Supply Chain and Logistics Blog
Warehouse Design – Rules of Thumb… And a Checklist
It's not uncommon for delegates at our workshops and seminars to ask us if Mal Walker can share his ‘rules of thumb’ on warehouse design. Therefore, we thought we'd put them here in an article, so anyone can refer to them when necessary. We've also added a checklist...
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Level 1 Supply Chain KPIs
Back in 2014, I remember talking on a webinar about Supply Chain KPIs, and when asked about my thoughts on these, I responded as follows: 1) Make them ‘meaningful’ 2) Keep them simple 3) Don’t have too many The chart below illustrates the Level 1 Supply Chain KPIs...
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Supply Chain Education: What Skills Do Your Staff Need?
Our blog posts and articles here at Logistics Bureau are almost always written to inform, but this time we're writing with a request for information. We'd like to know what you believe your managers and staff need from a supply chain education program. Why are we...
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Spotlight On: Distribution Centre Design
Many logisticians are keen to understand the basics behind effective distribution centre design. This is a complex area as there are scores of variables that have to be considered. So to help you along, without getting into tedious details, here are some proven...
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The Changing Face of Supply Chain Security
Security has been an issue since supply chains began. Even the first camps and convoys had to deal with attackers and criminals. Theft, fraud, smuggling, sabotage, hijacking and piracy were all present. Today’s complex networks of storage and intermodal transport...
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How Blockchain Can Transform the Supply Chain
Supply chain has become complicated. Some would say cumbersome. It takes days to make a payment between a manufacturer and a supplier, or a customer and a vendor. Contracts must be handled by lawyers and bankers, which means extra cost and delay. Products and parts...
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The Past, Present, and Future of Technology in the Warehouse
Imagine stepping back in time to visit a large warehousing operation in 1990. If it were only possible, such an adventure would really throw today's distribution center advances into focus. Now imagine what the distribution center of 2045 will look like if...
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The Supply Chain Workforce – Where is It?
As somebody who feels very passionate about the supply chain and logistics profession, I'm constantly perplexed by the apparent inability to attract new talent in this sector. In particular I wish we could make inroads into the untapped female talent pool, where...
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Supply Chain Managers of the Future
Attracting and retaining good people is hard these days. Career patterns are changing and the current trend amongst millennials in particular seems to be "learn as much as possible," then move on to a more senior position. Future Supply Chain Managers I was...
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Does Rail Freight Transportation Really ‘Suck’ that Much?
Why aren’t we using more rail freight in Australia? According to logistics theory, rail freight comes into its own over greater geographical distances. I seem to recall learning back in my Cranfield days that 600 km was the magic number above which rail freight...
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