiently all along its length. Plants Sites & Parks (03/00) Vol. 27, No. 1; P. 38; Weiskott, Maria N.
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