Page 3 - Logistics News Sept/Oct 2017

Thought Leadership

Shippers, Amazon pushing

supply chain toward automation

By William B. Cassidy

Higher customer expectations are putting pressure on suppliers to upgrade the technology in their
operations to meet those demands.

THE TRANSPORTATION business is on the Behind all discussions about automation is
cusp of signifi cant technological change, but the role of Amazon in redefi ning and setting
“legacy” technologies may take years to dislodge, consumer and industrial fulfi llment standards.
hampering gains in effi ciency. In eff ect, technology Many companies sell products or move goods on
is developing faster than many shippers, logistics Amazon’s platforms, but even those with little or no
providers, and transport companies can adopt and exposure to the company have to meet customer
deploy it. expectations raised by Amazon’s off erings.
“We’re not the fastest-moving industry,” Mitch “The whole concept of how customers interact
Weseley, CEO of transportation software provider is fundamentally changing, and it’s all being driven
3Gtms. “Something that works is hard to displace. by the iPhone and Amazon,” said Mike Seneski,
If something works, you need a big business reason director of corporate strategy at Ford Motor
to change to something new,” he said. Company. He pointed to Carvana.com, the online
That slow pace will not stop a push toward marketplace for cars that enables consumers to
end-to-end supply chain automation, from order shop “from their couch” and buy from “vehicle
to invoice to payment. That many technology fi rms vending machines.”
are backing. They are being joined by shippers, “This is a serious race for complete and total
carriers, and logistics service providers seeking disruption of the automotive industry over the next
ways to automate more processes and move freight fi ve to seven years,” Seneski said. A few years ago,
at a faster pace. Ford drew up a list of 47 assumptions about how

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