<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Shell Chemical Co. is offering to take on the job of managing inventories for major customers.</div>

Shell Chemical Co. is offering to take on the job of managing inventories for major customers.

<div>Shell Chemical Co. is offering to take on the job of managing inventories for major customers.Using a custom-made computer program called Simon (Supplier Inventory Management Order Network), the Houston-based seller of chemicals such as detergents, resins and solvents says it is essentially putting product deliveries on auto-pilot, rather than reacting to customers' orders.''We use future-demand forecasts from customers, instead of responding to existing inventory levels,'' explained Tom Eade, supply-chain solutions manager for Shell Services International, an information technology and consulting unit of Shell Chemical.Vendor-managed inventory is not new to logistics; suppliers to major retailers, such as Wal-Mart, and to the...

Shell Chemical Co. is offering to take on the job of managing inventories for major customers. Using a custom-made computer program called Simon (Supplier Inventory Management Order Network), the Houston-based seller of chemicals such as detergents, resins and solvents says it is essentially putting product deliveries on auto-pilot, rather than reacting to customers' orders.''We use future-demand forecasts from customers, instead of responding to existing inventory levels,'' explained Tom Eade, supply-chain solutions manager for Shell Services International, an information technology and consulting unit of Shell Chemical. Vendor-managed inventory is not new to logistics; suppliers to major retailers, such as Wal-Mart, and to the auto industry are well acquainted with it. Shell's innovation was to adapt the concept to process industries, which turn raw materials into intermediate goods and final products. 40 CUSTOMERS USING SYSTEM Shell has sold its service to approximately 40 of its customers, some of which also want to use the system to manage their supplies to their own customers. Shell also is marketing the system to other raw-materials vendors that may want to license the software to manage their customers' inventories. Shell customers using the service make a range of products, from diapers to plastic bottles and automobile paints. About 100 different product supply chains are being managed by the Shell system, Eade said. CUTS INVENTORY LEVELS The program's chief advantage is that it cuts raw-material inventory levels while reducing the incidence of out-of-stock situations that can bring production to a halt, he said. In one case, Eade said, ''We were able to take 60 percent of the inventory out of one supply chain after Simon was deployed, and that was during a time when consumption (of raw materials) increased by over 50 percent.'' ''We use the analogy of the water company,'' he added. ''All the customer needs to do is turn the spigot and the product is there.'' Shell does not say how much money customers save by switching to this system. But it cites advantages such as predictability of deliveries and visibility of inventory levels, and it boasts that it has achieved a tenfold return on its own investment in the system. Shell executives got the idea from an article describing how McCormick & Co., the spice company, managed inventories of its products at Frito Lay factories. ''We saw what they were doing there and decided we could bring this to the process industry,'' Eade said. A new way of billing In some cases, Shell retains ownership of its products until they are used, even if they are being stored at the customer's premises. Customers can be billed monthly or quarterly for product actually used, rather than separately for each shipment of chemicals. Most of these raw materials are moved to customers' premises by tank cars, trucks or barges. TRANSPORTATION CHANGES If the concept catches on, it could change the way transportation contracts are negotiated in the process industries by increasing the predictability of shipments. It also could increase the range of services to those industries by third-party logistics providers. Outsourcing supply-chain management is common in some sectors but is a relative novelty in process industries, Eade said. ''As customers determine that it is not one of their core competencies, we could look into taking this on for them,'' he said.

SHELL CHEMICAL PUTS DELIVERIES ON AUTO-PILOT

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The Trump administration’s imposition of hefty tariffs on Brazil in August sent US bookings for coffee, sugar and orange juice plummeting in the first half of September.</div>

The Trump administration’s imposition of hefty tariffs on Brazil in August sent US bookings for coffee, sugar and orange juice plummeting in the first half of September.

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<div class="phx-topic">US demand for major Brazilian commodities coffee, sugar and orange juice is falling by double-digits due to 50% tariffs on the imports, putting downward pressure on container spot rates even as carriers plans to inject more tonnage into the trade lane next month. The US imposition of hefty tariffs on Brazil in August has sent bookings plummeting, with coffee down 67%, sugar 77%, and orange juice 29% in the first half of September compared to the same period last year, according to maritime visibility provider Vizion and data and analytics company Dun &amp; Bradstreet. While forwarders say US imports from Brazil haven’t collapsed, they note container spot rates have slumped more than 20% to a range of $1,600 to $1,700 per FEU since the tariffs were imposed. “Roasters have made what we thought was an unthinkable change to almost immediately move away from Brazil,” said a US coffee importer who notes the industry is increasingly sourcing from Mexico. “We expected more stickiness towards Brazilian coffee in roaster blends.” <div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="c1f38fd2-5d26-4e8e-90ac-68e28863368c"></dynamic-object></div>Despite the fresh weakness in the Brazil-US trade, container lines plan to add 22% more capacity in October, eeSea data shows. “More capacity is to be injected [in October and November],” said Peter Sand, chief analyst at rate benchmarking platform Xeneta. “If demand is weakening, this will see rates dropping further.” As the spot market slides and <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/impending-brazil-tariffs-increase-pressure-on-us-pulp-industry-6048344">the impacts ripple across Brazilian commodities</a>, many shippers moving cargo on contract rates have pulled back shipments, said a Brazil-based freight forwarder. Long-term rates are closer to about $3,200 per FEU, Xeneta data shows. “Rates are so low that most of what is moving now is [freight-all-kinds] or lumber,” the forwarder said. US import volumes from the East Coast of South America fell 11.7% in August from July and were down more than 12% compared to August 2024, according to data from PIERS, a sister product of the Journal of Commerce within S&amp;P Global. Despite the pressure in Brazil, overall capacity on the East Coast of South America to US East Coast trade has grown about 3.7% year over year, Xeneta data shows. Still, Sand told the Journal of Commerce that if demand drops enough, some of those vessels may opt to skip <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/brazils-santos-readies-development-of-south-americas-largest-box-terminal-6082796">Brazilian port</a> calls. Meanwhile, ocean reliability on the trade lane as measured by maritime intelligence provider eeSea came in at 27% in August, up from 23% in July. The last time reliability on the lane exceeded 30% was June 2024. Contact Laura Robb at <a href="mailto:Laura.Robb@spglobal.com">laura.robb@spglobal.com</a>.  </div>

US demand for major Brazilian commodities coffee, sugar and orange juice is falling by double-digits due to 50% tariffs on the imports, putting downward pressure on container spot rates even as carriers plans to inject more tonnage into the trade lane next month. The US imposition of hefty tariffs on Brazil in August has sent bookings plummeting, with coffee down 67%, sugar 77%, and orange juice 29% in the first half of September compared to the same period last year, according to maritime visibility provider Vizion and data and analytics company Dun & Bradstreet. While forwarders say US imports from Brazil haven’t collapsed, they note container spot rates have slumped more than 20% to a range of $1,600 to $1,700 per FEU since the tariffs were imposed. “Roasters have made what we thought was an unthinkable change to almost immediately move away from Brazil,” said a US coffee importer who notes the industry is increasingly sourcing from Mexico. “We expected more stickiness towards Brazilian coffee in roaster blends.” Despite the fresh weakness in the Brazil-US trade, container lines plan to add 22% more capacity in October, eeSea data shows. “More capacity is to be injected [in October and November],” said Peter Sand, chief analyst at rate benchmarking platform Xeneta. “If demand is weakening, this will see rates dropping further.” As the spot market slides and the impacts ripple across Brazilian commodities , many shippers moving cargo on contract rates have pulled back shipments, said a Brazil-based freight forwarder. Long-term rates are closer to about $3,200 per FEU, Xeneta data shows. “Rates are so low that most of what is moving now is [freight-all-kinds] or lumber,” the forwarder said. US import volumes from the East Coast of South America fell 11.7% in August from July and were down more than 12% compared to August 2024, according to data from PIERS, a sister product of the Journal of Commerce within S&P Global. Despite the pressure in Brazil, overall capacity on the East Coast of South America to US East Coast trade has grown about 3.7% year over year, Xeneta data shows. Still, Sand told the Journal of Commerce that if demand drops enough, some of those vessels may opt to skip Brazilian port calls. Meanwhile, ocean reliability on the trade lane as measured by maritime intelligence provider eeSea came in at 27% in August, up from 23% in July. The last time reliability on the lane exceeded 30% was June 2024. Contact Laura Robb at laura.robb@spglobal.com . 

Container lines

Forwarding

Container Shipping News

Key Brazilian exports to US falling sharply in early aftermath of 50% tariffs

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">But supply chains in a region stretching between south China, Taiwan and the Philippines face extensive disruption even after terminals reopen and flights resume as shippers rush to complete orders ahead of Golden Week factory closures.</div>

But supply chains in a region stretching between south China, Taiwan and the Philippines face extensive disruption even after terminals reopen and flights resume as shippers rush to complete orders ahead of Golden Week factory closures.

<div class="phx-topic">Ports and airports in southern China will restart operations Thursday after super typhoon Ragasa, the world’s strongest storm so far this year, made landfall in Guangdong province Wednesday, causing widespread flooding and property damage. But supply chains in a region stretching between south China, Taiwan and the Philippines face extensive disruption even after terminals reopen and flights resume. The turmoil comes ahead of China’s National Day holiday that starts Oct. 1. “The cyclone couldn’t have come for a worse time for shippers rushing to complete orders before factories in southern China close for a week to 10 days from next week,” said a senior executive at a Hong Kong-based freight forwarder. The storm, packing winds of up to 140 miles per hour at its peak, struck the south China coast near Yangjiang about 130 miles west of Hong Kong on Wednesday after killing at least 17 people in Taiwan and 10 in the Philippines. The hurricane-force winds and rains have cut a swathe through the region, damaging buildings, bringing down power lines and causing extensive flooding that has disrupted road and rail transport in the Philippines, Taiwan and southern China. Hapag-Lloyd, in an advisory Wednesday, warned of lengthy berthing delays at key ports in South China. Cathay Pacific Airways, Hong Kong’s dominant air cargo airline, said it would take some time for flights to return to normal. At Shenzhen’s Yantian terminal, which handles about a quarter of China’s exports to the US, Hapag-Lloyd forecast berthing delays of five to seven days after the facility reopens. The carrier said it expected a four- to five-day delay at Shekou, three to four days at Nansha, Guangzhou’s main export port; around three days in Hong Kong and delays of two days in both Kaohsiung and Keelung in Taiwan. “As a result, we anticipate significant disruptions to our operations,” Hapag-Lloyd said in its advisory. All ports in southern China, including Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Nansha, plus Kaohsiung, <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/south-china-supply-chains-brace-for-years-strongest-typhoon-6084358">have been closed since early Monday.</a>CMA CGM said the Philippine Coast Guard had banned the movement of all vessels ahead of the cyclone’s arrival on Sept. 22, although terminals at Manila and Subic Bay were kept partially open. The carrier indicated Tuesday vessels were being delayed up to two days. OOCL said in an advisory that the Hong Kong government downgraded its typhoon warning Wednesday evening, but cargo operations at terminals and depots in Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and nearby cities including Dongguan and Nansha remained suspended. <h3>Flights suspended in Hong Kong </h3>At Hong Kong International Airport, the world’s busiest cargo airport, all flights were suspended Wednesday and are not scheduled to resume until Thursday morning. The Airport Authority of Hong Kong said 100 cargo flights will be canceled during this period, including services operated by integrators FedEx, UPS and DHL. A further 15 flights operated by carriers including Atlas Air, Kalitta Air and MSC Air Cargo will be delayed until Friday and Saturday. In an advisory Wednesday, Cathay Pacific said flights would resume Thursday, but noted that restoring its normal schedule will be a “challenging and gradual process that will take time.” Shenzhen Baoan International Airport, used by carriers including UPS, FedEx and Atlas Air, suspended all flights late Tuesday and won’t restart operations until Thursday, according to flight schedules. Contact Keith Wallis at <a href="mailto:keithwallis@hotmail.com">keithwallis@hotmail.com.</a></div>

Ports and airports in southern China will restart operations Thursday after super typhoon Ragasa, the world’s strongest storm so far this year, made landfall in Guangdong province Wednesday, causing widespread flooding and property damage. But supply chains in a region stretching between south China, Taiwan and the Philippines face extensive disruption even after terminals reopen and flights resume. The turmoil comes ahead of China’s National Day holiday that starts Oct. 1. “The cyclone couldn’t have come for a worse time for shippers rushing to complete orders before factories in southern China close for a week to 10 days from next week,” said a senior executive at a Hong Kong-based freight forwarder. The storm, packing winds of up to 140 miles per hour at its peak, struck the south China coast near Yangjiang about 130 miles west of Hong Kong on Wednesday after killing at least 17 people in Taiwan and 10 in the Philippines. The hurricane-force winds and rains have cut a swathe through the region, damaging buildings, bringing down power lines and causing extensive flooding that has disrupted road and rail transport in the Philippines, Taiwan and southern China. Hapag-Lloyd, in an advisory Wednesday, warned of lengthy berthing delays at key ports in South China. Cathay Pacific Airways, Hong Kong’s dominant air cargo airline, said it would take some time for flights to return to normal. At Shenzhen’s Yantian terminal, which handles about a quarter of China’s exports to the US, Hapag-Lloyd forecast berthing delays of five to seven days after the facility reopens. The carrier said it expected a four- to five-day delay at Shekou, three to four days at Nansha, Guangzhou’s main export port; around three days in Hong Kong and delays of two days in both Kaohsiung and Keelung in Taiwan. “As a result, we anticipate significant disruptions to our operations,” Hapag-Lloyd said in its advisory. All ports in southern China, including Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Nansha, plus Kaohsiung, have been closed since early Monday. CMA CGM said the Philippine Coast Guard had banned the movement of all vessels ahead of the cyclone’s arrival on Sept. 22, although terminals at Manila and Subic Bay were kept partially open. The carrier indicated Tuesday vessels were being delayed up to two days. OOCL said in an advisory that the Hong Kong government downgraded its typhoon warning Wednesday evening, but cargo operations at terminals and depots in Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and nearby cities including Dongguan and Nansha remained suspended. Flights suspended in Hong Kong At Hong Kong International Airport, the world’s busiest cargo airport, all flights were suspended Wednesday and are not scheduled to resume until Thursday morning. The Airport Authority of Hong Kong said 100 cargo flights will be canceled during this period, including services operated by integrators FedEx, UPS and DHL. A further 15 flights operated by carriers including Atlas Air, Kalitta Air and MSC Air Cargo will be delayed until Friday and Saturday. In an advisory Wednesday, Cathay Pacific said flights would resume Thursday, but noted that restoring its normal schedule will be a “challenging and gradual process that will take time.” Shenzhen Baoan International Airport, used by carriers including UPS, FedEx and Atlas Air, suspended all flights late Tuesday and won’t restart operations until Thursday, according to flight schedules. Contact Keith Wallis at keithwallis@hotmail.com.

International ports

Maritime

Terminals, airports to restart operations after storm makes landfall in southern China

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The role of the Southeast Asian powerhouse in global trade is accelerating, fueled by geographic advantages, a skilled workforce and consistent inflows of foreign investment, says DHL Express.</div>

The role of the Southeast Asian powerhouse in global trade is accelerating, fueled by geographic advantages, a skilled workforce and consistent inflows of foreign investment, says DHL Express.

<div class="phx-topic">Vietnam’s rapidly expanding technology export sector continues to provide lift for the air freight industry connecting the manufacturing hub with key markets in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. DHL Express is the latest carrier <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/vietnam-air-cargo-exports-jump-on-weaker-china-demand-6072907">to inject capacity into the market</a>, adding more than 300 tons of weekly air cargo capacity to its existing flight schedules out of Hanoi to handle the increasing demand. "Vietnam's role in global trade is accelerating, fueled by geographic advantages, a skilled workforce and consistent inflows of foreign investment," said Peter Bardens, senior vice president for network operations and aviation in Asia-Pacific at DHL Express. "(Vietnam) has risen as a tech manufacturing powerhouse in recent years, especially in the northern region where Hanoi is seeing a boom in high-tech exports,” Bardens said in a statement Wednesday, adding that DHL Express saw a double-digit increase in tech-related shipments from Hanoi in the first half of the year. Air cargo capacity on Vietnam-to-North America routes last week was up 95% year over year at 2,400 tons, according to air freight analyst Rotate, while Vietnam-Europe capacity rose 39% to 4,800 tons. While the gains are from a relatively low base, the strong growth is attracting airlines. Rotate looked at the carriers best positioned to serve the market, with local carrier Vietnam Airlines unsurprisingly offering the most capacity out of the Southeast Asian powerhouse at 85,000 tons. Close behind was Korean Air, which in August signed a memorandum of understanding with Vietnam Airlines that includes expanding cooperation in air cargo and developing air freight corridors between Vietnam and South Korea. <h3>High-tech hub </h3>As companies continue to diversify their supply chains, Vietnam has emerged as a preferred manufacturing hub, particularly for high-tech products such as laptops and electronics. <div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="7084d51e-36f3-40cb-9601-c4d4c11caed3"></dynamic-object></div>The country's Ministry of Information and Communications forecasts that the information and communication technology (ICT) industry will achieve $169.3 billion in total revenue in 2025, an 11.4% year-over-year increase. Hardware and electronics exports are expected to grow 12.3% to $148.5 billion. The DHL Trade Atlas 2025 has identified Vietnam among the top 30 countries globally for both the speed and scale of trade growth in the next five years. Vietnam is also one of the top 20 high-growth markets identified by DHL Group, benefiting from strong geographic tailwinds and its strategic location in Southeast Asia. Contact Greg Knowler at <a href="mailto:greg.knowler@spglobal.com">greg.knowler@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

Vietnam’s rapidly expanding technology export sector continues to provide lift for the air freight industry connecting the manufacturing hub with key markets in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. DHL Express is the latest carrier to inject capacity into the market , adding more than 300 tons of weekly air cargo capacity to its existing flight schedules out of Hanoi to handle the increasing demand. "Vietnam's role in global trade is accelerating, fueled by geographic advantages, a skilled workforce and consistent inflows of foreign investment," said Peter Bardens, senior vice president for network operations and aviation in Asia-Pacific at DHL Express. "(Vietnam) has risen as a tech manufacturing powerhouse in recent years, especially in the northern region where Hanoi is seeing a boom in high-tech exports,” Bardens said in a statement Wednesday, adding that DHL Express saw a double-digit increase in tech-related shipments from Hanoi in the first half of the year. Air cargo capacity on Vietnam-to-North America routes last week was up 95% year over year at 2,400 tons, according to air freight analyst Rotate, while Vietnam-Europe capacity rose 39% to 4,800 tons. While the gains are from a relatively low base, the strong growth is attracting airlines. Rotate looked at the carriers best positioned to serve the market, with local carrier Vietnam Airlines unsurprisingly offering the most capacity out of the Southeast Asian powerhouse at 85,000 tons. Close behind was Korean Air, which in August signed a memorandum of understanding with Vietnam Airlines that includes expanding cooperation in air cargo and developing air freight corridors between Vietnam and South Korea. High-tech hub As companies continue to diversify their supply chains, Vietnam has emerged as a preferred manufacturing hub, particularly for high-tech products such as laptops and electronics. The country's Ministry of Information and Communications forecasts that the information and communication technology (ICT) industry will achieve $169.3 billion in total revenue in 2025, an 11.4% year-over-year increase. Hardware and electronics exports are expected to grow 12.3% to $148.5 billion. The DHL Trade Atlas 2025 has identified Vietnam among the top 30 countries globally for both the speed and scale of trade growth in the next five years. Vietnam is also one of the top 20 high-growth markets identified by DHL Group, benefiting from strong geographic tailwinds and its strategic location in Southeast Asia. Contact Greg Knowler at greg.knowler@spglobal.com .

Air Cargo Forwarder News

Air Cargo Carriers News

Air Cargo

Vietnam tech exports driving air freight capacity injection

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The rise of code generation tools portends a future where even non-technical people can build software, potentially threatening the hold incumbent software-as-a-service providers have on logistics customers. </div>

The rise of code generation tools portends a future where even non-technical people can build software, potentially threatening the hold incumbent software-as-a-service providers have on logistics customers.

<div class="phx-topic">A theory in technology circles began to bubble up earlier this year as the use of artificial intelligence-based coding tools started to take hold in virtually every corner of the software world: Will these tools kill the software-as-a-service (SaaS) market? Code generation tools like Cursor, Windsurf, Claude, Devin, base44 and Lovable are already <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/code-generation-tools-altering-efficiency-capacity-for-logistics-technology-providers-6052945">transforming the experience for software developers</a>, allowing them to build products more quickly and add programming capacity to their teams without hiring expensive developers. To be clear, the key benefit of these tools remains the augmentation of coding capacity, with logistics software executives telling the Journal of Commerce that they currently add anywhere from 20% to 100% more capacity to their teams. But technology experts have also wondered if these coding tools might render existing software somewhat redundant. In such a scenario, a programmer at a company that uses a piece of software could essentially build a new feature on top of that existing software, or, at an extreme level, could theoretically build an entire product to replace that software. Where this gets really interesting is if code generation software becomes powerful enough that non-technical people could build features or entire systems for themselves, merely through prompts. That activity, often referred to as “vibe coding,” can essentially be described as coding with English through a program that turns prompts into code. Think of an operations employee at a shipper prompting a code generation tool to create an application that builds a carrier scorecard by pulling information from its transportation management system (TMS), its visibility provider, its freight brokers and receiving facilities. Or, more significantly, think of a shipper having the ability to just create its own TMS through a series of prompts. “Lovable just released ‘agent mode’ and I think it could build a TMS that rivals existing systems that freight brokers use,” Gabe Pankonin, CEO at less-than-truckload broker Rocket Shipping, wrote in a July post on X. “The age of SaaS TMS platforms is coming to an end way quicker than I thought.” <h3>New dimension to ‘build versus buy’ </h3>Pankonin told the Journal of Commerce he expects a lot of companies in freight technology to be disrupted from customer-building features to developing their own AI agents. “The SaaS message has always been ‘use our platform, and you don’t have to build it yourself,’” he said. “In the next three years, it’s going to be easier to build it yourself than implement someone else’s technology. With Lovable and base44, if you know how to prompt, you’re a designer, and then you can do some real damage. I tell it what I want, but I don’t have to code it.” The idea of using natural language to build software might sound appealing to companies for a number of reasons. For one, the product would be tailored specifically to the needs of the company building it, reshaping the age-old build-versus-buy dilemma. For companies that invest in their ability to build tools for themselves, the speed of development could also be an advantage. But it’s not so simple, of course. The reality is that large companies – whether shippers, logistics companies or carriers – tend to rely on established enterprise software for a reason. It’s stable, it’s continually maintained and generally effective. “Coding with English allows people to build basic unsophisticated systems or working prototypes,” WiseTech Global CEO Zubin Appoo, told the Journal of Commerce. “They’re not yet able to build anything with production strength. Our [intellectual property] is our deep domain expertise, understanding how players connect to each other and what the industry needs. And the connectivity that we bring across everybody. “The interface with government authorities, denied party lists, with entities from manufacturing to demand, that’s not something that AI can or will ever be able to do,” he added. <h3>Differing viewpoints </h3>There is a variety of views on whether coding tools will ever have that capability, or whether they will be a part of the arsenal of software vendors rather than an existential threat to them. “I would agree there’s vulnerability,” said Jake Hoffman, chief technology officer at Gnosis Freight, which provides container management software for shippers. “Understanding the nuance for each customer is the way we approach it. The demand from customers will get higher and they will either build this all themselves or seek a partner using these tools.” Hoffman said that SaaS providers can use the tools on offer to “scale the nuances,” instead of viewing the need to cater to individual preferences from customers as a cost burden. Aaron Levie, CEO of content management software vendor Box, said in an August post on X that in “workflows where the cost of getting something wrong is high, enterprises will have a tendency to pick core platforms for their most common, important and repeatable functions.” <h3>Micro apps </h3>But Levie said “there will also be a long tail of experiences where users can generate micro apps on the fly when they need quick applications or use cases automated, when there’s no obvious piece of software to do that with.” In general, Levie said that code generation tools will be used to build software in what he described as a “personal context” that only affects a single user or small team and not an entire enterprise. “But I would have different expectations in an enterprise context,” he wrote. “The point of much of the software that we use in the enterprise is largely to just keep our processes on track and moving forward reliably. For any of these workflows and data sets, you need a high degree of stable patterns that you know will work every single time. You’re relying on the software vendor to think about the underlying process, so you don’t have to keep the software up to date with new regulations or industry trends.” Contact Eric Johnson at eric.johnson@spglobal.com. </div>

A theory in technology circles began to bubble up earlier this year as the use of artificial intelligence-based coding tools started to take hold in virtually every corner of the software world: Will these tools kill the software-as-a-service (SaaS) market? Code generation tools like Cursor, Windsurf, Claude, Devin, base44 and Lovable are already transforming the experience for software developers , allowing them to build products more quickly and add programming capacity to their teams without hiring expensive developers. To be clear, the key benefit of these tools remains the augmentation of coding capacity, with logistics software executives telling the Journal of Commerce that they currently add anywhere from 20% to 100% more capacity to their teams. But technology experts have also wondered if these coding tools might render existing software somewhat redundant. In such a scenario, a programmer at a company that uses a piece of software could essentially build a new feature on top of that existing software, or, at an extreme level, could theoretically build an entire product to replace that software. Where this gets really interesting is if code generation software becomes powerful enough that non-technical people could build features or entire systems for themselves, merely through prompts. That activity, often referred to as “vibe coding,” can essentially be described as coding with English through a program that turns prompts into code. Think of an operations employee at a shipper prompting a code generation tool to create an application that builds a carrier scorecard by pulling information from its transportation management system (TMS), its visibility provider, its freight brokers and receiving facilities. Or, more significantly, think of a shipper having the ability to just create its own TMS through a series of prompts. “Lovable just released ‘agent mode’ and I think it could build a TMS that rivals existing systems that freight brokers use,” Gabe Pankonin, CEO at less-than-truckload broker Rocket Shipping, wrote in a July post on X. “The age of SaaS TMS platforms is coming to an end way quicker than I thought.” New dimension to ‘build versus buy’ Pankonin told the Journal of Commerce he expects a lot of companies in freight technology to be disrupted from customer-building features to developing their own AI agents. “The SaaS message has always been ‘use our platform, and you don’t have to build it yourself,’” he said. “In the next three years, it’s going to be easier to build it yourself than implement someone else’s technology. With Lovable and base44, if you know how to prompt, you’re a designer, and then you can do some real damage. I tell it what I want, but I don’t have to code it.” The idea of using natural language to build software might sound appealing to companies for a number of reasons. For one, the product would be tailored specifically to the needs of the company building it, reshaping the age-old build-versus-buy dilemma. For companies that invest in their ability to build tools for themselves, the speed of development could also be an advantage. But it’s not so simple, of course. The reality is that large companies – whether shippers, logistics companies or carriers – tend to rely on established enterprise software for a reason. It’s stable, it’s continually maintained and generally effective. “Coding with English allows people to build basic unsophisticated systems or working prototypes,” WiseTech Global CEO Zubin Appoo, told the Journal of Commerce. “They’re not yet able to build anything with production strength. Our [intellectual property] is our deep domain expertise, understanding how players connect to each other and what the industry needs. And the connectivity that we bring across everybody. “The interface with government authorities, denied party lists, with entities from manufacturing to demand, that’s not something that AI can or will ever be able to do,” he added. Differing viewpoints There is a variety of views on whether coding tools will ever have that capability, or whether they will be a part of the arsenal of software vendors rather than an existential threat to them. “I would agree there’s vulnerability,” said Jake Hoffman, chief technology officer at Gnosis Freight, which provides container management software for shippers. “Understanding the nuance for each customer is the way we approach it. The demand from customers will get higher and they will either build this all themselves or seek a partner using these tools.” Hoffman said that SaaS providers can use the tools on offer to “scale the nuances,” instead of viewing the need to cater to individual preferences from customers as a cost burden. Aaron Levie, CEO of content management software vendor Box, said in an August post on X that in “workflows where the cost of getting something wrong is high, enterprises will have a tendency to pick core platforms for their most common, important and repeatable functions.” Micro apps But Levie said “there will also be a long tail of experiences where users can generate micro apps on the fly when they need quick applications or use cases automated, when there’s no obvious piece of software to do that with.” In general, Levie said that code generation tools will be used to build software in what he described as a “personal context” that only affects a single user or small team and not an entire enterprise. “But I would have different expectations in an enterprise context,” he wrote. “The point of much of the software that we use in the enterprise is largely to just keep our processes on track and moving forward reliably. For any of these workflows and data sets, you need a high degree of stable patterns that you know will work every single time. You’re relying on the software vendor to think about the underlying process, so you don’t have to keep the software up to date with new regulations or industry trends.” Contact Eric Johnson at eric.johnson@spglobal.com.

Logistics Technology News

Logistics technology executives differ on coding threat to incumbent products

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The slow drive to bring more maritime equipment manufacturing to the US has received a small boost with a crane order from MSC’s terminal division that will include US-made components. </div>

The slow drive to bring more maritime equipment manufacturing to the US has received a small boost with a crane order from MSC’s terminal division that will include US-made components.

<div class="phx-topic">Mediterranean Shipping Co.’s terminal division is throwing its support to the US’ bid to reshore maritime equipment manufacturing away from China with an order for new ship-to-shore cranes using American-made parts. Crane manufacturer Paceco has announced that a supply deal with Total Terminals International at the Port of Long Beach for two new ship-to-shore cranes “will include key American-made components supplied by US companies.” Total Terminals, the largest container facility at Long Beach, is operated by MSC’s Terminal Investment Limited (TiL). The two cranes, capable of handling ultra-large containerships, are expected to enter service in 2027, Paceco said in a statement. It did not detail what parts of the cranes would be made in the US. While the new cranes will be built in Japan, the inclusion of US components in the cranes shows “that there are reliable alternatives that both meet the needs of US ports and support broader national security and supply chain resilience goals,” Troy Collard, Paceco’s general manager of sales, said in the statement, issued last week.Paceco, a subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Mitsui E&amp;S, was named by the Biden administration as one of the beneficiaries from <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/white-house-counters-risk-of-chinese-port-cranes-with-20-billion-for-us-sourcing-5200230">approximately $20 billion in grants</a> made available under the 2021 Infrastructure Act that aimed to foster domestic manufacturing of ship-to-shore cranes. The grants were in response to concerns over <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/zpmc-pressures-us-ports-for-remote-crane-access-house-report-5726693">Chinese manufacturer ZPMC’s dominance of the crane market</a>. The Trump administration has not outlined further direct incentives for domestic crane manufacturers, but <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/looming-us-tariffs-put-economic-viability-of-sts-cranes-in-doubt-6055678">the US Trade Representative has proposed a 100% tariff on Chinese-made cranes and components</a>. Until that tariff becomes official, Chinese cranes are still subject to the 30% reciprocal tariffs the Trump administration has slapped on China. The new Long Beach cranes, though, will be subject to the 15% tariffs the Trump administration has issued for imports from Japan. Ports across the US are grappling with the higher costs of ship-to-shore cranes. The South Carolina Ports Authority had originally budgeted $25 million for new cranes from ZPMC. In light of the Trump administration’s tariff actions, the port revised its budget for non-Chinese cranes that would cost $34 million instead. Contact Michael Angell at <a href="mailto: michael.angell@spglobal.com">michael.angell@spglobal.com</a>.</div>

Mediterranean Shipping Co.’s terminal division is throwing its support to the US’ bid to reshore maritime equipment manufacturing away from China with an order for new ship-to-shore cranes using American-made parts. Crane manufacturer Paceco has announced that a supply deal with Total Terminals International at the Port of Long Beach for two new ship-to-shore cranes “will include key American-made components supplied by US companies.” Total Terminals, the largest container facility at Long Beach, is operated by MSC’s Terminal Investment Limited (TiL). The two cranes, capable of handling ultra-large containerships, are expected to enter service in 2027, Paceco said in a statement. It did not detail what parts of the cranes would be made in the US. While the new cranes will be built in Japan, the inclusion of US components in the cranes shows “that there are reliable alternatives that both meet the needs of US ports and support broader national security and supply chain resilience goals,” Troy Collard, Paceco’s general manager of sales, said in the statement, issued last week. Paceco, a subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Mitsui E&S, was named by the Biden administration as one of the beneficiaries from approximately $20 billion in grants made available under the 2021 Infrastructure Act that aimed to foster domestic manufacturing of ship-to-shore cranes. The grants were in response to concerns over Chinese manufacturer ZPMC’s dominance of the crane market . The Trump administration has not outlined further direct incentives for domestic crane manufacturers, but the US Trade Representative has proposed a 100% tariff on Chinese-made cranes and components . Until that tariff becomes official, Chinese cranes are still subject to the 30% reciprocal tariffs the Trump administration has slapped on China. The new Long Beach cranes, though, will be subject to the 15% tariffs the Trump administration has issued for imports from Japan. Ports across the US are grappling with the higher costs of ship-to-shore cranes. The South Carolina Ports Authority had originally budgeted $25 million for new cranes from ZPMC. In light of the Trump administration’s tariff actions, the port revised its budget for non-Chinese cranes that would cost $34 million instead. Contact Michael Angell at michael.angell@spglobal.com .

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In today’s competitive logistical landscape, efficiency is an absolute necessity for smooth operations. Yet, in the barge sector, many operators still rely on fragmented systems, delayed updates, and manual tracking methods that slow decision-making and increase operational risk. OpenTug’s new eBook, How Enhanced Visibility Transforms Barge Operations, reveals how unified, real-time data can become your competitive advantage leading to improved voyage management and more actionable insights. Drawing on industry best practices and real-world examples, it explores how operational transparency empowers teams to: ●	Reduce delays with accurate ETAs and proactive scheduling decisions ●	Improve asset utilization by identifying underused equipment and optimizing cargos ●	Strengthen safety and compliance through consistent, accessible documentation and reporting ●	Boost customer satisfaction with transparent status updates and faster response time You’ll learn how visibility can connect every part of your operation into a single, actionable view. The ability to see and act on real-time information transforms the way you plan, execute, and deliver. From managing a small regional fleet to running a large, national operation, this eBook will help you understand the measurable benefits of enhanced visibility and how technology like BargeOS is transforming the way barge logistics is managed. Get your copy today and see how clear insights lead to stronger performance, smarter decisions, and more profitable operations. <a href="https://9315820.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/9315820/eBook/Nav-theFuture-AJW-08.19.25.pdf" rel="noreferrer" class="joc_admin__link">Click here</a><span class="joc_admin__inline-image joc_admin__inline-image-aspect-ratio-16_9 joc_admin__inline-image-position-left joc_admin__inline-image-size-small" data-figure-size="small" data-figure-position="left" data-figure-aspect-ratio="16:9"><img src="/content-assets/1756152344211_Opentug%20logo.png" alt="" class="joc_admin__inline-image-inherit">

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At SSA Marine Mexico, we firmly believe that business development must go hand in hand with social and environmental well-being. Our vision is not solely focused on operating efficiently, but also on creating a meaningful and positive impact in the communities where we are present. Since 1995, we have reaffirmed this commitment through tangible actions that reflect our core values of responsibility, solidarity, and sustainability. <span class="joc_admin__inline-image joc_admin__inline-image-aspect-ratio-3_2 joc_admin__inline-image-position-left joc_admin__inline-image-size-medium" data-figure-size="medium" data-figure-position="left" data-figure-aspect-ratio="3:2"><img src="/content-assets/1752584535914_Photo%201.jpg" alt="" class="joc_admin__inline-image-inherit"> A Year of Major Achievements Over the past year, we allocated more than $107,000 USD to the implementation of 60 social and environmental projects, positively impacting over 7,800 people across various regions of Mexico. Each initiative was designed with a holistic approach, addressing key areas that contribute to long-term community development. Education: Laying the Foundation for the Future Education is one of the most powerful tools to promote social mobility and equitable development. At SSA Marine Mexico, we support academic initiatives that inspire and empower the next generation of leaders. One of our most impactful partnerships was with the University of Colima, where we sponsored the “Reto Camp” program. This initiative encourages university students to develop innovative solutions in the fields of sustainability, logistics, and port operations, offering them mentorship, tools, and real-world challenges to solve. In addition, we donated microscopes, school supplies, and educational materials to institutions in underserved communities, helping to improve the learning environment and provide students with the resources they need to succeed. Health and Sports: Promoting Wellness We believe that healthy communities are strong communities. We have supported several local sporting events and provided direct assistance to talented athletes, enabling them to pursue their passions and represent their regions with pride. Beyond sports, we also strengthened our collaboration with critical emergency response organizations such as the Mexican Red Cross and Civil Protection. Our contributions helped enhance their readiness and capabilities in times of crisis, ensuring better outcomes for those affected by emergencies. Supporting Vulnerable Groups: Reaching Those Who Need It Most A core part of our social responsibility efforts is directed toward supporting vulnerable populations. We have contributed to a range of initiatives focused on children, migrants, and at-risk families. These efforts included donations to orphanages and shelters, as well as support for the National Institute of Migration and grassroots organizations dedicated to protecting and empowering people facing adversity. By standing with those in need, we reinforce our commitment to inclusion and social justice, values that are central to our identity as a responsible company. <span class="joc_admin__inline-image joc_admin__inline-image-aspect-ratio-3_2 joc_admin__inline-image-position-left joc_admin__inline-image-size-medium" data-figure-size="medium" data-figure-position="left" data-figure-aspect-ratio="3:2"><img src="/content-assets/1752584944645_Photo%202.png" alt="" class="joc_admin__inline-image-inherit">Culture: Strengthening Community Identity Cultural identity is a key element in building resilient and united communities. At SSA Marine Mexico, we actively participate in the organization and sponsorship of cultural events that celebrate local traditions and foster civic pride. Working alongside port authorities and municipal governments, we helped bring music, art, and heritage to the forefront, creating spaces for community engagement and intercultural dialogue. Environment: Investing in the Planet Our commitment to sustainability goes beyond operations—it’s a philosophy that drives every decision we make. We have partnered with environmental institutions to carry out reforestation campaigns, beach cleanups, and conservation efforts. In collaboration with the Institute for the Environment, we supported initiatives aimed at decarbonization, biodiversity protection, and environmental education. By involving our employees and local volunteers in these actions, we also foster a culture of environmental stewardship throughout our organization and our surrounding communities. Innovation for a Sustainable Future Sustainability is not just about doing good—it’s also about doing things better. In 2024, we invested $22 million USD in the acquisition of 11 state-of-the-art E-RTG cranes. These electric rubber-tired gantry cranes represent a significant technological advancement in port equipment. Seven of them are already operating on clean electric energy, resulting in a reduction of nearly 4,000 tons of CO₂ emissions and improving operational efficiency by 7%. The remaining four cranes are fully compatible with future electrification, underscoring our long-term strategy to modernize our operations in an environmentally responsible way. This investment is part of a broader innovation roadmap that includes digitalization, automation, and cleaner energy sources—all designed to ensure that our ports continue to grow without compromising the health of our planet. Building a Better Tomorrow, Together At SSA Marine Mexico, we understand that sustainability is a shared and ongoing responsibility. True impact requires collaboration across sectors, long-term vision, and unwavering commitment. That is why we continue to work hand-in-hand with local authorities, non-profit organizations, universities, and our own employees to create solutions that are both scalable and sustainable. Our journey is far from over. In the years ahead, we will continue to deepen our community engagement, explore cleaner technologies, and strengthen the social fabric of the regions where we operate. Each initiative, no matter the size, is a step toward building a future where business success goes hand-in-hand with human and environmental prosperity. We are proud of what we have achieved in 2024, but we are even more excited about what lies ahead. SSA Marine Mexico — Moving the World, Caring for People and Planet. LINK: <a href="https://www.ssamarine.mx/" rel="noreferrer" class="joc_admin__link">https://www.ssamarine.mx/</a>

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The world of LTL is slow to embrace change. Business anachronisms permeate current supply chain processes. These vestiges of the way things used to work define the LTL freight transportation procurement process of many modern shippers.David Knuth, logistics specialist at IEWC, a global supplier of cable and wire based in Wisconsin, is happy to have modernized the RFP process, automating the entire LTL bidding procedure with Bid$ense, SMC³’s automated truckload and LTL freight transportation sourcing solution. But when prompted, he can still recall what once was.In his previous job, a large part of his duties were consumed by creating an intermodal bid package for carriers. In a spreadsheet, Knuth detailed the company’s volumes lane by lane, taking care to delete any errant keystrokes or misleading data. He would then email out the information to each carrier, taking time to respond to detailed technical questions about the spreadsheet data. Finally, he had to compile all the results, create an algorithm that would compare the carriers on each lane, and award the business.“It was a huge undertaking. It took about four months to do,” Knuth said of the old process. “It was almost a full-time job for that part of the year, every year.”In his new job at IEWC, he sat down with Bid$ense on day one and was amazed at the capabilities. Knuth had never before used a bid tool. SMC³’s latest versions of Bid$ense automate the process even further, taking truckload and LTL RFPs entirely online. The tool draws on RFP best-practices protocols to streamline the bidding communication process, enabling bidding carriers to respond accurately and promptly to shipper requests. The solution also does all the distribution work automatically, electronically submitting shipper bid data to carriers based on their actual service capabilities and performance records. Carriers are alerted with timely prompts for RFP deliverables, so shippers aren’t waiting by the phone for responses.Another benefit of automating the process is the data-cleansing assistance. When Knuth sent spreadsheets to carriers, data errors might cloud the bidding process; he might have to resend data or simply accept a price that did not truly reflect the costs of doing business. Data cleansing is incredibly beneficial, he said.The spreadsheet technique also made bidding analysis an onerous task. Since Bid$ense automates and streamlines the entire RFP process, intensive examination is now simple. SMC³ knows that each bid has more than one best outcome. With uniform responses from each carrier, shippers can quickly rank results and create an unlimited quantity of what-if scenarios to make the optimal procurement decision.Jesse Burnett of Central Garden &amp; Pet experiences many of the same benefits. Founded in 1980, Central Garden &amp; Pet has spent the last three decades growing from a small garden supply company to a provider of a range of products from dog chews and bird seed to soil supplements and natural insecticides. For much of its life, the company shipped these disparate goods via LTL and truckload carriers to retailers throughout the country, relying on each business unit to negotiate directly with their freight transportation providers. This arrangement worked fairly well for a small company, but as Central Garden &amp; Pet expanded, leadership decided to consolidate decision making.Burnett helped centralize the transportation decision making in 2015 with SMC³’s Bid$ense. Before Bid$ense, every business unit operated independently as far as negotiating with carriers.“There were a lot of different things just floating around,” he said. “We didn’t have master agreements in place; no national pricing at all. The pricing from carriers was just all over the place, depending on where you were.”The transformations he saw with Bid$ense were immediate. Burnett has been using the tool about every other year since its implementation at the company. Central Garden and Pet’s $19.6 million 2019 LTL bid saved the company just more than 9 percent when compared to its historical average. For Burnett, though, bid automation extends far beyond savings.“We knew that we weren’t getting the best pricing offer from our carriers just because nothing was centralized,” he continued. “We knew that if we combined everything from all these business units and paired it with one corporate offering, then it would drive some cost benefit with it.”When the company initially decided to centralize bid procurement, executives researched a number of different methodologies and technologies. In the end, though, Burnett found that Bid$ense was both widespread and well known, and that his carrier partners already knew how to use the application. Burnett also highlighted the data-cleansing process as a major benefit, saying the rigorous process ensures that carriers always return the best price.“It definitely has helped drive savings,” he said. “Any time you go out there and you drive that competitiveness with the carriers and they know they’re in a bid environment, it seems to sharpen their pencils.”Transportation procurement is an integral part of the modern supply chain. With Bid$ense, shippers can develop a strategic implementation plan that saves them time and money, but also helps them create strong relationships with their carrier partners. These carriers appreciate the solution’s data-cleansing process; when carriers receive a complete shipment history and future volume forecast, they don’t have to guess on pricing. Carriers that receive more data from shippers get a complete picture of that shipper’s freight, allowing them to accurately plan instead of simply preparing for the worst-case scenario. Clean data presented through an automated system can lead to both bigger shipment savings and a lasting partnership between carrier and customer.Whether customers are looking to streamline over-the-road transportation bidding by automating the RFP process or create an entirely new, centralized sourcing process, Bid$ense has the analytical horsepower to get the job done.SMC³ 2020 Customer Case Study

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Shippers save money, time with automated transportation bidding tools

If there’s one immutable truth in the world of logistics, it’s this: LTL is an inherently complex form of transportation. Tariffs, rates, DIM weights, transit times — it’s enough to confuse even seasoned logistics professionals. The solution to this knowledge gap has historically been on-the-job training or university supply chain education, but for a variety of reasons there is now a pressing need for third-party, remote LTL training that prepares logistics workers for transportation success. Global Scope Can Overlook Local Intricacies In the past, professionals looking to move into a supply chain career learned about the basics of supply chain from universities. However, many of these college supply chain programs are now global in scope, focusing on worldwide supply chain management instead of the intricacies of specialized domestic transportation. And even these programs, which used to be widespread, are becoming less common. LTL is not an industry of broad-brush strokes; supply chain professionals really need a pointillistic understanding of the logistics of LTL in order to excel in the industry. Accelerating Need for Dedicated LTL Education This lack of specified training put the onus on employers to prepare new hires with the LTL knowledge needed to do their jobs. Dedicated LTL study is a necessity, not a luxury. At the same time, changes in LTL and the broader supply chain world are accelerating. The reliance on e-commerce has ballooned since the start of the pandemic, and last-mile LTL shipments and related e-commerce strains on the supply chain won’t diminish once social distancing abates. That genie isn’t going back into the bottle. So supply chain employers need logistics workers that are fully versed in all aspects of the industry, ready to solve unique shipping and delivery problems based on their extensive supply chain knowledge But why care about LTL? It’s been reported that some shippers in today’s world are no longer concerned with what mode is used to ship their goods. A Multimodal Approach Ensures On-Time Delivery This mode agnosticism means supply chain stakeholders have to be well versed in all modes of transportation. As unforeseen weather events and other disruptions, such as protests, become more common, savvy logistics employees will need to be armed with familiarity of all modes, not just the most popular, to ensure that freight is delivered on time, without damage, and in the most financially expedient way possible. Offerings like SMC³’s LTL online education courses cover a wide range of topics from LTL basics and operations to more advanced concepts like pricing analytics and transportation law. The company also has plans to continually refresh content, adding new expert presenters and taking the feedback of students to make the courses even better as time goes on. Learn more about&nbsp;<a href="https://logisticstrainingcenter.com/smc3-courses/" rel="noreferrer" class="joc_admin__link">SMC³’s LTL Online Education program</a>&nbsp;and view the 2021 hybrid schedule, featuring live industry experts,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.smc3.com/onlinelearning2021/" rel="noreferrer" class="joc_admin__link">here.</a>

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Filling the Supply Chain Education Gap with LTL Education Courses

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