The contest recognizes individuals and organizations that have developed and delivered dynamic solutions that contribute to the faster adoption of new technologies, as well as engage industry collaboration while sharing success stories around applications commercially available in today’s global marketplace, the group said. AIM provides innovation, standards, and solutions in barcode, biometrics, IoT, NFC, RFID, RTLS, and RAIN.
The winners of the 2023 AIM Case Study Competition were Cybra (in the area of AIDC), Digimarc (for blockchain), Mojix (for internet of things/IoT) and Shipcom (for radio frequency identification/RFID). Details follow below:
The winner in the AIDC division, CYBRA, partnered with a major healthcare services company to leverage cold-chain technology for specialty pharmaceutical products. CYBRA Corporation, developers of MarkMagic Bar Code Labels and RFID technology, delivered an innovative “over the air” labeling solution that automated the creation of shipping labels for their client’s eco-friendly Ember Cubes. MarkMagic empowered the pharmaceutical manufacturer’s personnel to produce an e-ink image, change the destination as needed at any point during the package’s journey, and manage the safe return of the Ember Cube they used — all through the Cloud. MarkMagic, working in tandem with the Ember Cube, eliminated the need for a thermal printer, bar code label stock, and special bar code label ribbons.
For the Blockchain category, Digimarc collaborated with IOTA, an open-sourced distributed ledger and cryptocurrency designed for the IoT, to create a Digital Product Passport (DPP) blueprint in support of some of the European Union (EU) initiative requirements including the use of open standards, decentralized architectures, and accessibility. The EU DPP Initiative will require many consumer products to feature a unique and accessible Digital Identity to enhance the sustainability of products placed on the European Market. Digimarc’s Illuminate platform is used to build the passport data and identity, and the IOTA distributed ledger technology (DLT) is used to provide a layer of trust. DPPs will allow brands to display (and prove) sustainability credentials giving those companies doing the ‘right thing’ for the planet and their stakeholders an opportunity to stand out and ultimately, ‘win.’
The RFID class standout went to Mojix, a global leader in item-level intelligence solutions. This case study describes the successful implementation of RFID-based returnable asset tracking for Tosca, a company that provides returnable packaging solutions for the supply chain. The main goal was to improve the accuracy of stock levels and achieve better consistency throughout all of Tosca’s maintenance sites in Europe. The execution was carried out by Mojix, in collaboration with Coriel, a provider of supply chain and logistics software solutions in three phases that included reliability scanning, enhanced visibility and mass implementation. The solution provided Tosca with complete visibility of returnable transit items throughout the supply chain, enabling the company to share valuable traceability data with its customers. This resulted in significant improvements in cycle time and a reduction in the number of damaged items in circulation.
In the IoT segment, Shipcom Wireless took the top spot. Shipcom collaborated with the South Dakota Department of Health (SD DoH) to develop and implement a digitized and automated Inventory Management Solution (IMS) to streamline the management of critical public safety teams. The IMS system, which incorporates barcode labeling and hand-held readers, provides real-time alerts regarding product calibration/inspection status, inventory transfer requests, and when materials will soon expire. The system enables SD DoH to optimize inventory management, controls, and supply readiness, providing real-time visibility, alarms, notifications, dashboards, and reports. As a result, SD DoH has indicated that Shipcom’s IMS has significantly reduced labor-intensive management efforts and enabled confident reporting and decision-making, resulting in cost savings and data-driven insights.
Nearly one-third of American consumers have increased their secondhand purchases in the past year, revealing a jump in “recommerce” according to a buyer survey from ShipStation, a provider of web-based shipping and order fulfillment solutions.
The number comes from a survey of 500 U.S. consumers showing that nearly one in four (23%) Americans lack confidence in making purchases over $200 in the next six months. Due to economic uncertainty, savvy shoppers are looking for ways to save money without sacrificing quality or style, the research found.
Younger shoppers are leading the charge in that trend, with 59% of Gen Z and 48% of Millennials buying pre-owned items weekly or monthly. That rate makes Gen Z nearly twice as likely to buy second hand compared to older generations.
The primary reason that shoppers say they have increased their recommerce habits is lower prices (74%), followed by the thrill of finding unique or rare items (38%) and getting higher quality for a lower price (28%). Only 14% of Americans cite environmental concerns as a primary reason they shop second-hand.
Despite the challenge of adjusting to the new pattern, recommerce represents a strategic opportunity for businesses to capture today’s budget-minded shoppers and foster long-term loyalty, Austin, Texas-based ShipStation said.
For example, retailers don’t have to sell used goods to capitalize on the secondhand boom. Instead, they can offer trade-in programs swapping discounts or store credit for shoppers’ old items. And they can improve product discoverability to help customers—particularly older generations—find what they’re looking for.
Other ways for retailers to connect with recommerce shoppers are to improve shipping practices. According to ShipStation:
70% of shoppers won’t return to a brand if shipping is too expensive.
51% of consumers are turned off by late deliveries
40% of shoppers won’t return to a retailer again if the packaging is bad.
The “CMA CGM Startup Awards”—created in collaboration with BFM Business and La Tribune—will identify the best innovations to accelerate its transformation, the French company said.
Specifically, the company will select the best startup among the applicants, with clear industry transformation objectives focused on environmental performance, competitiveness, and quality of life at work in each of the three areas:
Shipping: Enabling safer, more efficient, and sustainable navigation through innovative technological solutions.
Logistics: Reinventing the global supply chain with smart and sustainable logistics solutions.
Media: Transform content creation, and customer engagement with innovative media technologies and strategies.
Three winners will be selected during a final event organized on November 15 at the Orange Vélodrome Stadium in Marseille, during the 2nd Artificial Intelligence Marseille (AIM) forum organized by La Tribune and BFM Business. The selection will be made by a jury chaired by Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and CEO of the Group, and including members of the executive committee representing the various sectors of CMA CGM.
Economic activity in the logistics industry expanded in August, though growth slowed slightly from July, according to the most recent Logistics Manager’s Index report (LMI), released this week.
The August LMI registered 56.4, down from July’s reading of 56.6 but consistent with readings over the past four months. The August reading represents nine straight months of growth across the logistics industry.
The LMI is a monthly gauge of economic activity across warehousing, transportation, and logistics markets. An LMI above 50 indicates expansion, and a reading below 50 indicates contraction.
Inventory levels saw a marked change in August, increasing more than six points compared to July and breaking a three-month streak of contraction. The LMI researchers said this suggests that after running inventories down, companies are now building them back up in anticipation of fourth-quarter demand. It also represents a return to more typical growth patterns following the accelerated demand for logistics services during the Covid-19 pandemic and the lows of the recent freight recession.
“This suggests a return to traditional patterns of seasonality that we have not seen since pre-COVID,” the researchers wrote in the monthly LMI report, published Tuesday, adding that the buildup is somewhat tempered by increases in warehousing capacity and transportation capacity.
The LMI report is based on a monthly survey of logistics managers from across the country. It tracks industry growth overall and across eight areas: inventory levels and costs; warehousing capacity, utilization, and prices; and transportation capacity, utilization, and prices. The report is released monthly by researchers from Arizona State University, Colorado State University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rutgers University, and the University of Nevada, Reno, in conjunction with the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP).
That hiring surge marks a significant jump in relation to the company’s nearly 17,000 current employees across North America, adding 21% more workers.
That increase is necessary because U.S. holiday sales in 2023 increased 3.9% year-over-year as consumer spending grew even amidst uncertain economic times and trends like inflation and consumer price sensitivity. Looking at the coming peak, a similar pattern is projected for this year, with shoppers forecasted to drive a 4.8% increase in holiday retail sales for 2024, Geodis said, citing data from Emarketer.
To attract the extra workforce, Geodis says it will offer competitive wages, peak premium pay incentives, peak and referral bonuses, an expedited payment option, and flexible schedules. And it’s using an AI-powered chatbot named Sophie to serve as a virtual recruiting assistant.
“We acknowledge the immense responsibility we have to our customers to deliver exceptional service every day, and this is especially true during peak season,” Anthony Jordan, GEODIS in Americas Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, said in a release. “Because peak season is the most business-critical sales period of the year for many of our retail clients, expanding our workforce is vital to ensure we have a flexible, dynamic team that can handle anticipated surges in demand.”
With the economy slowing but still growing, and inflation down as the Federal Reserve prepares to lower interest rates, the United States appears to have dodged a recession, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF).
“The U.S. economy is clearly not in a recession nor is it likely to head into a recession in the home stretch of 2024,” NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said in a release. “Instead, it appears that the economy is on the cusp of nailing a long-awaited soft landing with a simultaneous cooling of growth and inflation.”
Despite an “eventful August” with initial reports of rising unemployment and a slowdown in manufacturing, more recent data has “calmed fears of a deteriorating U.S. economy,” Kleinhenz said. “Concerns are now focused on the direction of the labor market and the possibility of a job market slowdown, but a recession is far less likely.”
That analysis is based on data in the NRF’s Monthly Economic Review, which said annualized gross domestic product growth for the second quarter has been revised upward to 3% from the original report of 2.8%. And consumer spending, the largest component of GDP, was revised up to 2.9% growth for the quarter from 2.3%.
Compared to its recent high point of 9.1% in July of 2022, inflation is nearly back to normal. Year-over-year growth in the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index – the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation – was at 2.5% in July, unchanged from June and only half a percentage point above the Fed’s target of 2%.
The labor market “is not terribly weak” but “is showing signs of tottering,” Kleinhenz said. Only 114,000 jobs were added in July, lower than expected, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.3% from 4.1% in June. Despite the increase, the unemployment rate is still within the normal range, Kleinhenz said.
“Now the guessing game begins on the magnitude and frequency of rate cuts and how far the federal funds rate will be reduced,” Kleinhenz said. “While lowering interest rates would be good news, it takes time for rate reductions to work their way through the various credit channels and the economy as a whole. Consequently, a reduction is not expected to provide an immediate uplift to the economy but would stabilize current conditions.”
Going forward, Kleinhenz said lower rates should benefit households under pressure from loans used to meet daily needs. Lower rates will also make it more affordable to borrow through mortgages, home improvement loans, car loans, and credit cards, encouraging spending and increasing demand for goods and services. Small businesses would also benefit, since lower intertest rates could lower their financing costs on existing loans or allow them to take out new loans to invest in equipment and plants or to hire more workers.