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Changing Dynamics in Surface Transportation
2007-11-04
We can't look at just these regional trends and we can't look at just our intermediary activities without understanding the trends that are going on outside of this region. Then you have to come back and say, Okay, if this is what's going on in the rest of the world, let's look at our region again at these issues and how do these impact what we can do, should do, and should not do.
Transit demands are growing. As I mentioned, they're requiring faster transit because of this. They want supply chain visibility and management. In other words, it's not enough just to say, I've got my outbound freight going to my customers, and I've got some key inbound raw materials. The supply chain is from the time you place an order with your vendor to the time you have finished product delivery to your customer and everything that goes on in between. It's a comprehensive inbound within the four walls of your facility and the outbound transportation, and they want to know where it is at any given time. They want to be able to measure that process, and they want to be able to manage that process. It's not enough just to measure something that's unacceptable. They want to be able to correct the unacceptable.
