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By Art Van Bodegraven and Ken Ackerman

For decades a staple of both editorial and general humor cartoons in America has been a scraggly, bearded, besandaled zealot in shabby robes, bearing a placard or sandwich board sign proclaiming “The End Is Near!”  Usually placed in an urban setting among well-dressed passers-by, the prophet signifying the imminence of End Times was ignored, overlooked, or made sport of to the tune of a well-placed punch line. more....

By Art Van Bodegraven

Debate about what leadership means can rage endlessly, and often does.  Definitions of leadership abound, each with at least a superficial aura of “gee, that makes sense.”  But there’s lots of variance among definitions – and “definitive” examples. more....

By Art Van Bodegraven

All the live-long day, if you would believe the old song.  Not many of us in today’s world of supply chain management actually worked on a railroad, but many of us worked somewhere around trucks.  And, another large population of us worked in warehouses and distribution centers. more....

By Art Van Bodegraven and Ken Ackerman
The art and science of ergonomics haves been with us for quite a while now.  Some – many – actually understand their importance in the health and welfare of working associates, whether clerks, drivers, laborers, or whatever.  We also get it: good ergonomics means good business in supporting productive job performance in any number of environments.
Maybe ergonomics has been overshadowed recently with the PR surrounding the cult of “green,” but it’s still relevant.  So relevant that a new school of consulting is making money by showing employers how to avoid down-the-road medical costs by installing good ergonomic equipment and practices. more...

By Bruce Strahan and Art Van Bodegraven

Supply chain concepts and logistics - how are they different, and is it time for the former to replace the latter? We contend that they are different enough to be recognized individually, and, yet, are so tightly interwoven that they should not be considered separately. more...

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

Every year the Materials Handling Institute and the College Industry Committee on Material Handling Education, CICMHE, sponsor a case study competition for university students. Last month teams from twelve universities submitted reports with their solutions to a problem prepared by Gross and Assoc. (giving it away, again!). I was privileged to be one of the judges. more...

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

My partner, Steve Mulaik, has been working for several years compiling a master list of all of the functions that might be included in a Warehouse Management System. He figured that a tool like this would provide a substantial competitive advantage in developing WMS requirements for clients. Last month, he decided to offer it free to anyone who could use it. more...

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

As I write this, it is the end of an old year. As you read it, it will be the beginning of the new. It’s a time for reflection, and re-dedication.
Here are a few of the things that I have learned in the past year – and hope to not forget in the next. more...

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

Last month, I had the privilege of attending the 8th International Materials Handling Research Colloquium at the Technical University in Graz, Austria.
This remarkable event is supported and conducted by our own materials handling industry associations; MHI, MHIA and CICMHE. Gracious sponsorship was provided by a few of the Austrian materials handling suppliers; Knapp, Schaefer Peem, Salomon Automation and TGW. more...

How Much WMS Do You Really Need?

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

I have several partners who are immersed in the nether world of WMS. I am an old-timer, constantly on the lookout for quick and dirty solutions to small and medium sized operations. So, when we need to determine the level of sophistication for the information systems support, I argue for as much simplicity as possible. They, on the other hand, seem to always gravitate toward systems that can do everything but scrub the kitchen sink. more...

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

Procrastination and impatience may seem like opposite ends of the behavioral spectrum, but they have remarkably similar effects on distribution operations.
In a recent Warehousing Short Course at Georgia Tech, I remarked that the cost of not being able to plan tomorrow’s work today makes a big difference in warehouse operating costs. “How big?” one of the students asked. I was caught without a good answer. more...

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

For those of us in the process and facility design business, data is the life-blood of our existence. It is our primary raw material. But, it certainly can be a fickle friend.
The general attitude about data is, ”the more, the better.” But, we can easily become overwhelmed with the detail – and, with verifying its accuracy. more...

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

As we crank-up the speed of the supply chain, the increase in smaller and more frequent shipments makes receiving time more critical and more costly. In order to make their operations more efficient, major retailers have developed lengthy compliance documents, and put teeth into them with a system of hefty charge-backs for even the smallest of errors. more...

By James M. Apple, Jr. and published in Modern Materials Handling Magazine.

Every time I have the opportunity to begin work on a new project, I get a stark reminder that it is not the employees on the floor who keep repeating the same old mistakes, but those of us who have a responsibility for planning the process. more...