Shippers should embed carrier financial health into resilience plans as pandemic upends logistics

As supply chain leaders shift their focus to increasing resilience, they will need to consider multi-modal, multi-carrier logistics plans, according to CSCMP's State of Logistics Report.

By Matt Leonard • June 23, 2020

'Shake up that carrier mix': Shippers need flexibility in logistics, fulfillment for peak-season prep

The pandemic introduced atypical market conditions and led some carriers to cap volume from retailers. 

By S.L. Fuller • June 17, 2020

California city to pilot zero emissions delivery zone

Leaders in Santa Monica, California are eager to cut delivery traffic in the downtown area, exploring solutions such as e-cargo bikes, micromobility devices, curb management, and light- and medium-duty electric vehicles.

By Chris Teale • June 17, 2020

FedEx, UPS on-time performance falls in May

The carriers have experienced demand surges and volume levels equivalent to peak season as the pandemic puts greater emphasis on e-commerce for consumers.

By Matt Leonard • June 15, 2020

FedEx follows UPS with peak surcharges beginning Monday

Many shippers will have to absorb or pass on the extra cost in an already fraught environment — especially those experiencing a marked uptick in B2C volume.

By Emma Cosgrove • June 4, 2020

CVS Pharmacy partners with Nuro on autonomous last-mile delivery pilot

The move comes as CVS experiments with contactless delivery in other locations in the U.S. during the pandemic​.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • June 1, 2020

Lineage Logistics pens deal with Henningsen Cold Storage, continuing acquisition spree

With its latest acquisition, Lineage Logistics' empire grows to 1.9 billion cubic feet of temperature-controlled capacity across 311 facilities in 11 countries.

By Matt Leonard • June 1, 2020

UPS announces peak surcharges on certain domestic shipments starting Sunday

The fees can add up quickly for e-commerce shippers confronted with exceptionally high order volumes during the pandemic.

By Shefali Kapadia • May 28, 2020

Drones and delivery trucks could work together, but regulatory hurdles remain

Using drones and trucks for a hybrid delivery system can leverage the best elements of both modes within a shipper's network, according to a recent MIT research paper. 

By Morgan Forde • May 28, 2020

Target resumes grocery pickup pilot

The retailer had paused the rollout of fresh, frozen and refrigerated grocery items to its Drive Up program back in March when the pandemic hit.

By Jeff Wells • May 21, 2020

Research conflicts on drone delivery costs, efficiency as parcel carriers scale operations

While Gartner estimates drone fleets could reduce operations costs by 70%, some research indicates drone operations, at scale, could be up to 10 times less energy efficient than vans.

By Morgan Forde • May 21, 2020

Target tests post-store sort center for last-mile delivery

The downstream locations are intended to remove parcel sorting from stores as Target shipped 80% of e-commerce orders from stores in Q1. 

By Emma Cosgrove • May 20, 2020

JD.com delivery costs reach 'all-time low' with pandemic volume growth

For several U.S. firms, including Amazon, a flood of volume driven by stay-at-home orders and social distancing hasn't led to the economies of scale JD executives described.

By Emma Cosgrove • May 18, 2020

DHL: Online orders pushed parcel volume to peak season levels in April

Domestic parcel volume has increased by 36% and cross-border numbers increased by 28% compared to daily averages seen in February.

By Morgan Forde • May 14, 2020

Target to acquire Deliv tech as the last-mile startup shuts down

The retailer will use Deliv's proprietary batching and routing technology to research and develop faster and cheaper delivery methods.​

By Matt Leonard • May 11, 2020

Peloton struggles with upstream delays amid pandemic demand surge

The at-home fitness juggernaut acquired one of its major manufacturers in Taiwan in October 2019 in an effort to mitigate supply issues, but the facility will not be fully online until December 2020, executives said. 

By Emma Cosgrove • May 11, 2020

Gatik responds to online grocery demand, adding autonomous reefers for Walmart, retailers

The company has seen average delivery runs per day increase 30% to 40% as grocery demand has grown due to the coronavirus pandemic, Gatik's CEO said.

By Morgan Forde • May 7, 2020

Pandemic tests Wayfair's operational efficiency as orders increase, losses continue

The company is in the process of hiring an additional 1,000 workers to handle pandemic-driven shipment volume growth, COO Thomas Netzer said on a Tuesday call with analysts.

By Emma Cosgrove • May 5, 2020

Coronavirus hit XPO revenue in Q1 despite demand surge from some shippers

The company's revenue fell in its transportation and logistics segment, but it did see some customers looking for capacity to cover a surge in demand.

By Matt Leonard • May 5, 2020

Walmart adds 2-hour delivery service

The retailer will lean on its vast store network and existing delivery partners to execute speedy last-mile deliveries. 

By Shefali Kapadia • May 1, 2020

UPS and Michaels launch contactless parcel pickup, drop-off service

Omnichannel options have become increasingly popular alternatives for retailers as the COVID-19 outbreak continues to force store closures in many states.

By Morgan Forde • April 30, 2020

UPS partners with CVS on residential drone delivery in Florida

UPS' Flight Forward division will run drones between a CVS location and a central delivery point near a local retirement community, where a ground vehicle will take deliveries to customer residences.

By Morgan Forde • April 29, 2020

UPS negotiates pricing 'customer by customer' as shift to residential delivery hits profits

The company removed $1 billion in capital expenditures from its 2020 plans, but still pledged to have 100% of parcel volume flowing through automated sorting by 2022.

By Emma Cosgrove • April 28, 2020

Omnichannel comes to the fore as Texas launches plan to reopen retail

Though many retailers have adopted BOPIS and other omnichannel strategies, those starting from scratch have a steep learning curve ahead as economic reopening plans attempt to limit retail foot traffic. 

By Emma Cosgrove • April 21, 2020

Amazon extends distribution center shutdowns in France after losing appeal case

A French court ruled the company must cease delivery of non-essential goods after a labor union filed complaints about worker safety measures.

By Morgan Forde • Updated April 24, 2020