Ben Ames has spent 20 years as a journalist since starting out as a daily newspaper reporter in Pennsylvania in 1995. From 1999 forward, he has focused on business and technology reporting for a number of trade journals, beginning when he joined Design News and Modern Materials Handling magazines. Ames is author of the trail guide "Hiking Massachusetts" and is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism.
It appears to have found that buyer in Aptean, a deep-pocketed firm that is backed by the private equity firms TA Associates, Insight Partners, Charlesbank Capital Partners, and Clearlake Capital Group.
Through the purchase, Aptean will gain Logility’s customer catalog of over 500 clients in 80 countries, spanning the consumer durable goods, apparel/accessories, food and beverage, industrial manufacturing, fast moving consumer goods, wholesale distribution, and chemicals verticals.
Aptean will also now own the firm’s technology, which Logility says includes demand planning, inventory and supply optimization, manufacturing operations, network design, and vendor and sourcing management.
“Logility possesses years of experience helping global organizations design, build, and manage their supply chains” Aptean CEO TVN Reddy said in a release. “The Logility platform delivers a mission-critical suite of AI-powered supply chain planning solutions designed to address even the most complex requirements. We look forward to welcoming Logility’s loyal customers and experienced team to Aptean.”
“ExxonMobil is uniquely placed to understand the biggest opportunities in improving energy supply chains, from more accurate sales and operations planning, increased agility in field operations, effective management of enormous transportation networks and adapting quickly to complex regulatory environments,” John Sicard, Kinaxis CEO, said in a release.
Specifically, Kinaxis and ExxonMobil said they will focus on a supply and demand planning solution for the complicated fuel commodities market which has no industry-wide standard and which relies heavily on spreadsheets and other manual methods. The solution will enable integrated refinery-to-customer planning with timely data for the most accurate supply/demand planning, balancing and signaling.
The benefits of that approach could include automated data visibility, improved inventory management and terminal replenishment, and enhanced supply scenario planning that are expected to enable arbitrage opportunities and decrease supply costs.
And in the chemicals and lubricants space, the companies are developing an advanced planning solution that provides manufacturing and logistics constraints management coupled with scenario modelling and evaluation.
“Last year, we brought together all ExxonMobil supply chain activities and expertise into one centralized organization, creating one of the largest supply chain operations in the world, and through this identified critical solution gaps to enable our businesses to capture additional value,” said Staale Gjervik, supply chain president, ExxonMobil Global Services Company. “Collaborating with Kinaxis, a leading supply chain technology provider, is instrumental in providing solutions for a large and complex business like ours.”
The cloud-based solution, now called QAD Advanced Scheduling, optimizes production decisions by determining what products to make on each production line in the best possible sequence to minimize changeovers, optimize inventory, and align cost and service goals.
According to Santa Barbara, California-based QAD, manufacturers seek technology to become more efficient, agile and resilient in their pursuit of better competitiveness and profitability. The firm says its platform helps in these areas by scheduling related products together, in the best sequence, with visibility to inventories, capacity, product attributes and changeover costs. This improves the synchronization of manufacturing processes, resource utilization and on-time delivery, while also helping to reduce inventory levels and waste.
Laguna Beach, California-based Phenix Software Inc. originated from Zinata Inc. seven years ago after identifying that customers were experiencing major performance loss due to suboptimal changeovers and inventory levels, with no suitable tool to sustain the gains made with existing scheduling solutions. Committed to continuing to provide the best scheduling solutions available, Zinata has since become a QAD distributor to sell, support, and implement the product as a partner.
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About this week's guest
Breanna Herbert is senior product manager at Orbis Corporation. She has a strong focus on supply chain sustainability and specializes in reusable packaging for the automotive industry.
Herbert has five years of product management product management at Orbis. She currently oversees the management of Orbis' Industrial pallet and tote product line. In this capacity, she collaborates closely with the custom product-line team to ensure that the products chosen match the application needs of each company.
Beyond her core product management responsibilities, Herbert has played a pivotal role in the development of Orbis' LCA calculator, which lets companies assess the environmental impact of their packaging choices.
Supply chain software provider Generix Group today named a new president, saying that Raphaël Sanchez, who has been the company’s chief revenue officer since April 2023, succeeds Aïda Collette-Sène.
The Montreal-based company says its goal remains the same: to empower businesses of all sizes to digitize supply chain and finance processes, as well as to connect customers and suppliers, placing data at the core of flow management.
In a statement, the company’s owners—Montefiore Investment and Pléiade Investissement, alongside Generix Group management—said the new leader would lead Generix’ development phase, anchoring the cloud and AI at the core of digital applications and technologies, while facilitating the transition of existing and future clients to the cloud (SaaS).
"Aïda Collette-Sène's efforts since 2018, particularly during her presidency in 2022, provided Generix with the human and financial resources for its transformation and international development. With the transformation foundation set, we can now launch the cloud (SaaS) acceleration phase, building upon the work already done,” the group said. “We thank Aïda for her invaluable contribution to the company's success in the recent years. We are confident that Raphaël Sanchez will bring the strategic vision and leadership needed for the company to succeed in its new phase of growth and innovation."
Sanchez, 44, worked previously at IBM France in the Data and BI domains, eventually heading IBM Software Group France sales and later IBM Global Technology Infrastructure Services France. In 2020, Raphaël led the separation of the services entity in France with the creation of Kyndryl.
Challenged by a complex supply chain and volatile business conditions stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic, leaders at equipment manufacturer Core Health & Fitness realized they needed to revamp their logistics strategy to stay competitive. The company turned to Chicago-based fourth-party logistics services provider (4PL) Redwood Logistics in early 2022 to get a better handle on its supply chain problems and today is reaping the rewards of an integrated, tech-based logistics solution that provides greater visibility across its manufacturing supply chain.
“Our partnership with Redwood Logistics has been instrumental in overcoming the supply chain challenges brought forth by the pandemic,” Ken Eastman, chief information officer at Core Health & Fitness, said in a statement describing the project. “Redwood’s robust, fully integrated solution has provided us with the end-to-end visibility we required to enhance our global manufacturing supply chain.”
MANAGING VOLATILITY
Navigating the ups and downs of the pandemic economy was especially difficult for manufacturers like Core Health & Fitness, which makes, sells, installs, and supports commercial fitness equipment and related digital solutions—the company is an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for some of the fitness industry’s top-tier brands, including Stairmaster, Schwinn, and Nautilus. Core’s already complex and evolving supply chain ecosystem was further strained by the shifting consumer habits that accompanied the pandemic years—from an early explosion in demand for at-home gym equipment to a return to more normal conditions at different times in different places. Company leaders decided they needed a logistics partner that could help them manage the volatility.
As a 4PL, Redwood Logistics develops customized end-to-end supply chain solutions for shippers using its logistics-platform-as-a-service (LPaaS) model, an open platform that allows customers to mix and match partners, technologies, and solutions to create their own unique, digital logistics footprint. Redwood leveraged its expertise to improve transportation management, cross-border trade, and visibility throughout the Core Health network.
PUTTING TECHNOLOGY TO WORK
To address Core Health & Fitness’s challenges, Redwood applied what company leaders described as a “unique combination of logistics execution and supply chain technology” to improve overall business processes, service, and the overall experience for Core Health’s customers as well as its internal stakeholders. Redwood started by implementing Oracle Transportation Management (OTM) software as well as Oracle’s Global Trade Management (GTM) solution. The 4PL then integrated the project44 real-time visibility platform into the solution via RedwoodConnect, enhancing visibility across Core’s supply chain. Leveraging the 4PL’s logistics expertise, Redwood managers then analyzed Core’s less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping data to find rate savings that would fund some of the technology enhancements.
The end result? A nearly 9% savings in LTL costs that has allowed Core Health & Fitness to invest in further technology upgrades to enhance that desired end-to-end visibility. In turn, the improved visibility is helping the company provide better, more agile service to its customers and business partners.
“We’re now not only able to ensure a seamless customer experience but also to further solidify our commitment to quality and innovation in the fitness industry,” Eastman said in the statement.