Modern Shipper

Miami-based Elion is adding 10 last-mile logistics assets in a $245 million deal.

A collaborative effort kept the delivery Grinch at bay this peak season.

UPS matched last year’s performance, while the Postal Service improved considerably, ShipMatrix says.

Warehouse executives see great potential with AI, but most feel it is being underutilized due to a lack of understanding.

A new report predicts that the adoption of drones and self-driving delivery vehicles will accelerate in the years ahead, creating a $4.9 billion market by 2030.

Uber has announced it will no longer deliver from restaurants in Brazil through its Eats platform, focusing instead on growing its grocery and retail delivery businesses.

After Amazon announced it would become the first customer for Stellantis’ ProMaster electric van, Rivian stock tumbled, dropping more than 20% at one point.

BrightDrop announced FedEx has ordered 2,000 additional electric vans and is in discussions for up to 20,000 more. Walmart also has placed an order for EVs, planning to add 5,000 to its home delivery fleet.

New last-mile delivery vehicles and electric platforms from Udelv, Ree Automotive and Lightning eMotors have been announced in recent days.

Walmart plans to rapidly expand its InHome Delivery service, hiring 3,000 drivers to handle deliveries.

California officials are going to court again to try to mitigate the emissions impact of a new air logistics center at the San Bernardino Airport anchored by Amazon Air.

The case that spurred the NLRB action is not about a transportation company, but the independent contractor definition continues to be a big issue for trucking.

Blume Global’s customers have access to the manufacturing solutions provided by LiveSource, including tools for value analysis and engineering, product part approval processes, advanced product quality planning and nonconforming reporting.

Real estate firm CBRE is the latest global leader to invest in logistics real estate with its nearly $5 billion acquisition of 28 million square feet of assets.

Supply chain disruptions will not disappear in 2022, so e-commerce businesses need to consider how they will navigate a new normal.

It was a hectic — but profitable — year for the world’s largest online retailer. What does that say about e-commerce and where it’s going?

As COVID ravaged the economy, the gig economy boomed. Responding to the need, gig workers stepped up to ensure groceries were delivered and e-commerce orders arrived on time.

Following the seemingly unusual acquisition of AirTerra in August, American Eagle Outfitters is dipping back into the logistics well.

New tax reporting standards that go into effect in January could help or hurt gig workers, depending on how their employers react.

If shopping in 2021 could be summed up in one word, it would be e-commerce. Online shopping has had profound effects on the global economy.

Straight from the mouths of executives at Flytrex, DroneDek, Zipline and Draganfly, here are predictions on where drone delivery will be in five years.

Whether you’re running an online store or a brick-and-mortar outlet, timely deliveries are crucial for a hassle-free purchase experience.

As fulfilment operations evolve to meet fast-shipping demands of e-commerce, robotics has become the default option to increase throughput.

Using augmented reality technology, augmented shopping is allowing brands to create virtual showrooms, fitting rooms and much more.

‘When shoppers form an addiction to Amazon, it affects their lives in surprising ways,’ says supply chain data company TransImpact

Tel Aviv-based delivery platform Bringg wants to bring unprecedented flexibility to the last mile.

Perhaps no single segment of the supply chain was more affected by the COVID pandemic than last-mile delivery. The final mile has undergone an evolution as e-commerce and faster delivery demands take hold.

The unit of the financial services titan becomes a big player in U.S. logistics real estate.

Strong performances by UPS and the Postal Service cap a quiet peak season.

Commercial real estate sales continued to boom in 2021, with prices up 27.4% on a year-over-year basis in November.

Drone delivery reached new heights in 2021, and as a result, there was no shortage of interest in the technology.

The levies on various services come three weeks after annual rate increases kick in and one day after peak-season fees drop off.

Sources within GLP told The Washington Post that the public company will manage about $100 billion in U.S. logistics real estate assets.

The test by the startup company is not being viewed as a proof of concept but rather to demonstrate its model to midsized companies.

Optimizing a broader carrier base can work wonders for shippers. The trick is how to balance new partners without tossing the benefits of the old ones.

Maersk is becoming an integrated logistics goliath with the ability to provide freight management, transportation, warehousing and e-commerce fulfillment for big retailers and manufacturers.

Sun Country maintains labor peace with its pilots.

Gatego’s platform has an interface for both shippers and carriers that allows both parties to keep track of check-ins and yard inventory across multiple yards.

Veho, a crowdsourced e-commerce delivery platform, has raised $125 million to become last-mile delivery’s latest unicorn company.

UPS Airlines boosts its fleet with a big order for Boeing cargo jets.

B2B e-commerce is exploding, but payments processes are not keeping up, turning what should be a seamless experience into a frustrating process for many.

The Bay Area-based autonomous vehicle maker received an investment from TDK Ventures, a subsidiary of Japanese multinational electronics company TDK Corp.

Don’t be afraid of the drone swarm. It’s just Korean Air’s approach to using several drones at once to visually inspect its aircraft.

The customer journey should not end with a return, said parcelLab CEO Tobias Buxhoidt. Instead, the return should represent another opportunity to build a loyal customer.

OSHA extends compliance deadlines for its vaccination mandate to Jan. 10 and Feb. 9 as ATA takes the fight to the Supreme Court.

More parcel processing capacity and earlier holiday shopping schedules are key factors in the agency’s improvement, ShipMatrix says.

The new partnership will offer on-demand, same-day delivery of home goods, electronics, beauty and personal care products.

The instant delivery company could be valued as high as $40 billion after securing its latest series X funding raise.

Uber Eats will begin delivering from select restaurants in Santa Monica using autonomous vehicles provided by Motional.

FedEx Express has taken delivery of the first electric vans as part of a 500-unit order from BrightDrop. The vehicles are in operation in California.

Volume and yield gains powered the Express and LTL units, while staffing shortages and operating inefficiencies continued to hurt the Ground unit.

New York City has released several blueprints on its freight future during the de Blasio administration.

Launched in April 2020, Uber Connect is now offering same-day local delivery to 6,000 cities across the country.

Alan Adler has spent his life inventing products, but it his AeroPress coffee brewer that is his most famous. It is also a direct-to-consumer product success story.

Technology platform Deliveright is expanding its services to include heavy-goods delivery in Canada.

Walmart announced two new fulfillment centers to help it meet growing e-commerce demand.

Project44’s Mike Edwards and Hannah Moore demonstrate how two of its pharmaceutical customers used its real-time visibility platform to improve a strategic partnership and supply chain operations at FreightWaves Domestic Supply Chain Summit on Wednesday.

The e-commerce shipping platform adds former Postmates and Pinterest executive Andreas Lieber to its leadership ranks.

According to Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, the company’s delivery segment is poised for massive growth –– and massive profits.

Zoomo wants to supplant gas mopeds and accelerate the move toward carbon-neutral cities.

FedEx Express has upgraded its largest gateway to Latin America.

Avatour is turning the boring Zoom business call into an immersive and interactive experience for logistics professionals.

The drone delivery company gets a big boost in North Carolina, where it now covers about 10,000 households with its delivery service.

Ryder appears to have paid a sum in line with current Whiplash revenue, a provider of final-mile services.

If you fly on United Express or American Eagle, you may have actually been on a plane operated by Mesa Airlines. Now it has an all-cargo option too.

Reports say Amazon is rolling out an Instacart-like grocery delivery service in Europe and the U.S.

Merchants Fleet is continuing its electrification efforts, announcing it will order EV step vans from Xos.

The proposed law could have widespread ramifications across the European Union –– and maybe even across the pond.

A zero-emissions delivery pilot in Seattle showed electric cargo bikes could potentially replace delivery trucks, but plenty of work remains to achieve that goal.

The increases, to take effect Dec. 26, will be highest among parcels in the 1- to 5-pound range.

Ford owns 12% of electric vehicle startup Rivian, and while it is a direct competitor to Ford’s own ambitions of electric vehicle dominance, that stake could be the driving force in the automaker’s transformation.

Food delivery startup Sesame is using logistics to challenge the dominant, commission-based food delivery model.

AxleHire has expanded its final-mile delivery services for DTC shipper X Delivery with a Chicago service.

Amazon is throwing more freighters into its air logistics operation as online sales soar.

The FAA has greenlighted the Drone Racing League to take the lead on drone safety as the first-ever UAS event organizer and the newest member of the agency’s Partnership for Safety Plan.

Automation company Berkshire Grey has released the latest generation of its Robotic Product Sortation solution for e-commerce order fulfillment.

A legislative movement to give EU gig workers more protection could foreshadow a similar reckoning in the U.S.

Qantas and Air Canada are pioneers in swapping older passenger planes from their fleets and turning them into full-time cargo haulers.

In some drone delivery consolidation, DroneUp acquired digital airspace and automation company AirMap and its airspace traffic management technology.

Even as container ship backlogs ease, the ripple effects will continue to pressure logistics operators, hampering their ability to move goods through supply chains.

DroneDek CEO Dan O’Toole spoke to Modern Shipper about his pleas to the FAA and how drones can solve the supply chain backlog.

Sources within Instacart revealed the company’s plans to offer 15-minute deliveries, while DoorDash announced its own 15-minute grocery delivery service in New York City.

As shoppers return to stores, more brands are blending the online and physical worlds through the use of augmented reality.

FedEx and UPS suspended guaranteed delivery refunds when the pandemic hit. As shippers chafe under erratic service levels, they face the possibility that some programs may never return.

With all of the fuss around holiday sales, not much attention is being paid to holiday returns, which could cause an even bigger headache for retailers.

Venture capital fund EQT Ventures is a backer of electric and autonomous vehicle maker Einride, but it is also a supporter of sustainable business models.

If the rise in truck transportation costs between September and October continued for 12 months, it would translate to an increase of more than 40%.

The company plans to recruit would-be entrepreneurs to provide trucking services in five countries, according to The Information.

NFTs are one of 2021’s biggest trends in the art world, but there’s a place for them in our supply chains too.

Instant-delivery firm Jokr announced it has reached unicorn status following a $260 million Series B funding round and is adding Boston to its service area.

GXO Logistics will open an e-commerce warehouse in Atlanta for MYXfitness, an at-home fitness brand.

An Office of Inspector General report said a shortage of commercial truck drivers may compromise the Postal Service’s surface transport capability.

In its latest logistics bid, Blackstone Group is buying 124 logistics properties in the U.S. and Europe.

Merchants Fleet is looking to expand access to information on fleet electrification, introducing a central hub of tools and research.

Robotic delivery firm Nuro will begin making autonomous deliveries for 7-Eleven in Mountain View, California.

Expanding applications of its molded structural composite trailer bodies, Wabash is looking to the grocery delivery business as a new market.

Drone developer Wingcopter has received an investment from Japan’s Drone Fund as it nears announcement of a series B funding round.

Retail inventories jump ahead of the holiday buying season but the need for restocking will extend well into 2022, which bodes well for freight demand.

Small facilities are seeing big jumps in demand as e-commerce puts urban logistics in the spotlight, a JLL report says.

While automation offers the quickest path to increased efficiency, many companies are held down by slow-to-adapt legacy operations or siloed solutions.