inbound
Labeling by the book
How do you know what to label in a warehouse and which kinds of
labels are best? Dasko Label, a manufacturer of customized bar-code
and other labels for racks and shelving, floors, dock doors, containers and pallets, and other equipment, says it has written the book on
the subject.
The company has published The Book: Labeling a Warehouse and
Other Industrial Label Applications, a reference guide for labeling
projects for the warehouse and other industrial automation applications. According to Dasko, the guide addresses bar-code specifications, label and sign materials, and design solutions. It includes photos of applications, sample designs, and a variety of bar codes for test
scanning.
Dasko is offering the book free of charge to anyone who’s responsible for labeling warehouse locations, inventory, pallets, totes, work-in-process, tools, or equipment. To request a copy, contact Paul
Movsesian at paulm@daskolabel.com or (866) 286-6500, ext.111. ;
LTL delivery goes to
the dogs
Symposium kicks off with sessions on
cargo crime, ocean shipping
PHOTO COURTES Y OF PATRIOTS.COM/S TEVEN SEENE
Gillette Stadium, home of the
New England Patriots, will be
the venue for this year’s
Coalition of New England
Companies for Trade
(CONECT) Northeast Cargo
Symposium. The program,
which takes place Nov. 3, kicks
off with transportation consultant Ted Prince, a former ocean carrier exec who’s best known for
his thought-provoking, often controversial analyses of maritime and
intermodal transportation developments.
The luncheon keynote speaker will be Dan Kraft, CEO of
International Forest Products, a major exporter from the region and
also the primary business of Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft and his
family. The younger Kraft will speak on trade-related subjects,
including current issues affecting exporters. Other sessions include a
discussion of cargo security issues and an update on ocean shipping
developments, featuring Jim Newsome, president and CEO of the
South Carolina State Port Authority, and Greg Tuthill, a senior vice
president with NYK Line.
Given the location, it’s no surprise that the program will conclude
with a “post-game wrap-up analysis” provided by CONECT’s
Washington counsel (and DCV Thought Leader) Peter Friedmann.
You need not be a New Englander to attend—CONECT’s events
draw participants from across the country. For more details or to register, go to www.conect.org, or call (508) 481-0424. ;
It’s not unusual for motor carriers to
make deliveries in remote areas. But
here’s a story that makes The History
Channel’s “Ice Road Truckers” look like a
quick sprint down a California freeway.
Over four consecutive winters, from
2005 through 2009, YRC’s Time-Critical
service delivered specialty dog food from
Topeka, Kan., to 80 different sites in
Northern Canada—some of them only
accessible by dogsled. The customer, a
dog trainer, required the high-protein
food to feed sled dogs while he trained
them for the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog
Race, which is held annually in March.
He contracted with YRC’s Time-Critical
division to deliver three 600-pound skids
of the food four to six times a month
during the November-to-February
training period.
That assignment proved to be almost
as difficult as running the 1,200-mile
Iditarod Race itself. Shipments moved by
commercial air to Minneapolis, where
they were transferred to a small prop
plane for the flight to Yellowknife in
Canada’s Northwest Territories. From
Yellowknife, dog sleds were used to reach
dozens of stops along the snowy route.
As you might imagine, it required
some flexibility and persistence (
doggedness, perhaps?) to deliver on time under
those conditions. For one thing, the carrier had to adjust to continually changing delivery sites. The trainer and YRC’s
local rep relied on predetermined checkpoints for communication—because
satellite reception was not always available, the trainer sometimes left handwritten notes with delivery instructions.
And there was the additional challenge
of protecting shipments from freezing
during a period when temperatures
rarely go above zero. But according to
YRC, it all worked out in the end: Every
dog had his day—and plenty to eat. ;
