Art van Bodegraven was, among other roles, chief design officer for the DES Leadership Academy. He passed away on June 18, 2017. He will be greatly missed.
It's rare that packaging gets much attention in discussions on supply chain management. And that's dangerous. Packaging is one of the many elements of SCM that has to be got right for successful day-to-day supply chain operations.
Those who think that packaging doesn't matter are the same ones who think that distribution center operation is no more complicated than "boxes in and boxes out." Of course, packaging specialists can get a little carried away with the world-saving attributes of their arcane specialties, but the truth is, we wouldn't have much of a supply chain without packaging.
As for what packaging does, it's hard to know where to begin. Consider a few of the many diverse roles packaging plays. Among other functions, it:
Encloses products, large and small;
Contains selling quantities, from one to many;
Identifies contents, via text, bar codes, and radiofrequency tags;
Advertises and promotes suppliers and products;
Arrays contents within a larger package;
Aligns and stabilizes irregular shaped items;
Enables efficient handling at numerous quantity breaks, such as the unit, case, or pallet;
Insulates contents against heat or cold;
Protects products from moisture or, conversely, permits moisture to escape;
Maintains storage medium integrity, whether liquid or gas;
Deters degradation of a product's sensory attributes;
Provides a barrier between the product and contaminants;
Diminishes risks of damage from movement or vibration;
Protects items from physical (handling) damage;
Supports efficient space utilization;
Enables safe, efficient movement and handling; and
Promotes reuse and recycling.
There's no doubt more. Packaging is much, much more than "the box it came in." And the science of packaging involves far more than how to orient the corrugated for efficient mill runs.
Some specialty areas
There are separate and distinct packaging techniques and attributes in different industries. Packaging for electronics and technology is a world unto itself, as is food packaging. Frozen food has a unique set of concerns, as does the beverage segment. Wine alone has seen a series of packaging revolutions, from synthetics to replace natural cork stoppers to screw-top closures. From a logistics standpoint, the wine "box," made possible by special spouts/closures that keep air out during pouring, radically alters the shipment and cube/weight characteristics of store/consumer-level units.
Relatively recent packaging developments are having a tremendous effect on reverse logistics. Actually, a return to fundamentals is having that effect. Time was when packaging was recyclable, returnable, reusable. Then, materials and manufacturing became so inexpensive that we turned to what we thought was disposable packaging.
The elements of the equation have been changing, though, and practices that were once socially acceptable and economically attractive are less so. The increase in the use of returnable totes, bins, and boxes has been noticeable, although petroleum price increases have made plastics more expensive. The logistics implications of these alternatives to disposable/recyclable corrugated include both the routing and handling for the reverse trip, as well as the cube implications of the nesting and collapsible options.
Returnables can also involve cleaning requirements to eliminate contamination and extend their usable life.
It's a lot to think about.
Back to school
One early leader in the field was Michigan State's School of Packaging, where Dr. Diana Twede has succeeded Paul Peoples as resident guru. And the school's Hugh Lockhart has developed a comprehensive approach to the analysis of packaging, "The Packaging Matrix," that links the full range of packaging functions (not simply those related to supply chain operations) with the environments in which packaging comes into play. The functional groupings of protection, utility, and communication are matched with human, biospheric, and physical environments.
Eight of the matrix's nine cells relate in some fashion to supply chain operations and/or physical handling at either the consumer or the commercial level. In the physical realm—supply chain operations—elements of protection include cushioning, external shipping containers, corner posts, air bags, filler materials, and compression strength for stacking. Utility components include stretch wrap, shrink wrap, self-heating and self-cooling packages, freezerto- oven capability, ergonomically sized containers, and handles for carrying. Communications examples include warning and/or handling signage (e.g., "this side up"), RFID, pictorials, and temperature/stacking limitations.
Biospheric elements protect products (and those who handle them) and permit extended supply chain/shelf life times. They encompass amber colors, UV absorbers, oxygen barriers/absorbers, films, wet strength external packaging, controlled atmospheres, edible films, time/temperature indicators, and pictorials.
In the human environment, protection functions are exemplified by tamper-evident features, child-resistant closures, and designs that don't demand scissors or knives (or hand axes) to open. Utility functions include reclosable and/or easy-to-open designs, ergonomic shapes, talking packages, and the like.
Where packaging plays—and pays
You may correctly deduce from the above that we think packaging is integral to supply chain management, indeed, to the whole of a product's success.
We also submit that packaging takes on added importance in extended global supply chains. There's more handling, often involving less sophisticated people and equipment. Ocean container transport involves different stresses than over-the-road trucking might. Standards might be different— and variable—in diverse sourcing locations.
National regulations and consumer sensitivities are certainly different. It's our challenge to define packaging requirements throughout the supply chain if we expect to preserve the safety and quality levels we've been taking for granted for all these years.
Supply chain planning (SCP) leaders working on transformation efforts are focused on two major high-impact technology trends, including composite AI and supply chain data governance, according to a study from Gartner, Inc.
"SCP leaders are in the process of developing transformation roadmaps that will prioritize delivering on advanced decision intelligence and automated decision making," Eva Dawkins, Director Analyst in Gartner’s Supply Chain practice, said in a release. "Composite AI, which is the combined application of different AI techniques to improve learning efficiency, will drive the optimization and automation of many planning activities at scale, while supply chain data governance is the foundational key for digital transformation.”
Their pursuit of those roadmaps is often complicated by frequent disruptions and the rapid pace of technological innovation. But Gartner says those leaders can accelerate the realized value of technology investments by facilitating a shift from IT-led to business-led digital leadership, with SCP leaders taking ownership of multidisciplinary teams to advance business operations, channels and products.
“A sound data governance strategy supports advanced technologies, such as composite AI, while also facilitating collaboration throughout the supply chain technology ecosystem,” said Dawkins. “Without attention to data governance, SCP leaders will likely struggle to achieve their expected ROI on key technology investments.”
The British logistics robot vendor Dexory this week said it has raised $80 million in venture funding to support an expansion of its artificial intelligence (AI) powered features, grow its global team, and accelerate the deployment of its autonomous robots.
A “significant focus” continues to be on expanding across the U.S. market, where Dexory is live with customers in seven states and last month opened a U.S. headquarters in Nashville. The Series B will also enhance development and production facilities at its UK headquarters, the firm said.
The “series B” funding round was led by DTCP, with participation from Latitude Ventures, Wave-X and Bootstrap Europe, along with existing investors Atomico, Lakestar, Capnamic, and several angels from the logistics industry. With the close of the round, Dexory has now raised $120 million over the past three years.
Dexory says its product, DexoryView, provides real-time visibility across warehouses of any size through its autonomous mobile robots and AI. The rolling bots use sensor and image data and continuous data collection to perform rapid warehouse scans and create digital twins of warehouse spaces, allowing for optimized performance and future scenario simulations.
Originally announced in September, the move will allow Deutsche Bahn to “fully focus on restructuring the rail infrastructure in Germany and providing climate-friendly passenger and freight transport operations in Germany and Europe,” Werner Gatzer, Chairman of the DB Supervisory Board, said in a release.
For its purchase price, DSV gains an organization with around 72,700 employees at over 1,850 locations. The new owner says it plans to investment around one billion euros in coming years to promote additional growth in German operations. Together, DSV and Schenker will have a combined workforce of approximately 147,000 employees in more than 90 countries, earning pro forma revenue of approximately $43.3 billion (based on 2023 numbers), DSV said.
After removing that unit, Deutsche Bahn retains its core business called the “Systemverbund Bahn,” which includes passenger transport activities in Germany, rail freight activities, operational service units, and railroad infrastructure companies. The DB Group, headquartered in Berlin, employs around 340,000 people.
“We have set clear goals to structurally modernize Deutsche Bahn in the areas of infrastructure, operations and profitability and focus on the core business. The proceeds from the sale will significantly reduce DB’s debt and thus make an important contribution to the financial stability of the DB Group. At the same time, DB Schenker will gain a strong strategic owner in DSV,” Deutsche Bahn CEO Richard Lutz said in a release.
Transportation industry veteran Anne Reinke will become president & CEO of trade group the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) at the end of the year, stepping into the position from her previous post leading third party logistics (3PL) trade group the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), both organizations said today.
Meanwhile, TIA today announced that insider Christopher Burroughs would fill Reinke’s shoes as president & CEO. Burroughs has been with TIA for 13 years, most recently as its vice president of Government Affairs for the past six years, during which time he oversaw all legislative and regulatory efforts before Congress and the federal agencies.
Before her four years leading TIA, Reinke spent two years as Deputy Assistant Secretary with the U.S. Department of Transportation and 16 years with CSX Corporation.
Serious inland flooding and widespread power outages are likely to sweep across Florida and other Southeast states in coming days with the arrival of Hurricane Helene, which is now predicted to make landfall Thursday evening along Florida’s northwest coast as a major hurricane, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
While the most catastrophic landfall impact is expected in the sparsely-population Big Bend area of Florida, it’s not only sea-front cities that are at risk. Since Helene is an “unusually large storm,” its flooding, rainfall, and high winds won’t be limited only to the Gulf Coast, but are expected to travel hundreds of miles inland, the weather service said. Heavy rainfall is expected to begin in the region even before the storm comes ashore, and the wet conditions will continue to move northward into the southern Appalachians region through Friday, dumping storm total rainfall amounts of up to 18 inches. Specifically, the major flood risk includes the urban areas around Tallahassee, metro Atlanta, and western North Carolina.
In addition to its human toll, the storm could exert serious business impacts, according to the supply chain mapping and monitoring firm Resilinc. Those will be largely triggered by significant flooding, which could halt oil operations, force mandatory evacuations, restrict ports, and disrupt air traffic.
While the storm’s track is currently forecast to miss the critical ports of Miami and New Orleans, it could still hurt operations throughout the Southeast agricultural belt, which produces products like soybeans, cotton, peanuts, corn, and tobacco, according to Everstream Analytics.
That widespread footprint could also hinder supply chain and logistics flows along stretches of interstate highways I-10 and I-75 and on regional rail lines operated by Norfolk Southern and CSX. And Hurricane Helene could also likely impact business operations by unleashing power outages, deep flooding, and wind damage in northern Florida portions of Georgia, Everstream Analytics said.
Before the storm had even touched Florida soil, recovery efforts were already being launched by humanitarian aid group the American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN). In a statement on Wednesday, the group said it is urging residents in the storm's path across the Southeast to heed evacuation notices and safety advisories, and reminding members of the logistics community that their post-storm help could be needed soon. The group will continue to update its Disaster Micro-Site with Hurricane Helene resources and with requests for donated logistics assistance, most of which will start arriving within 24 to 72 hours after the storm’s initial landfall, ALAN said.