Need air cargo space? Amazon Air may be interested in your business
Good morning! Did you know that December 28th is National Call a Friend Day? Give a loved one a phone call today and let them know you’re thinking of them. ☎️
Amazon Prime Air is a cargo airline operated by Amazon and headquartered at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport to facilitate the delivery of packages to customers. Boasting a fleet of more than 80 planes, Amazon Air uses a combination of owned planes and planes operated by third-party companies to deliver packages to a network of more than 20 regional airports around the United States. Amazon Air is an integral part of Amazon's larger e-commerce operation and has played a key role in the company's rapid expansion in recent years, especially in light of unprecedented e-commerce growth.
However, the economy pumped the brakes. Amazon now finds itself scrambling to adjust after focusing on massive expansion efforts over the last few years… and the economy hasn’t kept up. It’s expected now that Amazon Air is beginning to begin offering up excess space (for a price) to third parties in order to fill the gaps.
Check out today’s featured article from Supply Chain Brain to read about Amazon’s attempts to sell extra space on its air cargo planes in order to improve profits after the e-commerce slowdown in a post-pandemic era. ☕️
Featured Article:
Amazon Looks to Sell Excess Air Cargo Space as Demand Cools | Supply Chain Brain
“Amazon.com Inc. is trying to sell excess space on its cargo planes, according to people familiar with the matter, its latest effort to adjust from a rapid pandemic-era expansion to a slowdown in online growth.”
Safety & Tech 👾
Don’t underestimate the dangers of ransomware affecting your supply chain
More often than not, cybercriminals are counting on a company’s leadership being ignorant of the destruction that can be wreaked on the company’s internal systems. Mark Atwood, Global Research and Advisory leader with Gartner is warning of the persistent threat of cyber-attacks across the globe, and across all business sectors.
Ransomware is a type of malicious software (malware) that is designed to block access to a computer system or its data until a sum of money is paid. Ransomware typically works by encrypting the data on a computer or network, making it inaccessible to the user. The attackers then demand a ransom from the victim in exchange for the decryption key that is needed to unlock the data. Supply chains can be significantly affected by ransomware attacks, as they can disrupt the flow of goods and materials and disrupt operations at various points along the supply chain. In order to protect against the negative impact of ransomware on supply chains, it is important for companies to have robust cybersecurity measures in place and to have contingency plans in place to deal with potential disruptions.
Human Resources & Company Culture 🎉
2023 changes to consider for your employee’s health and wellness
The new year is approaching fast, and employers need to be considering a number of changes that are occurring over the next year that could have a significant impact on their employee’s well-being. Healthcare affordability is expected to skyrocket and Business Group’s 2023 Large Employers’ Health Care Strategy and Plan Design Survey are reporting that nearly 40% are expecting an increase in medical services next year due to care delayed during the pandemic. This increase is resulting in larger demand and above-average healthcare costs.
High healthcare costs can have a significant impact on employees' financial well-being and can lead to financial stress and other negative outcomes. This can have a negative impact on employee morale, productivity, and retention, which can ultimately affect the company's bottom line. Companies have a responsibility to ensure that their employees have access to affordable, high-quality healthcare. By providing employees with access to comprehensive, cost-effective healthcare benefits, companies can help to promote the overall health and well-being of their workforce, which can have a positive impact on the company's overall performance.
Let’s Get Global 🌎
🌊 Underwater security is critical in the wake of the mysterious Nord Stream sabotage. Seabed warfare refers to military operations that take place on or under the seabed (the bottom of the ocean). These operations can include a wide range of activities, such as mine warfare (the use of mines to defend or attack ships and other vessels), submarine warfare (the use of submarines to attack or defend against other vessels), and the use of underwater vehicles and weapons systems. It is critical that the supply chain turns to defend its seabed infrastructure in the new age after there have been multiple unexplained incidents - such as cable breaks off the coast of Norway and the United Kingdom and the Nord Stream gas pipeline explosions in the Baltic Sea.
🍎 Global food businesses will likely thrive in 2023 due to better risk management strategies. Input and product costs have increased after Russia’s war on Ukraine and strict Covid-19 policies, but the ongoing labor crisis has also played a role in the food industry’s new flexibility. Risk management strategies in the food industry are designed to identify and mitigate potential risks that could affect the safety, quality, and integrity of food products. These risks can include a variety of different factors, such as foodborne illnesses, contamination, spoilage, and supply chain disruptions.
🇨🇳 As China loses supply chains, other Asian countries step up to take their place. India, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and Bangladesh are all scrambling to replace China’s top spot as the manufacturing capital of the world after strict Covid-19 policies are sending global companies whirling. Geopolitical tensions have done nothing to help their situation, as legislators pressure companies to diversify their supply chains away from Chinese companies. Notably, iPhone maker Apple announced they were making the change to India and Vietnam’s long-term plans of economic reform are finally coming to fruition after nearly four decades of efforts.
iLevel With You 🏡
More topics for the average American household to consider…
💸 Inflation may finally be down-trending, but not without more effort. One way in which inflation and the supply chain are related is that changes in the price level can have an impact on the cost of goods and services throughout the supply chain. For example, if the cost of raw materials or component parts increases due to inflation, this can lead to higher costs for manufacturers, which may be passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices for finished goods. Similarly, increases in transportation and logistics costs, such as fuel prices, can also impact the cost of goods and services throughout the supply chain. On the other hand, the supply chain can also have an impact on inflation. For example, if there are bottlenecks or other disruptions in the supply chain, this can lead to shortages of certain goods and services, which may drive up their prices.
🚜 Rural transportation improvement projects are swimming in cash. No, not literally - but the US Department of Transportation has bestowed a $273.9 million grant through its new Rural Surface Transportation Grant program. Being spread out among twelve projects, the program is meant to fund connectivity and regional economic growth for those who are living in rural areas. The $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is also playing a role in funding these natives over the next five years.
✈️ Chances are, if you were flying Southwest this week… your flight was canceled. In the holiday weekend airline crisis of the century, Southwest Airlines has canceled 70% of its schedule by Monday and warned that it would likely be extremely limited to about a third for the remainder of the week. The Transportation Department has highlighted the carrier’s cancellations as its competitors attempted to work through the winter storms and holiday rushes. By comparison, Delta canceled 9% of its flights and United canceled 5%. American Airlines canceled less than 1% of its flights, all mostly tied to Buffalo, New York’s airport closure over the weekend.
🚛 Truck thefts are on the rise in California, Texas, and Georgia. According to CargoNet, a total loss value of $6,033.572 has already been recorded between August 1st and December 14th of 2022. Household goods, food and beverages, and electronics are the top goods at risk of being stolen out of a parking lot, a truck stop, or even secured yards. There are a number of factors that can contribute to cargo theft in the trucking industry, including high demand for certain goods, weak security measures, insiders, organized crime, and poor supply chain visibility.
GET SMART 🧠
Ramp up that brain power for these advanced topics…
🚛 Just like clothing, trends come and go in the logistics industry. Last-mile logistics delivery refers to the final leg of a package's journey from a distribution center or warehouse to its final destination, typically a customer's residence or place of business. It can be a challenging and complex process, especially in urban areas with limited space and heavy traffic. Many companies, including e-commerce giants like Amazon and FedEx, have invested heavily in developing and improving their last-mile delivery systems in order to meet the growing demand for fast, reliable delivery of packages to customers.
🚢 Maritime carriers are preparing for sky-rocketing shipper rates. Shipper contract rates are pre-negotiated rates that a shipper (the company that is shipping goods) agrees to pay to a carrier (the company that is providing transportation services) for the transportation of goods. These rates are typically based on the volume of goods being shipped, the distance they are being transported, and the type of cargo being shipped. Shipper contract rates are typically established through a negotiated agreement between the shipper and carrier and are often valid for a specific period of time, such as a year.
🤝 Blockchain technology and the supply chain are bonding together in the near future. Blockchain technology and the supply chain are related in a number of ways. The supply chain refers to the network of companies and organizations that are involved in the production, distribution, and delivery of goods and services. This can include everything from raw materials and component parts, to finished products and the transportation and logistics systems that are used to move them from place to place.
👔 Surveys are critical for building back business resilience. Business resilience in the context of supply chain management refers to the ability of a company to anticipate, adapt, and recover from disruptions in the supply chain. A supply chain disruption can occur for a variety of reasons, such as natural disasters, geopolitical events, pandemics, and transportation issues, and can have significant impacts on a company's operations and bottom line.
Electric Vehicles 🔋
Port of Oakland selects electric cargo handling equipment | Container News
Container News Editor Themis Karalis writes about new all-electric equipment being used at the Port of Oakland in order to meet its zero-emission goals.
Maintenance & Repair 🧰
Why Medium-Duty Truck Fleets Need Retreads | Trucking Info
Trucking Info contributor Jim Park writes about the importance of retreading for big truck operators.
The Workday Dash is an aggregation of articles regarding the transportation logistics, trucking, and supply chain industries for November 28, 2024, from iLevel Logistics Inc.