By Kaitlin Kelly, KC SmartPort Intern, University of Kansas
The 30th Annual CSCMP State of Logistics Report identifies an industry at a new crossroads after toughing out the steep grade of 2018’s constrained capacity and rising prices. Analysts this year say demand has softened and growth is in suspect, but not to the point where steep decline is anticipated; a context they summarize as, “Cresting the Hill.”
At the midpoint of 2019, many experts anticipate the economy’s momentum to slow due to the potential for trade tensions to accelerate, global economies to deteriorate or climate-related risks to materialize. However, eCommerce growth trends, lower fuel prices and tech-driven efficiency gains could bode well for logistics. What gives the authors optimism at the crest of the hill is neither shippers nor suppliers seemed satisfied with the status quo.
The U.S. continues to see a tight labor market, resulting in higher wages for truck drivers and warehouse workers. Attracting and retaining labor in general remains challenging for transportation and logistics companies. As a result, warehouse automation is increasingly driven by the need to overcome labor force scarcity, in addition to traditional drivers such as operational cost and service level improvements.
Logistics is certainly on the cusp of technology change. New solutions could transform every sector: driverless trucks, automated warehouses and block chain-enabled collaboration.
This report gives insight to macroeconomic factors affecting logistics, insights from industry leaders, trends, analysis of each logistics sector and a strategic assessment of the industry. 5G cellular technology will be a key building block for future technologies.
This 30th Annual report is authored by the partnership of A.T. Kearney, CSCMP and Penske Logistics. Additionally, they collaborated with: Marc Althen,
Penske Logistics; Ravi Shanker,
Morgan Stanley; Brent Hutto,
Truckstop.com; Derek Leathers,
Werner; Bob Beisterfeld,
C.H. Robinson and
IHSmarkit;, and more.
Read more here.