newsworthy
alliances
The Sun breaks through. Suncoast Beverage Sales, a Fort
Myers, Fla.-based beverage distributor, has implemented
Dematic’s PickDirector warehouse control software. The software provides voice-based control over Suncoast’s warehouse activities, including picking, replenishment, quality
assurance, manifesting, and truck loading.
Stirring the Waters. Nestlé Waters has installed 32
GenDrive hydrogen fuel cells from Plug Power in the lift
trucks used at its Dallas bottling facility. The GenDrive units
are being used to power Yale class 1 electric lift trucks, which
have replaced the facility’s entire fleet of internal combustion
trucks.
Getting “acCustomed” to it. A.N. Deringer, a customs brokerage firm, is the first company to have filed a customs
entry through the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s
Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). The entry was
filed using Kewill’s Customs software, which accelerates the
import clearance process by facilitating the submission of
entry summary data directly through ACE.
The future is plastic. PepsiCo is phasing out the use of
wood pallets for its Quaker, Gatorade, and Tropicana business
units in favor of plastic pallets from Intelligent Global Pooling
Systems (iGPS). PepsiCo, which has been shipping products
on iGPS pallets since June 2007, says it chose the plastic units
for their handling and environmental advantages.
Suite for the sweet. The Hershey Co. has chosen Optiant’s
PowerChain inventory and supply chain optimization suite.
The PowerChain suite will help the chocolate maker reduce
its inventory costs and free up working capital.
On call. Cooper-Booth Wholesale Co., a wholesale distributor to convenience stores, restaurants, and universities, will
implement the topSpeech-Lydia voice solution from Top-VOX
at its Mountville, Pa., distribution center. The voice system
will be used on VOXter hardware—Top-VOX’s portable, dedicated PDA that operates on Microsoft Windows Mobile 2005
for Pocket PC.
This Dow is up. Dow Corning Corp. has extended its contract with APL Logistics for transportation and warehousing
services. Under the arrangement, APL Logistics will continue
to manage Dow Corning’s North American distribution center in Shepherdsville, Ky., as well as oversee ground-based
transportation of Dow Corning’s products within the United
States and Mexico. The two companies have worked together since 2000.
Faster food. European supermarket chain Delhaize has
implemented RedPrairie’s Transportation Management
Solution. The software helps the grocer manage inbound
deliveries more efficiently while optimizing dock usage at its
five distribution centers.
Powerful relationship. ABB, a power and automation
technology company, has contracted with Exel for order fulfillment and assembly services at ABB’s new North
American Logistics Center in Groveport, Ohio. Exel associates will handle distribution for ABB’s low-voltage business,
which includes industrial control products, circuit protection devices, and motor starters. Exel will also provide
value-added services like assembly, kitting, and final product configuration.
Sea notes. Deutsche Bank and INTTRA have launched a
partnership to provide financial payment solutions for the
ocean container shipping industry. The arrangement will give
customers on INTTRA’s e-commerce platform access to
Deutsche Bank’s electronic invoice presentation and payment financial systems.
On track. California
Northern Railroad has
been chosen to carry oversized loads of major components for the new Pacific
Gas and Electric power-generating station being
constructed in Colusa
County, Calif. Owned by RailAmerica, California Northern
Railroad is a short-line railroad operating 250 miles of main
track in three segments of the Sacramento, San Joaquin, and
Napa valleys.
Maple leaf alliance. Walmart Canada has signed a five-year contract extension with Supply Chain Management
(SCM), Canada’s largest retail logistics services organization.
SCM provides dedicated transportation, logistics, and value-added services from five distribution centers to Walmart’s
312 stores and supercenters throughout Canada. The two
organizations have worked together for 15 years.
Road warriors. BASF’s chemical division has contracted
with Elemica, a B2B supply chain execution network, to facilitate BASF’s collaboration with its carriers. The Elemica
Logistics Road solution connects, standardizes, and automates logistics processes with more than 100 North
American highway carriers.
