The Logistics of Logistics

Introducing Inside the Founders' Studio Ryan Schreiber and Joe Lynch are launching a new podcast called Inside the Founders Studio. Ryan and Joe will interview founders, key executives, and innovators to understand what makes them and their companies successful. About Ryan Schreiber Ryan Schreiber is the Director of Engagement at CarrierDirect in Chicago. Ryan was born and raised in Tampa Florida. Ryan earned a degree in History from the University of South Florida and then a Law degree from Michigan State University. Prior to joining CarrierDirect, Ryan worked at a variety of logistics companies and even started and exited a few tech-enabled freight brokerage start-ups. Ryan is a skilled technologist and strategist who has helped transform many leading transportation and logistics companies. In Ryan's experience great technology is important but finding and keeping the right people is the key to success in the 3PL business. About Joe Lynch Joe Lynch is the host of The Logistics of Logistics podcast, one of the top-ranked logistics podcasts. Joe interviews logistics, transportation, and supply chain industry leaders about innovation, technology, trends, and the future of freight. Prior to founding The Logistics of Logistics, Joe served as General Manager and Chief Operating Officer of a non-asset based 3PL, managing less-than-truckload and truckload shipping for automotive suppliers, wholesalers, retailers, and distribution clients. Earlier in his career, Joe led a supply chain consultancy, which focused on the automotive sector. Engagements included: value stream mapping, supply chain optimization, lean product development, module strategy, and quality improvement. Joe began his career as an automotive design engineer and eventually rose to program launch manager for Jeeps built in Thailand and China. Joe earned a Bachelor of Business Administration and from Cleary University and a Master of Arts in Education from the University of Michigan-Dearborn (program specifically designed for facilitators, trainers, and consultants). Key Takeaways: Introducing Inside the Founders Studio Ryan and Joe are launching a new podcast called, Inside the Founders Studio. The new podcast will be interviews with founders, key executives, and innovators in the transportation, logistics, warehousing, supply chain, and technology verticals. The podcast has two goals. First, to let the founders and innovators tell the story of their companies. Secondly, understand the person(s) behind the company. If everything goes as planned, Joe, Ryan, and the listeners will learn what makes these folks tick. Interview topics will include: Company history Upbringing / Family influences Career highlights First logistics job Turning points and key challenges Mindset Managing failure What's next for the founder and their company Learn More Ryan Schreiber Joe Lynch Understanding Your Sales Personality with Ryan Schreiber and Ann Holm

Reimagining the Food Supply Chain with Eric Ristow and Luis Pajares Eric Ristow, Luis Pajares, and Joe Lynch discuss reimagining the food supply chain. The food supply chain has many challenges including poor customer experience, disconnected cold storage networks, and a lack of system integration resulting in limited visibility. About Eric Ristow Eric Ristow serves as Vice President of Product and Application Management at Lineage Logistics. In this role, he ensures custom-built software, as well as SaaS applications, meet the needs of Lineage's customers. This includes identifying discrete business problems within the temperature-controlled logistics space and developing the requisite applications to enable the safe and efficient storage and transportation of food. As a technology leader for the world's largest cold-chain provider, Eric is passionate about building more effective food management and delivery solutions for Lineage's customers to improve the resiliency of the food supply chain in an increasingly challenging global environment. Prior to joining Lineage in 2014, Eric spent 7 years as a management consulting within the healthcare, pharmaceutical and retail spaces. These efforts include the large-scale post-merger integration of technical assets, deployment of global asset management programs, the integration of regulatory content systems, and the development of an enterprise resource planning program to support the strategic staffing of all IT projects, comprising an annual budget of $180 million and 2,500 global team members. Eric holds a BA in history from Dartmouth College and a JD/MBA from Emory University. About Lineage Logistics Lineage Logistics is the world's largest and most innovative temperature-controlled industrial REIT and logistics solutions provider. Lineage's expertise in end-to-end logistical solutions, its unrivaled real estate network and its use of technology combine to promote food safety, increase distribution efficiency, advance sustainability, lessen environmental impact, and minimize supply chain waste. As a result, Lineage helps customers ranging from Fortune 500 companies to small family-owned businesses increase the efficiency and protect the integrity of their temperature-controlled supply chain. Lineage has grown its cubic feet by 60% annually since 2008 to 1.9 billion cubic feet, making it the largest global temperature-controlled industrial REIT. In recognition of the company's leading innovations, Lineage was recognized as the No 1. Data Science company on Fast Company's Annual list of The World's Most Innovative Companies in 2019, in addition to ranking 23rd overall in an evaluation of thousands of companies worldwide. About Luis Pajares Luis Pajares serves as the Chief Revenue Officer at Turvo. He brings over 30 years of experience in software and cloud technologies in both large publicly traded and start-up companies. Luis's career has been focused on finding and developing disruptive technologies that modernize industries. At Turvo Luis is focused on applying his knowledge and experience in digital transformation to the logistics industry to create the world's first collaborative logistics solution to unify every person, system, and organization in the supply chain. In his previous role as Group Vice President for Oracle Communications, he was a senior member of the leadership team responsible for strategy with oversight of worldwide sales, alliances and partnerships. Luis holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of Florida and an MBA from the University of Dallas. About Turvo Turvo is the world's first multi-enterprise collaborative platform specifically designed for the global supply chain. The Turvo platform connects people and organizations across the supply chain, allowing shippers, logistics providers, and carriers to digitally transform their workflows with cloud-based software and mobile applications. The technology unifies all systems, internal and external, providing one end-to-end system of record set for all operations and analytics while eliminating redundant manual tasks and automating business processes. Turvo is based in the San Francisco Bay Area with offices in Dallas, Texas, and Hyderabad, India. Key Takeaways: Reimagining the Food Supply Chain Food producers, especially those that require temperature control have traditionally depended on a hodge-podge collection of 3PLs to store and transport their product. Since no one 3PL had the service footprint (warehousing locations) adequate to service the entire country, food producers used multiple cold storage suppliers, which resulted in disparate systems and processes. Predictably, using multiple cold storage facilities led to inefficiency and waste, specifically wasted food. Meanwhile, the bar has raised for food producers. Due to customer demand for faster transit times, food inventory must be stored closer to customers. Additionally, everyone in the food supply chain wants fast, accurate, actionable data. Lastly, food waste has become recognized as a problem. Dumping food into a landfill when there may be hungry people in the community is a problem that must be addressed. Lineage Logistics is transforming the food supply chain. Lineage has embarked on an ambitious plan to create a national footprint that will enable food producers to utilize one 3PL for all their storage, logistics, and transportation needs. Today, Lineage Logistics moves approximately 30% of temperature-controlled food in the U.S. and nearly 10% worldwide. Link to Lineage's acquisitions. In addition to their impressive service footprint (warehouse locations), Lineage has partnered with Turvo to launch Lineage Link. Lineage Link, powered by Turvo, is a unified and fully integrated supply-chain technology solution that seamlessly connects the Lineage network, driving collaboration, performance, and efficiency for all supply chain participants. The platform gives customers an unprecedented level of insight and control to enable more agile and informed decisions, providing visibility across locations, orders, inventories, transportation, and warehouse appointment scheduling. Learn More About Reimagining the Food Supply Chain Lineage Logistics Partners with Turvo to Launch Lineage Link Eric Ristow Lineage Logistics Luis Pajares Turvo Logistics Frictionless Logistics: It's the Collaboration, Stupid with Ketan Karkhanis The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn

Rethinking Fulfillment with Guy Courtin Guy Courtin and Joe Lynch discuss rethinking fulfillment in an era of explosive growth in ecommerce and fulfillment services. Guy and the team at 6 River Systems are making fulfillment faster and easier with a combination of collaborative robots, artificial intelligence, and operational expertise. About Guy Courtin Guy Courtin is the Head of 6 River Global Alliance and Partnership program. He brings over 20 years of experience in the supply chain industry. He has held senior leadership roles at Infor, Progress Software, and i2 Technologies. In addition, he has been an industry analyst covering the supply chain and retail spaces for SCM World and Constellation Research. Guy holds an MBA from the Olin School at Babson College, a Master's degree from Loyola University in Chicago, and a Bachelor's degree from The College of the Holy Cross. About 6 River Systems, a Shopify Company Founded in Waltham, Mass. in 2015, 6 River Systems is a leading collaborative mobile robotics fulfillment solution provider and part of global commerce company Shopify Inc. Founders Jerome Dubois and Rylan Hamilton were previously executives at Kiva Systems (now Amazon Robotics). The 6 River Systems solution is operating in more than 20 facilities in the U.S., Canada and Europe, fulfilling millions of units each week for companies including Lockheed Martin, CSAT Solutions, ACT Fulfillment, DHL, XPO Logistics, and Office Depot. To learn about 6 River Systems and its wall-to-wall fulfillment solution, please visit www.6river.com. Key Takeaways: Rethinking Fulfillment The ecommerce and fulfillment industries have experienced rapid growth during the pandemic. With all the recent changes, many people, including Guy are taking a closer look at some aspects of the industry. In the podcast, Guy and Joe discussed the five following topics: Customer expectations. People expect more from retailers and ecommerce sellers than ever before. Some expectations can be maintained by the industry while others are untenable because of the cost. In the cases, the high cost of fast, free delivery is absorbed by the seller, but that will not be the case in the long term. Fulfillment flexibility. Consumers want lots of options when they buy including but not limited to buy online, pickup at curb (BOPAC), buy online, pickup in-store (BOPIS), home delivery, and traditional retail. Fulfillment as a differentiator. Consumers make buying decisions based on fulfillment. Traditionally consumers bought products based on brand, price, availability, quality, reputation, etc., and now some people are buying based on the convenience of the fulfillment (example: same-day delivery). Sustainability. Consumers are increasingly interested in sustainability and they want to buy from companies that share their values. Ecommerce and fulfillment companies need to examine their supply chains from beginning to end and find ways to lessen their environmental impact. Labor. Working at a fulfillment company is strenuous and sometimes dangerous work. Leadership within fulfillment companies will need to find ways to make fulfillment work less physically taxing on employees. Fulfillment companies must compete for employees with gig economy jobs that are often easier and very flexible. Companies like 6 River Systems provide automation and technology solutions that can make fulfillment jobs easier and more attractive - while increasing throughput and efficiency. Learn More: Rethinking Fulfillment Guy Courtin 6 River Systems Shopify Sustainable Frozen Ecommerce Fulfillment Twitter: @6riversystems facebook.com/6RiverSystems linkedin.com/company/6-river-systems The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn

Leveraging Automation to Build a Competitive Advantage with Alfonso Quijano Alfonso Quijano and Joe Lynch discuss leveraging automation to build a competitive advantage. The automation that Alfonso discussed is robotic process automation (RPA). In the discussion, Alfonso explains how RPA is not a physical robot, but a bot or technology that processes data and can help companies leverage employee´s performance by road-mapping repetitive task into one single digital organism. About Alfonso Quijano Alfonso Quijano is the CTO at Lean Solutions Group and the COO & Co-founder at Lean Tech. Alfonso is an electronic engineer, full-stack developer, and technology executive focused on the logistics industry. He has led the creation of state-of-the-art technology solutions such as fully automated vehicle access control systems with ALPR. Alfonso is a veteran head software developer knowledgeable in various high and low-level programming environments, IT project manager, and leader of software divisions. He is a versatile engineer with operations experience focused on building highly efficient technology teams and all supporting company departments, including HR, Marketing, Sales, PR, and IT. Alfonso earned an Electronic Engineering degree from the Universidad del Norte in Barranquilla Colombia. About Lean Staffing Solutions Lean Staffing Solutions provides operational, sales, marketing, and technology support to over 120 leading 3PLs. To succeed in the transportation and logistics business, 3PLs need to be able to hire and retain the very best talent, while keeping a lid on costs. Since the competition for the best talent is fierce companies need an edge that will help them win. Lean Staffing Solutions is that edge. Lean provides a turnkey solution to staffing challenges using a proven process that will improve profits while reducing employee costs. Lean can deliver on this promise because they are the pioneers in helping U.S. based companies set up satellite offices in Colombia. Since 2014, Lean has worked with over 100 satisfied U.S. based transportation and logistics providers. Lean ensures that your satellite office in Colombia is staffed with highly educated, English speaking professionals trained in your company's processes and systems. The Lean approach is a low cost, low risk, low hassle, and they manage the entire process with their account managers. Lean Staffing Solutions offers a suite of product offerings from traditional staffing to technology, sales, and marketing services. Key Takeaways: Leveraging Automation to Build a Competitive Advantage Alfonso and his team at Lean Tech are utilizing robotic process automation to help their customers become more competitive. Robotic process automation (RPA) is the use of software with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning capabilities to handle high-volume, repeatable tasks that previously required humans to perform. RPA can be used to manage typical emails received by logistics companies including freight quote requests, track & trace, invoicing, etc. RPA can also transfer freight information from emails to other systems like TMS, WMS, ERP, etc. RPA is also being used to automate sales and marketing emails, which is a lower-cost way to grow sales. Using RPA can help logistics and transportation companies to reduce costs, improve efficiency, grow their sales, and ultimately become more competitive. Learn More: Leveraging Automation to Build a Competitive Advantage Lean Staffing Solutions Alfonso Quijano 3PL Basics: An Introduction to 3rd Party Logistics with Roberto Cadena The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn

The Basics of Clearing Customs with Christopher Wall Christopher Wall and Joe Lynch discuss the basics of clearing customs. As the founder of a digital customs brokerage, Christopher has a deep understanding of the customs clearing process and some of the associated problems. About Christopher Wall Christopher Wall is the Founder and CEO of Zeus Logics, a next-gen digital customs brokerage platform. Christopher is a serial entrepreneur and investor in the logistics and enterprise software space. Christopher is also a partner at Phoenix Asset Management, a California-based venture capital fund, and software holding company. Previously, Christopher was Director of Technology Investing at Vision Capital Advisors, where he managed principal technology and logistics investing and portfolio workouts/turnarounds at the $1B+ hedge fund. Alongside his investment career, Christopher has had a leadership role at several tech start-ups that ultimately went public (initial public offering) or were successfully acquired. Christopher earned a Bachelor of Economics and Philosophy at Columbia University About Zeus Logics Zeus Logics is a full-service, digital-first customs brokerage platform, enhanced by a suite of global trade management tools. Zeus's mission is to provide the world's best customs brokerage experience by eliminating costly delays and penalties, giving importers visibility into their customs clearance processes, and dramatically reducing the time and effort importers spend managing clearance processes. The Zeus platform: 1. Automates data collection from multiple parties. 2. Stores and organizes all documents in a centralized digital library—not siloed email systems. 3. Provides instant document access to solve customs problems and speed audits. 4. Centralizes all communications in one place, so importers, forwarders, suppliers, and customs brokers can track the whole chain of communication. 5. Provides real-time updates on the status of customs clearances. Key Takeaways: The Basics of Clearing Customs The Customs Process 1. Customer Onboarding Power of Attorney (POA), must be signed by an officer of the company, ID must be verified. If a foreign entity needs to apply for an Importer of Record number. Helps to have information about the types of products being imported. A product database greatly speeds up the process. Bonding, either single entry or annual must be set up. Payment information for customs, either direct via ACh or handled by the broker for a fee. 2. Documentation (when the shipper is ready to import) If shipping by ocean, the customer provides an ISF (f.k.a. 10+2) information at least 24hrs prior to vessel sailing. Name and address of Seller. Name and address of Buyer. EIN, SSN for an individual of Importer of Record number. Name and address of Consignee. Manufacturer or Supplier. Ship to Party. Container Stuffing Location. Consolidator (Stuffer). Commodity and First 6 digits of the Harmonized Tariff. Country of Origin. Bill of Lading Number(s). Commercial Invoice Needs to include INCOTERMS of sale e.g. FOB, DDP date of sale Complete name and address of supplier, importer, and deliver to address A detailed description of goods being imported Price Per Unit Unit of Measure, e.g. cm2 for mirrors, boxes weighing "X", etc The total cost of goods in the currency payment was made Any licenses for goods that have IP e.g. Logo merchandise Provides Packing list, sometimes is done in one doc along with the CI Description of goods Piece count Weights Dimensions Provides Any supporting docs for PGAs, eg. FDA FDA registration # If wood, LACEY act forms (to prevent the import of prohibited plants, endangered species) 3. Broker files the properly formatted information with Customs and PGAs and waits for responses from Customs. 4. Once a shipment is released, duties and fees must be paid via ACH. Common Problems in Clearing Customs Little integration of customs data into the digitalized supply chain. Lack of visibility into customs processes - black hole of customs. Delays caused by hiccups in the customs process generate expenses - typically demurrage. Little to no accountability of service providers. Opaque billing. Learn More: The Basics of Clearing Customs Zeus Logics Christopher Wall Freight Forwarding Basics with Miles Varghese The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn

Making Carrier Relationships More Productive with Noam Frankel Noam Frankel and Joe Lynch discuss making carrier relationships more productive. Noam is a transportation industry veteran who has always advocated for building solid relationships between 3PLs, brokers, and carriers. About Noam Frankel Noam Frankel is the founder and CEO of FreightFriend, a cloud-based truckload procurement platform that helps shippers and brokers build deep carrier relationships and drive digital execution. Noam is a pioneer and innovator, Noam Frankel has spent more than 35 years building operations and technology in the logistics industry, originally as co-founder and COO of American Backhaulers. He later served as VP of Truckload at Echo Global Logistics, where he built their truckload division from the ground up, before founding Optimal Freight brokerage, which he sold to TFI International in 2018. . He has the unique perspective of having served as an executive on both the "industry" and technology sides of logistics. About FreightFriend FreightFriend is a cloud-based, AI-powered truckload procurement solution to help shippers and brokers build carrier relationships and find the right capacity to match to the right freight. The software solutions include a carrier relationship management (CRM) platform, the Capacity Guru dynamic routing guide, and Freight Guru intelligent freight matching. Key Takeaways: Making Carrier Relationships More Productive with Noam Frankel In the podcast interview, Noam described his experience at American Backhaulers, a brokerage that was eventually acquired by C. H. Robison. American Backhaulers was based in Chicago and they pioneered the Chicago model or Split model described in this article by my friend, Kevin Hill: FREIGHT BROKER BUSINESS MODEL: CRADLE TO GRAVE OR THE BUY/SELL MODEL? At American Backhaulers, Noam recognized that carrier sales was one of the keys to success in the brokerage business. With the rise of technology, Noam believes that brokers and 3PLs have forgotten how to develop carrier relationships that maximize the benefits for both carriers and brokers/3PLs. FreightFriend's truckload procurement platform helps shippers and brokers build deep carrier relationships and drive digital execution. Learn More: Noam Frankel FreightFriend The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn

The 5 APIs of the Apocalypse with Jeremy Bodenhamer Jeremy Bodenhamer and Joe Lynch discuss the 5 APIs of the Apocalypse. Jeremy defines APIs and why they are such a powerful force in ecommerce. Jeremy recently wrote a book called Adapt or Die, a book for small and mid-size retailers that want to compete with the ecommerce giants. About Jeremy Bodenhamer Jeremy Bodenhamer is the founder and CEO of ShipHawk. Jeremy is also the bestselling author of Adapt or Die and a leading expert at the intersection of shipping and ecommerce. His articles have been been featured in Inc., TechCrunch, AOL, Fortune, Internet Retailer, and Entrepreneur. Jeremy is a frequent speaker on innovation, technology, and logistics; and was a 2018 Supply Chain & Executive Pro to Know. Jeremy is an active volunteer in the community, an avid Crossfitter, and surfer, and champions a company culture that promotes health, family, and happiness among employees. Jeremey earned a Bachelor of English from Westmont University. He lives in Santa Barbara with his wife Bethany who is an educator and youth advocate Bethany Bodenhamer - and their three sons. About ShipHawk ShipHawk is the premier packing and shipping software for ERP connected companies. Most businesses spend a ton of time and money trying to ship orders more efficiently. ShipHawk's shipping software helps automate order fulfillment and eliminate worker decisions so businesses can take control of their warehouse operations. Shippers often experience 5X order throughput and decrease shipping costs without adding headcount. ShipHawk works with high volume retail, wholesale, and ecommerce companies to lower their packing and shipping costs so they can compete on a level playing field with the ecommerce giants. Key Takeaways: The 5 APIs of the Apocalypse API is an abbreviation for an application programming interface. An application programming interface is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other. In other words, an API is the messenger that delivers your request to the provider that you're requesting it from and then delivers the response back to you. APIs are widely used and have made connecting systems much easier, which has enabled the explosive growth of ecommerce. The 5 APIs of the apocalypse are Amazon, Walmart, JD.com, Alibaba, and Shopify. JD.com is China's largest online retailer and its biggest overall retailer, as well as the country's biggest Internet company by revenue. In the podcast interview, Jeremy refers to these industry giants as APIs rather than marketplaces or ecommerce companies because he believes much of their power comes from their ability to connect with consumers everywhere; phones, tablets, computers, cars, Alexa, etc.. Amazon, Walmart, JD.com, and Alibaba are enabling consumers to buy from anywhere and those transactions are built using APIs. Even though Shopify was included on the list, they are different from the other companies because they actually enable small and mid-size companies to become more competitive. Learn More: The 5 APIs of the Apocalypse Adapt or Die (Jeremy's book) Adapt or Die on Amazon Jeremy Bodenhamer ShipHawk The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn

Sustainable Frozen Ecommerce Fulfillment with Cathy Hayward-Hughes and Mike Bradburn Mike Bradburn, Cathy Hayward-Hughes, and Joe Lynch discuss sustainable frozen ecommerce fulfillment. Mike and Cathy are the founders of Crystal Creek Logistics, a fulfillment company that specializes in sustainable frozen ecommerce fulfillment. About Mike Bradburn Michael Bradburn is the Co-founder and Vice President of Crystal Creek Logistics. Mike is forever a resident of the great Pacific Northwest. He has enjoyed an entrepreneurial spirit for most of his adult life and loves challenges. After graduating with a self-designed degree in Business with an emphasis on Advertising, Marketing and Consumer Buying Behavior from Western Washington University in 1982, Mike found his way into the Seafood industry where he marketed pacific coast species of seafood, mostly salmon - nationally and internationally for the better part of 20 years. All the while, Mike would purchase old fixer-upper homes and remarket them – long before it was the chic thing to do! Mike also worked on several of his own real estate projects including building an office and retail complex, 28 luxury condominiums, a mini-storage facility, and a few residential homes. It was between projects in 2007 that a high school buddy suggested they have a beer with another high school buddy who was selling seafood over the internet. Mike was enthralled by this new and (at the time) somewhat unusual venture and sought to pursue this radical new direction full steam ahead. Mike managed to find an experienced and willing business partner in Cathy Hayward-Hughes and thus formed Crystal Creek Logistics to support the very business that his friend had started – and ultimately, many others like it. About Cathy Hayward-Hughes Cathy Hayward-Hughes is the Co-founder and President of Crystal Creek Logistics. Cathy was born into a fishing family in Alaska. She spent her childhood and much of her professional life managing people, originally on processing ships in the Bering Sea, then later in manufacturing. Cathy holds a degree in Industrial Technology from Western Washington University. Cathy worked her way from the open oceans to land-based operations and eventually into internet fulfillment. Her long and varied career includes call center management, operations management, facilities management, packaging design and development, hiring and personnel retention programs, catalog development, production line design, product flow management, inventory management, and turnaround management. In 2008 Cathy, along with her partner Mike, started Crystal Creek Logistics, her own fulfillment company. What began with one client in a small warehouse operation in Ferndale, Washington, quickly expanded to 38 customers in five states with warehouses in Washington, Nebraska, Reno, and Virginia, and Tennessee. Cathy makes her home in Bellingham, Washington. In addition to running a successful business, in her free time, Cathy loves to paint, spend time with her family, and create new communities by renovating old buildings in Mexico. About Crystal Creek Logistics Crystal Creek is a direct-to-consumer fulfillment business that provides shipping for ecommerce retailers across the U.S. and Canada. Crystal Creek expertly ships perishable and non-perishable products at affordable rates. Crystal Creek is committed to successfully customizing and managing every step of the fulfillment process, from receiving orders to warehousing and shipping products. They specialize in transporting frozen food. Their climate-controlled warehouses will store your products until orders are fulfilled and shipped via carriers of your choosing. Crystal Creek also ships frozen orders to Canada for next day delivery, two-day, or ground service. By partnering with Crystal Creek, your company will reduce its operating, overhead, and infrastructure costs; perform efficiently with fewer employees, and let you focus more energy on your business. Crystal Creek is a Certified B-Corporation, which means the company meets higher standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability. Crystal Creek Logistics has fulfillment centers in Washington, Nebraska, Nevada, Virginia, and Tennessee. Key Takeaways: Sustainable Frozen Ecommerce Fulfillment Frozen ecommerce fulfillment is the process of receiving, storing, packaging, and shipping orders that need to stay frozen. Frozen ecommerce fulfillment is much more challenging than ecommerce fulfillment because the product must stay below a certain temperature. Because the product (usually food) must maintain a low temperature, dry ice, and or frozen gel packs must be utilized. The longer the transit time, the more dry ice (and cost) is required so shippers must select a fulfillment company close to their customers. Sustainability is the management and coordination of environmental, social, and financial demands and concerns to ensure responsible, ethical, and ongoing success. Crystal Creek Logistics is a Certified B Corporation. B Corporation is a private certification for for-profit companies. B Corp certification is conferred by B Lab, a global nonprofit organization with offices in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. To be granted and to maintain certification, companies must receive a minimum score from an assessment of social and environmental performance. Companies must re-certify every three years to retain B Corporation status. Learn More: Sustainable Frozen Ecommerce Fulfillment Crystal Creek Logistics Cathy Hayward-Hughes Mike Bradburn The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn

Overcoming Supply Chain Disruptions with Shanna Greathouse and Tony Nichols Tony Nichols, Shanna Greathouse, and Joe Lynch discuss overcoming supply chain disruptions. Tony and Shanna work at CarrierDirect, a company that specializes in helping companies minimize supply chain risk. About Tony Nichols Tony Nichols is a Vice President in CarrierDirect's Supply Chain Practice. He has over 25 years of experience across all functions of the supply chain and IT in multiple industries including consumer products, life sciences, and industrial manufacturing. Tony earned a Bachelor of Science in Business from Purdue University. About Shanna Greathouse Shanna Greathouse is a Senior Business Consultant at CarrierDirect. Shanna has experience in a broad range of industries including oil & gas, health tech, and consumer goods. She has led programs ranging from acquisitions to technology deployment with a strong focus on lean manufacturing and data management. Shanna earned a BA and an MBA from Baldwin Wallace University. About CarrierDirect Since 2011 carriers, 3PLs, shippers, and logistics technology vendors have looked to CarrierDirect to deliver the efficiency, strategy, go-to-market plans, and technology that will elevate their business above their competition. CarrierDirect builds organizations and relationships, providing strategy and technology designed to maximize efficiency, reduce cost, and make your business stand out. CarrierDirect advises clients on the elements of their business most vital to success: strategy, organizational structure, compensation, technology, training, recruiting, workflows, processes, and more. CarrierDirect clients include Werner, J.B. Hunt, Covenant, CRST, and FedEx. Key Takeaways: Overcoming Supply Chain Disruptions The Causes of Supply Chain Disruptions include: Pandemics like the COVID 19. Natural disasters like forest fires, hurricanes, earthquakes. Socio-political events like trade wars and political upheavals around the world. Rapid changes in consumer buying habits The Supply Chain Disruptions Include: Manufacturing capacity drops and become less efficient Labor shortages and cost increases. Raw material shortages and cost increases. Financial implications Port congestion Trucking capacity falls and costs increase. Final mile capacity demand increases. During the podcast interview, Tony and Shanna shared four (4) strategies for avoiding and or minimizing supply chain disruptions Flip the forecasting narrative. During unprecedented times, historical forecasting is not useful. Consumption-based forecasting and planning, which is demand-driven and based on consumer and customer consumption short-term patterns, is necessary to ensure customer commitments are realized when supply is constrained. Companies will need to implement solutions that give this data in real-time or in the shortest time possible. New partnership opportunities. Distribution center networks have expanded their footprint to allow for more immediacy in stock pulling and decrease time to the consumer. Visibility to data allows companies to work with novel partners including non-historically 3PL partners or competitors to change the distribution network to increase target addressable market and improve last-mile capabilities. More and more companies are looking at building consortiums with other companies to increase capabilities and meet consumer expectations and to be competitive with Amazon and Walmart. Unlock the true costs of goods. By understanding the true costs of goods, both direct and indirect expenses including cost of quality, rework, tariffs, expedited air, and safety stock can uncover overlooked sourcing opportunities that enable resilience and flexibility while reducing overall risk. Digital Twin/Sandbox. By creating one unified system, a holistic duplicate system or "Digital Twin" can be created to serve as a sandbox for scenario analysis. Running supply chain simulations enable a quantitative approach to assess risk. Resiliency modeling and can address key supply chain issues. CarrierDirect recently published a white paper, Data Transparency that contains additional strategies for assessing risk and overcoming supply chain disruptions. Learn More: Overcoming Supply Chain Disruptions Tony Nichols Shanna Greathouse Data Transparency - The Foundation of Modern Business Request a Free Consultation The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn

The Basics of Dedicated Contract Carriage with Bob Elkins Bob Elkins and Joe Lynch discuss the basics of dedicated contract carriage. As the SVP of Ruan, a company that specializes in dedicated, Bob has a deep understanding of the service and the value it provides to shippers. About Bob Elkins Bob Elkins serves Ruan as Senior Vice President, Industry Vertical Operations. Bob has almost 30 years of experience in the transportation industry, including global account management, operations leadership and commercial services. Prior to joining Ruan, he served as Senior Vice President and General Manager, Dedicated Services, Logistics, and first-to-final mile for Schneider National. Bob also served in the United States Army 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), and early on in his transportation career he was an owner-operator of a small trucking company. About Ruan Founded in 1932, Ruan is a family-owned transportation company providing Dedicated Contract Transportation, Managed Transportation, and Value-added Warehousing. With more than 85 years of transportation experience, Ruan is one of the top 10 privately owned transportation service companies in the country. The company operates in 48 states, employs over 6,000 team members, and has more than 300 locations nationwide. Key Takeaways: The Basics of Dedicated Contract Carriage Dedicated contract carriage (DCC) is a third-party service that provides dedicated equipment (vehicles) and drivers to a single customer for its exclusive use on a contractual basis. DCC is a flexible service that offers all the service advantages of a private fleet and the convenience of a for-hire carrier. DCC in a sense outsources many of the challenging functions associated with managing a fleet. Services and materials provided may include but are not limited to ongoing operations management, technology, drivers, vehicles, vehicle maintenance, safety, regulatory compliance, risk management, and pickup and delivery instructions. Shippers who previously depended on carriers, 3PLs, and brokers switch to DCC to gain additional control, avoid price fluctuations and disruptions in the trucking market. Additionally, these shippers switch to DCC because they want the truck and driver branding that comes with a private fleet without the hassles of managing one. Shippers who previously owned their own fleet switch to DCC so they can focus on their core competencies and business. Companies that provide DCC, like Ruan are much better suited to manage the ongoing driver training, compliance and management. Additionally, the DCC provider is responsible for investing in new equipment, technology and ongoing maintenance. With dedicated contract carriage, shippers gain a transportation solution that functions as an extension of their supply chain. The tractors and trailers are often branded with the customer's company logo and image. Driver uniforms also reflect the customer's brand. The advantages of dedicated contract carriage include: improved on-time performance and service along with reduced cost and hassle. Learn More: The Basics of Dedicated Contract Carriage Bob Elkins Ruan Ruan - Red Magazine White Paper - Five Lingering Headaches to Address for Healthier Supply Chain in 2021 The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn