The Supplychainbrain Podcast

Trade in agricultural products between the U.S. and Mexico is massive: the U.S. ships nearly $20 billion in farm exports to Mexico each year. But that relationship could be in jeopardy.

Keeping rail freight moving in the bustling Northeast Corridor is a difficult task in the best of times. And even tougher in a pandemic.

The $1.2 billion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden late last year has been heralded by some as the solution to the problem of how to repair and expand the nation’s crumbling and antiquated system of roads, rails, ports, airports and waterways. One can only hope.

Inventory management poses a huge challenge to retailers today — but it’s also the key to matching supply with demand in difficult times.

Can global businesses meet ethical standards for behavior even as they’re struggling to survive?

You might say that Dr. Lisa Williams had accomplished quite enough in her academic career.

The literal symptoms of COVID-19 are, for most people, passing. But the virus’s impact on retail supply chains is permanent.

Is sustainability in fashion in the apparel supply chain?

The global shortage of microchips has had a devastating impact on multiple industries, not least automotive manufacturers, who are expected to have lost some $210 billion in 2021 because they couldn’t get enough chips to drive the systems in their vehicles. But how did we get to this state of affairs?

The supply chain is hanging out the “Help Wanted” sign. But where will we find the right people?

How has PepsiCo Beverages of North America, with more than $22.5 billion in net revenue, 65-plus manufacturing sites and 420 distribution centers, managed to keep operations going during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Are workers’ rights in the mines of the Democratic Republic of the Congo being sacrificed to the world’s hunger for cobalt?

Think it will be difficult to bring back manufacturing to the United States? Getting out of China isn’t so easy either.

It wasn’t too long ago that we began seeing signs of a return of manufacturing from China back to the U.S. Has someone flipped the script?

When it comes to automating the warehouse, buying the robots is just the beginning.

Over the years, the technology of robotics in the warehouse has evolved from something that’s nice to have to an absolute necessity.

Are we on target for making zero-emission vehicles account for half of all cars sold in the U.S. by 2030? Not without enough rare earth minerals to build them.

Is there any room for actual collaboration between suppliers and buyers, based on more than just price?

A lot of factors go into the success or failure of consumer brands, but one of them stands out today: the supply chain.

A conversation with Pam Simon, conference chair of Manifest 2022, the new conference showcasing logistics technology and supply chain innovation, scheduled for January 25-27 at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas.