On December 4, 2015, President Obama signed into law, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation, or “FAST” Act. After ten years and dozens of extensions and delays, Congress finally had provided long term funding for new surface transportation projects and improvements. While Congress and DOT praised the legislation, Congress had continued to take a hard line […]

……….continue in Congress. This time they are considering legislation that will impact all of us from both a personal and a business perspective. The funding for the Federal Aviation Administration runs out at the end of this month. As was the case with the highway reauthorization bill, the new FAA reauthorization being considered, the Aviation, […]

February 8 marked the beginning of the Chinese lunar Year of the Monkey – a year during which we will probably see more supply chain changes than we have in any of the last fifty. Monkeys are by nature intellectual and creative, but often have trouble exhibiting these qualities. When that happens, monkeys seem confused. […]

As supply chain management becomes more sophisticated and new technologies and techniques surface almost daily, the literature is loaded with information about logistics service providers, i.e. how to identify, select, manage, vest them, and motivate them. Yet, alarmingly little space seems to be devoted to what I feel is arguably one of the most significant […]

As supply chains have gotten more complex, and logistics service providers (LSP) have become more sophisticated and experienced, an increasing number of firms has turned to outsourcing some or all of their logistics functions. This is a major step, and for those new to outsourcing, it is important to understand that the decision will be […]

The outsourcing of logistics services is not a new concept by any means. While it has gained renewed emphasis over the past several decades, the practice can be traced back almost as far as one would care to research it. In Europe, a number of logistics service providers can trace their origins back to the […]

As we come to the end of another eventful year, our thoughts begin to turn to 2016, and whatever developments it might bring. With several trucking issues and infrastructure legislation behind us, at least for the time being, hopefully we will have smoother supply chain sailing ahead. Predicting the future in any year is difficult, […]

In our last blog we wrote about the new protection for truck drivers which made it illegal for carriers and shippers to coerce them into violating their hours of service limitations. Last week there was an important new development when the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published a rule requiring most drivers to begin […]

If so, you may have to clean your act up a little bit. By now, everyone concedes that the job of a truck driver is not an easy one, and is subject to what seems like an endless list of federal and state regulations. Unfortunately, most of them are necessary, and were established to ensure […]

After 10 years and 35 extensions of other extensions, both the Senate and House have passed infrastructure bills. This week, committees from both chambers are conferencing on a reconciliation of the two bills. The last extension expires this Friday, and the predictions are that a completed bill will be on President Obama’s desk by Thanksgiving […]