Deep Dive: Page 3
Industry insights from our journalists
-
Retrieved from Dot's Homestyle Pretzels.
How CPGs are using M&A to boost manufacturing amid supply disruptions
While dealmaking often focuses on food or beverage brands, more companies are buying plants to ramp up production, widen an offering’s reach and lessen dependence on outside manufacturers.
Christopher Doering • Sept. 20, 2022 -
Spencer Platt/Getty Images via Getty Images
How tensions between FedEx Ground and its contractors reached a boiling point
The logistics giant's model for independent delivery providers is broken, an analyst said. One contractor is leading a push for change.
Max Garland • Aug. 25, 2022 -
Photo Illustration: Getty Images; Industry Dive
‘We have to do something’: Can retail close the gap on supply chain emissions?
The industry is woefully behind on scope 3 targets for greenhouse gases. Data poses steep challenges, but experts say retailers still can — and must — do more.
Ben Unglesbee • Aug. 11, 2022 -
Christopher Doering/Supply Chain Dive
Small candy makers rethink operations as supply chain issues bite
Sweets manufacturers are doing away with long-time traditions to weather labor shortages, high costs and unreliable ingredient deliveries.
Christopher Doering • Aug. 4, 2022 -
Spencer Platt via Getty Images
Makers of COVID-19 tests shift focus as testing wanes
Startups that grew quickly from large contracts are looking nervously to a new future, as demand plummets for mass testing and shifts to homes.
Elise Reuter • July 27, 2022 -
Courtesy of Rocket 88 Books
Waiting for 'Lady Day': A Billie Holiday book's supply chain saga
On the planned release date, pre-ordered copies sat inside a container aboard the Evergreen ship stuck in the Chesapeake Bay. Their voyage offers a glimpse into today’s ocean freight challenges.
Colin Campbell • July 7, 2022 -
Natalie Behring via Getty Images
Sustainable packaging goals challenged by supply chain realities
As CPGs set targets to cut virgin plastic use, chaotic forces like the pandemic, poor weather and war complicate the timeline.
Samantha Oller • June 9, 2022 -
Ethan Miller/Getty Images via Getty Images
Carriers, shippers grapple with how to cut emissions in airfreight
The airfreight industry is rolling out environmentally-minded initiatives. Will it be enough for shippers to stick with the emissions-heavy mode?
Max Garland • May 18, 2022 -
Mario Tama via Getty Images
Furniture retailers forge new supply chain practices as backlogs, delays prevail
Improved inventory management is just one practice — executives are also looking at new sourcing destinations to mitigate risk.
Ben Unglesbee • April 25, 2022 -
Oli Scarff via Getty Images
Amazon is slowing down its fulfillment center spend. What's next?
Heightened demand put Amazon's distribution buildout into overdrive. To speed up delivery and limit costs, it will have to invest more.
Max Garland • March 16, 2022 -
Mario Tama via Getty Images
Retail supply chains were made to be broken. Will brands adapt — or revert?
The past two years have laid bare vulnerabilities that have long existed in the system, including a lack of capacity and geographic concentration in manufacturing.
Ben Unglesbee • Feb. 11, 2022 -
Courtesy of Johnsonville
Food suppliers wade into logistics as trucking rates soar
Businesses can't evade the trucking market, but there are strategies they can adopt to lessen the impact of market forces.
Shefali Kapadia • Feb. 9, 2022 -
Advance Auto Parts has a program to hire people with disabilities at 16 of its 44 distribution centers. Darrin Masters (right), who was hired via the program, poses alongside Jenny Ramos (left), head trainer at Advance Auto Parts' Kutztown distribution center. Advance Auto Parts granted permission to use this image.
Disability inclusion programs help warehouses hire overlooked talent
Retail and logistics companies are accelerating their commitments to workers with disabilities as a labor crunch hampers operations. Experts say the programs have sizeable benefits.
Colin Campbell • Feb. 8, 2022 -
Mario Tama via Getty Images
How grocers are managing the twin pressures of supply chain disruption and inflation
Companies need to be particularly "agile" in 2022, one expert said, as high demand and shortages can make inflation appear quickly.
Jeff Wells • Jan. 31, 2022 -
LeoPatrizi via Getty Images
Delivery firms deepen restaurant relationships as growth slows
Major aggregators are rolling out white labels, subscription programs and data tools to retain partners as more diners order from operators directly.
Julie Littman • Jan. 31, 2022 -
LukaTDB via Getty Images
Grocers are experimenting with delivery fees. Here are 8 key factors to consider.
Experts said they expect — and encourage — grocers to continue testing strategies for dealing with delivery costs.
Catherine Douglas Moran • Jan. 18, 2022 -
George Frey via Getty Images
'Insult to injury': Record rail demurrage adds to shipper costs
Storage fees skyrocketed in 2021 after an import surge snarled transportation networks. The ballooning revenues have shippers and railroads at odds over who's at fault for congestion.
Sarah Zimmerman and Edwin Lopez • Jan. 12, 2022 -
Permission granted by Hain Celestial
CPGs grapple with a murky 2022 outlook as inflation, supply chain weigh on operations
Uncertainty is making it hard for CEOs to determine whether they should raise prices or take other actions.
Christopher Doering • Jan. 11, 2022 -
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images via Getty Images
7 charts show Southern California's warehousing crunch
Easing the chokepoint is a "balancing act" of labor, warehouse space and goods movement, one expert said.
Max Garland • Dec. 8, 2021 -
Courtesy of Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach
Trucking's role in untangling the web of West Coast port congestion
The driver shortage has become a "scapegoat" for bottlenecks as empty containers, low yard productivity, limited space and unavailable chassis converge.
Jim Stinson • Nov. 24, 2021 -
Danielle Ternes/Construction Dive
Pricing insanity: Material costs escalate, driving contractor desperation
Amid unprecedented supply chain challenges, firms locked into contracts based on last year's prices are feeling the heat.
Robyn Griggs Lawrence • Oct. 28, 2021 -
"Yantian port from above" by Gigel.atat is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
After years of ‘Made in China,’ supply chains consider alternatives
The change in tone from U.S.-based supply chains is not a mass exodus from China. Instead, it's an approach that embraces diversification.
Shefali Kapadia • Oct. 14, 2021 -
Getty Images
The rise of LTL: How e-commerce changed the middle mile
Businesses are shipping smaller quantities of freight more frequently, giving logistics professionals more to manage in increasingly complex networks.
S.L. Fuller • Oct. 6, 2021 -
Andrew Burton / Staff via Getty Images
Aircraft emissions present a roadblock to supply chain sustainability goals
FedEx's Chief Sustainability Officer says true aviation sustainability "is an intractable problem." Will environmentally conscious shippers move away from airfreight?
Max Garland • Sept. 8, 2021 -
Retrieved from Flickr user Guilhem Vellut on November 13, 2020
What 3G's sunset means for tracking, visibility tech
Companies relying on IoT devices for their supply chains have a relatively tight window to upgrade to 4G.
Deborah Abrams Kaplan • Aug. 31, 2021
Previous
