Since exploding on the scene in 2012, Florida Georgia Line has amassed one of the largest followings in country music. And those passionate fans had the chance to see them up close during their 2019 “Can’t Say I Ain’t Country” tour.

As one of the world’s biggest musical artists, Ed Sheeran doesn’t do things halfway. That was definitely the case with his 2018 North American Stadium Tour in support of his Grammy-winning third album, “Divide.”

No matter what type of shipping option you use, there’s one fact everyone learns pretty quickly – fuel surcharges can add up in a hurry.

The LTL shipping industry is busier than ever. As a result, space within trucks is also tighter than ever before. This places added responsibility on the shoulders of shippers and carriers to ensure that each shipment is packaged as safely and efficiently as possible.

The demand for final mile delivery and white glove delivery services is rapidly growing for large and heavy products that aren't suitable for parcel shipping. These types of residential deliveries generally require the use of two-man delivery teams. Pulling off a successful final mile delivery, however, will require planning and actions on behalf of the recipient. 

Over the past several years, two important challenges have developed for supply chains. First, the growth of online shopping has increased shipping volumes and demand for quick deliveries to consumers. Secondly, the driver shortage has strained freight capacity across multiple areas of the supply chain process.

Together, these challenges have forced shippers to rethink their warehousing and distribution services strategy. This is especially true for shippers that move mid to high volumes of freight across multiple markets.

To that point, look at Amazon's warehousing and distribution services model. Marketplace shippers (and increasingly Amazon's own line of products) sell to customers throughout North America and around the globe. To keep customer prices under control, Amazon understands the value in local and regional warehousing and distribution services.

With approximately 75 fulfillment centers and 25 sortation centers in the U.S. alone, the company's supply chain is structured to reduce final mile transit times and costs. This structure allows sellers to stage inventory across multiple key markets rather than having to ship individual orders hundreds or even thousands of miles.

Well, that warehousing and distribution services strategy is great for Amazon's sellers, but what about B2B and B2C shippers that sell and move products independently? It goes without saying that most businesses lack the capital to build a supply chain infrastructure on the scale of Amazon. Nonetheless, local and regional fulfillment solutions are increasingly becoming available to shippers to meet the growing demands of today's supply chain.

Transportation costs can quickly eat into budgets that involve long haul shipments. As more businesses struggle to find long haul capacity due to the driver shortage, intermodal shipping is increasingly a viable option. 

In late 2018, more than 2,300 shippers participated in our 4th annual State of the North American Supply Chain Survey. The following article examines a portion of the results.

In late 2018, more than 2,300 shippers participated in our 4th annual State of the North American Supply Chain Survey. The following article examines a portion of the results.

For most, 2018 was a very robust year in terms of business growth and shipping. According to the
Commerce Department, the gross domestic product (GDP) reached a 3.5 percent annualized rate in the third quarter. Driven by the Trump administration’s $1.5 trillion tax cut package, businesses took advantage of increased consumer spending to make investments over the course of the year.