January 25, 2010. Is the supply chain world ready to run a warehouse or transportation department from an iPhone app? Yes, says Ron Riggin, president of Acuity Global, a supply chain consulting company. “I think mobile supply chain apps are potentially a game changer,” Riggin says. “And I think there’s the possibility that smart phones could be the missing key that puts supply chain applications into the hands of Tier III customers.”

Now, if Acuity Global were simply a start up, I might write off the idea of mobile apps for the warehouse as a lot of hype. But, Riggin has been around the supply chain block a time or two. In a former life, he was the chief technology officer for MARC Global and the senior vice president of technology at RedPrairie. He also knows a thing or two about hype, having kept his enthusiasm in check during the Internet bubble, collaboration and RFID. When a level-headed guy like Riggin thinks there’s a market for mobile supply chain apps, especially for Tier III companies, well, that’s pretty interesting.

In fact, Riggin is at work on a mobile supply chain app for the warehouse that will run on the iPhone operating system. “Smart phones are evolving into mobile computers with an on-demand capability,” he says. “The CIO of a large company will probably look at this and say: It’s cool, but I can’t run my company with it. But, if there’s an app that a small company finds productive, I don’t think they would hesitate to use it.” While he’s building applications for the iPhone, his target device is the iTablet - or whatever Apple decides to call it - the new device Apple is expected to unveil this week. “There’s no question that it’s going to run the iPhone operating system and that iPhone apps are going to run on it,” says Riggin. “Instead of a smart phone display, you’ll now have a netbook-sized screen with a highly intuitive touch screen user interface that you could use on the shop floor to run applications, display media, and potentially even interact with using voice commands. Combine this device with new easy-to-use supply chain apps and innovative existing AutoID apps and devices the possibilities are endless .”

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A new set of supply chain tools will allow retailers to be more responsive to consumer demand, says Ron Riggin of Acuity Global. Any reporter who’s been in the business awhile has a few go-to sources. Those are guys or gals who look beyond the hype and tell you what’s really going on. When it comes to supply chain information technology, Ron Riggin is one of Modern Materials Handling’s go-to guys. Today, Riggin is president of Acuity Global, a supply chain consulting firm. But we first got to know him during the Internet boom, when Riggin was chief technology officer of MARC Global. After MARC was acquired by RedPrairie last year, Riggin stayed on for a time as senior vice president of technology. We recently asked Riggin what he’s tracking in the supply chain today. “There’s some pretty big shifts going on in the retail supply chain,” Riggin told us. “The big one is that CPG manufacturers and retailers alike are realizing that after years of talking about it, a demand-driven supply chain is something they need to understand and focus on.”

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Globalization, evolving supplier roles, and new network design models are driving change across the U.S. automotive industry. Logistics management is where the rubber meets the road. The automotive industry continues to shift gears, backing up and moving forward at the same time. U.S. automakers keep slipping into reverse. Ford Motor Company lost $12.7 billion in 2006, surpassing its $10.6-billion loss in 2005. Its top U.S. rival, General Motors, also is expected to announce a significant loss for 2006, after losing more than $8 billion in 2005. Non-U.S. automakers, in comparison, are revving into overdrive. American Honda Motor Company recorded a sales increase of more than 20 percent for 2006, and Toyota's 2006 sales broke company records for the 11th consecutive year.

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A look behind M&A activity in the logistics provider market and how it impacts shippers. These days, it seems every company wants to acquire a third-party logistics provider (3PL). Mergers and acquisitions -- involving not only 3PLs, but carriers and supply chain IT providers as well -- are on the upswing. A number of factors -- from positive cash positions to globalization to the pendulum swing of merger cycles -- make this the right time for supply chain players to merge, analysts agree. Each M&A transaction announcement is peppered with rosy promises such as synergy, breadth, and enhanced customer service. But while some transactions are textbook examples of how to merge, not every deal proceeds as smoothly as promised, and it's hard to find one without fallout for at least some companies and their customers.

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Given the dynamic business environment, hosted supply chain offerings seem like a dream come true. How realistic are these claims? Are there any strings attached? How should organizations go about deciding whether hosted supply chain is the way to go?

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The retail supply chain now extends all the way to the retail shelf. So does the software that gets inventory there. Out of stock. Those may be the three most important words in the retail supply chain today.

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New software solutions are enabling new processes between the retail store and the distribution centers. Once a retailer captures real-time information in the store, all the components of an integrated supply chain execution system can come into play to drive the activities in the distribution center. As an example, a beverage salesman visiting a grocery store may discover that the retailer is willing to provide more shelf space for a hot-selling wine. Today, not much happens with that information until the salesman returns to the office. Even then, there may be a several day delay between entering an order, picking the wine and delivering it to the store.

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Of all the new software, business intelligence (BI) solutions that provide real-time analysis may be the ones end-users are clamoring for most. “I talk to 150 supply chain executives and distribution center managers a year,” says Steve Banker, service director, supply chain management, ARC Advisory Group (781-471-1000). “If you want to get these guys going, ask them about how they’re measured and whether those metrics make sense. They are all looking for tools that will give them better real-time data and better decision-making tools.” While business intelligence solutions have been commonplace for the financial side of the business for years, they are just now being adapted for the supply chain. That domain expertise is important for anyone trying to look for value in the millions of transactions generated each day by the typical supply chain execution system as it receives, puts-away, picks and ships inventory. “BI derives meaning out of all that information that has value,” says Ron Riggin, chief technology officer, MARC Global (866-703-8279). “The tools synthesize the information to show you trends in the past, the activities in the present and forecast where you might end up if you continue that trend.” to the store.

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Logistics service providers are split on the question of whether to buy software off the shelf, or build it internally. To be competitive, they should decide quickly - and dump their custom development.

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In the early 19th century … "Three things would give an investor an edge over his rival … closeness to … the source of news; the speed with which he could receive news of events in states far and near; and the ability to manipulate the transmission of that news." —Niall Ferguson, author, The House of Rothschild Two hundred years ago, the Rothschild banking family learned a valuable lesson about real-time information: The company that can act on the news faster than its rivals can win in the marketplace.

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The FDA and Wal-Mart are helping to drive technology deployment to improve security and traceability at an unprecedented rate. The U.S. business community—and society in general—have become markedly more security conscious following the havoc of 9/11, and this new awareness has spotlighted the vulnerability of food and drug supply chains. Regulatory watchdogs of the already highly regulated health care and pharmaceuticals industries have shown unprecedented responsiveness to the dangers of drug counterfeiting, insecure supply lines, and medication error by issuing new requirements and specifying new technologies, including RFID.

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