American Shipper

FreightWaves Staff Thursday, September 26, 2013

Knight Transportation takes USA Truck buy offer public

   Knight Transportation recently proposed an acquisition of USA Truck for $9 per share or $95 million only to be rebuffed by the carrier’s management.    Knight is now taking its offer public to communicate directly with USA Truck’s shareholders.    The total value of the proposed acquisition, which includes USA Truck’s outstanding debt, is $242 […]

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FreightWaves Staff Thursday, September 26, 2013

ICAO, WCO promise greater collaboration

   Representatives from the International Civil Aviation Organization and the World Customs Organization joined together at ICAO’s 38th assembly to reinforce their partnership and collaboration.     ICAO’s head Raymond Benjamin said “we’ve recognized that focusing only on the aviation leg of a given shipment is no longer enough.”    He added ICAO will now focus […]

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Chris Gillis Thursday, September 26, 2013

U.S. works with Iraq to improve transport sector

   The U.S. and Iraqi governments on Wednesday reaffirmed their strategic partnership during a meeting of the Services, Technology, Environment and Transportation Joint Coordination Committee (STET JCC) in Washington.    Iraqi Deputy Minister of Transportation Bangen Rekani and U.S. Department of Transportation Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs Susan Kurland co-chaired the meeting. The […]

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Chris Dupin Thursday, September 26, 2013

Carrier Transicold introduces new reefer technology

   Carrier Transicold said it has introduced a new container atmosphere control technology that helps maintain quality of produce so it can be shipped over longer distances.    The company said its XtendFRESH system actively manages oxygen and carbon dioxide levels inside the shipping container, while simultaneously removing ethylene. Carrier also said the system is designed to […]

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FreightWaves Staff Thursday, September 26, 2013

Miller nominated for open STB seat

   President Barack Obama has nominated Deb Miller, a former head of the Kansas Department of Transportation, to the Surface Transportation Board to replace Francis Mulvey, who saw his term expire in December.    If confirmed by the Senate, Miller’s appointment would run through 2017.    Mulvey, who is currently serving as vice chairman, is […]

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Commentary: Avoiding self-defeating bid procurement

   In a transportation procurement study published in June by American Shipper, in partnership with Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals and Retail Industry Leaders Association, 50 percent of large shippers cited a lack of return on investment (ROI) as the number one inhibitor to their adoption of bid procurement technology. This is a shockingly […]

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Chris Dupin Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Hanging in the balance

Shippers urge early talks for U.S. West Coast longshore labor contract.    Contract negotiations between employers and longshoremen on the U.S. East and Gulf coasts were protracted and fractious in 2012-2013, with importers and exporters watching nervously from the sidelines.    Shippers are bracing themselves once again as the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), which represents […]

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Five feet more makes a difference

By Randy Mullett, Vice President of Government Relations and Public Affairs, Con-way Inc.    America has fallen behind the rest of the world’s developed economies in truck productivity and shippers and consumers should care because they are bearing the brunt of this shortfall through higher shipping costs, increased congestion, heightened emissions, less safe highways, and […]

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Truck broker challenges

   The number of new truck broker registrations has declined for seven consecutive months this year, after first showing a decline in September 2012, according to analysis of U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration data by MyCarrierResources.com and Interstate Transport, a brokerage in St. Petersburg, Fla.

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

House WRRDA bill dips into inland waterway issues

   The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee introduced its version of a Water Resources Reform Development Act reauthorization bill on Sept. 11, and was scheduled to debate, amend and rewrite the legislation on Sept. 19.    With today’s emphasis in Washington on streamlining government and reducing spending, H.R. 3080 includes many reform initiatives, including requiring […]

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Charleston Freight Station meets new conditions

   U .S. Customs and Border Protection has tentatively selected ATS Logistics Inc. of North Charleston, S.C., as the new operator of its Central Examination Station for the Port of Charleston, replacing incumbent Charleston Freight Station, spokesman Sean Crep said.    Charleston Freight Station has, for the past 17 years, been the designated warehouse location […]

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Not without navigable inland waterways

By Walter Kemmsies, chief economist, Moffatt & Nichol    Neglect of the inland waterway system undermines the Midwest’s ability to import and export heavy cargo, especially grain and oilseeds. Overlooking the importance of the inland waterway system is easy to do and may require a little imagination to understand…

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

If the space fits

   We’ve seen a rash of pretty significant acquisitions in the supply chain technology space over the past year.    There was the joining of transportation management powerhouses JDA and RedPrairie in November 2012, followed by the merger of GT Nexus and TradeCard in January.    Then, in early September, the cloud-based spend management solutions […]

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Driver Shortage: Fact or fiction?

More industry analysts dialing back previous dire predictions.    In its latest data on the perennial debate over the trucking industry’s driver shortage, the American Trucking Associations has predicted that by 2022 the industry will have an unmet demand for 239,000 drivers.    The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s new hours of service rules, which took […]

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

CombineNet buy caps year of big deals

   We’ve seen a rash of pretty significant acquisitions in the supply chain technology space over the past year.    There was the joining of transportation management powerhouses JDA and RedPrairie in November 2012, followed by the merger of GT Nexus and TradeCard in January.    Then, in early September, the cloud-based spend management solutions […]

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Chris Dupin Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Tubular logistics

   The stainless steel tubing manufactured by the Finnish company Stalatube is used for a variety of applications, such as building structures and facades, machinery to manufacture food and pharmaceuticals, offshore oil rigs, bus frames, and even sculptures.    About 70 percent of the company’s annual sales of 100 million euros ($133 million) are in […]

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Business case for TMS

   TetraPak uses C.H. Robinson’s system to increase payload efficiency, gain visibility. Global shippers keen on upgrading their transportation management processes often face an unwelcome dilemma — their appetite to improve or establish a global platform is not matched. 

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FreightWaves Staff Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Not your father’s Mexico

With progressive industrial policies, the country offers numerous opportunities for American shippers, their suppliers, 3PLs and carriers. By Jon Isbell    I have made two trips to Mexico this year, visiting Tijuana, Guadalajara, San Luis Potosi, Irapuato, Leon, Mexico City, and Monterrey. I traveled by road from Guadalajara to San Luis Potosí to the outskirts of […]

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Chris Dupin Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Scrubbing away high cost fuel

New technology helps shipowners use bunker and still meet sulfur emission reductions.    As 2015 approaches, shipping companies face the possibility of sharply higher fuel costs as regulations require the maximum amount of sulfur in bunker fuel used in so-called sulfur “emission control areas” (ECAs) to be cut 10-fold.    The International Maritime Organization has created […]

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