AWG cuts ribbon on 124-acre food distribution hub in Miss. | Sysco to build a food distribution center in Fla. | Electrical distributor Rexel to acquire HVAC firm Wasco
Associated Wholesale Grocers on Monday opened a nearly 1 million-square-foot distribution hub in Hernando, Miss. that includes automation and order-picking systems, an ammonia-free refrigeration system, high-capacity generators and docks on both sides of the building. Spread across 124 acres, the food distribution cooperative's new facility will serve the mid-South region and is expandable to facilitate growth.
Sysco held a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday for its forthcoming 504,000-square-foot cold storage food distribution facility in Plant City, Fla. Construction is expected to start in early 2024, and the hub is expected to become operational in 2025 with around 200 employees.
Retailers are cutting back on logistics operations and warehouse space amid shifting consumer spending and a slowdown in supply chain bottlenecks, such as Big Lots, which recently closed four distribution centers and Walmart, which plans to lay off 2,200 fulfillment center workers. Experts say these shifts are driving up warehouse vacancy rates and warehouse worker unemployment.
The future of the increasingly shaky agriculture supply chain will depend on procurement transforming beyond commodities and efficiency to consider "the real cost of social and environmental risk," write Ilaria Ida Walton of Mars, Iris van der Velden of IDH and Ruth Thomas of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Increasing value distribution, investing in women, offering farmers targeted services and increasing localization strategies can help, they write.
Fleet operators are looking at renewable diesel, battery-electric vehicles and other means to reduce carbon emissions from commercial truck fleets, per the State of Sustainable Fleets report. "We believe that 2027 could very well be the last of the major diesel-engine development programs that we see," says clean technology consultant Erik Neandross, adding that there will be an increasing shift to more clean-drivetrain development and production.
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The idea that sales and marketing leaders can't increase a team's productivity without a budget jump is "damaging" and "self-reinforcing," four Bain & Co. partners write, pointing to a study of 1,254 business-to-business companies. Elite sales teams can achieve higher commercial productivity in three ways, including "more frequent and higher quality interactions" with their sales managers, they assert.
Providing the best customer service possible outranks other business goals, writes Micah Solomon, customer service transformation expert. "Build such a reputation for customer service excellence and such a strong connection with every customer you touch that your service becomes a point of distinction, a survival lifeline and, ultimately, a powerful engine for growth," Solomon writes.
Industrial action continued on Monday at West Coast ports from Long Beach to Seattle amid an ongoing impasse between employers and unions over pay and other issues. Retailers and manufacturers affected by blockages have called on the Biden administration to intervene.
Logistics executives are taking a be-prepared-for-anything approach to hurricane season this year amid conflicting predictions and are using lessons learned from previous events to guide current decisions, writes Ben Ames. Publix supermarket chain teamed with order management technology firm OrderInsite to ensure its customers throughout the Southeast can access critical medications, while Amazon has prepositioned 2.4 million items at its Disaster Relief Hub in Atlanta.
Leaders can create a "a speak-up culture" by making it safe for employees to ask questions and know the answers will be honest and as transparent as possible while allowing them to voice dissent, writes Jennifer V. Miller, who offers lessons from three other prominent leaders. "When you create a psychologically safe workplace, you will ensure that employees are able to thrive in their roles and contribute positively towards organizational success," Miller writes.
