bigpicture
Peter Bradley
Editorial Director
peter@dcvelocity.com
Karen Bachrach
Executive Editor
karen@dcvelocity.com
Toby Gooley
Senior Editor
tgooley@dcvelocity.com
David Maloney
Senior Editor, Special Projects & eContent
dmaloney@dcvelocity.com
Mark Solomon
Senior Editor
mark@dcvelocity.com
Susan Lacefield
Associate Managing Editor
slacefield@dcvelocity.com
James Cooke
Editor at Large
jcooke@dcvelocity.com
Steve Geary
Editor at Large
sgeary@dcvelocity.com
George Weimer
Editor at Large
gweimer@dcvelocity.com
Erica E. Mac Donald
Assistant Editor
Keisha Capitola
Director of Creative Services
keisha@dcvelocity.com
Jeff Thacker
Director of eMedia
jeff@dcvelocity.com
Columnists:
Clifford F. Lynch
Kenneth B. Ackerman
Art van Bodegraven
Details, details
Gary Master
Publisher
gmaster@dcvelocity.com
Mitch Mac Donald
Group Editorial Director
mitch@dcvelocity.com
Jim Indelicato
Group Publisher
jindelicato@dcvelocity.com
EDITORIAL OFFICE
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500 East Washington Street
North Attleboro, MA 02760
Subscribe at
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or call (630) 739-0900
WE ALL KNOW THAT MAJOR PROBLEMS CAN RESULT FROM WHAT
might seem insignificant causes. In fact, we have a variety of metaphors
for it: the butterfly effect; the camel’s nose under the tent; for want of a
nail, the kingdom was lost.
But general awareness that it can happen is not the same thing as actu-
al prevention. We have two stories this month that illustrate the case.
Distribution center managers understand full well the risks in things
like deferred maintenance of material handling equipment. Ensuring
that goods move through the DC and reach the end customer on time
and intact requires an operation that runs smoothly, and that requires
attention to even the smallest details. Take batteries as an example. In a
story for our August issue, Senior Editor Toby Gooley looks at how the
smallest oversights can affect battery operations and
longevity, which in turn have a direct effect on lift
truck performance, which in turn … Well, you get the
picture. Failure to ensure proper watering could
potentially lead to overall higher operating costs and
operational failures.
In another piece this month, Senior Editor Mark
Solomon takes a look at a couple of major cases of
freight audit and payment companies charged with
defrauding their customers. Once again, it’s about paying attention to the details. The warning signs were
there for those inclined to look hard enough. One
important lesson from the story is that even years-long
business relationships require monitoring. The reputable audit and payment companies provide a useful
service, one that would be hard to replicate in-house. The story does not
suggest acting rashly and trying to do so, but merely taking ordinary
business precautions—and maintaining them. Solomon has also compiled useful pointers suggesting just how to do so. Also check out columnist Cliff Lynch’s column on the same topic, published in our June issue,
offering 14 steps to minimizing financial risk.
There are two other pieces I want to highlight this month. In one,
Solomon shows just how far behind the airfreight industry remains in
catching up to the digital age. His story provides good insight into just
why the airfreight industry has lagged behind other modes and what it is
doing to remedy the situation.
In another, we look at what two warehousing companies, Barrett
Distribution Centers in Massachusetts and Murphy Warehouse Co. in
Minnesota, have done to reduce energy use and cut their facilities’ overall
carbon footprint. These are investments made not by idealistic environmentalists but by good businessmen—and idealists in their own right.
