www.dcvelocity.com JANUARY 2018 DC VELOCITY 17
fillment model. For example, the Conveyor
Equipment Manufacturers Association
(CEMA) said that booked orders in October
for conveyor equipment rose 40. 3 percent
when compared with October 2016, while
shipments, otherwise known as “billed
sales,” increased by 29. 3 percent over the
same period.
“For the past couple of years, we’ve
been on a record pace,” as warehouses
invest in systems that allow them to handle
high volumes of small e-commerce orders
instead of pallet-sized loads, said Bob
Reinfried, CEMA’s executive vice president.
“The strength of the market now is in unit
handling, while the bulk side of the busi-
ness has been relatively flat for a while.”
Scott Hennie, president of the Hudson,
Ohio-based consulting firm Elite Supply
Chain Solutions and a board member
of the Material Handling Equipment
Distributors Association (MHEDA), said the
overall impact may be limited because
buyers have already been opening their
wallets. “I don’t believe that successful
businesses wait on Washington to make
their purchasing or strategic decisions,”
said Hennie. “Businesses, generally, are
not going to stall or move their business
based on what is decided by political
bureaucrats.”
Still, Mark K. Nelson, president of Nelson
Equipment, a conveyor systems and pallet
rack supplier in Shreveport, La., said the
expensing changes will “be a huge feature
that will stimulate capital improvements in
small to medium-sized companies.”
Given surging demand for material han-
dling equipment and systems, a tax incen-
tive is more likely to sustain the current
trend than trigger large jumps in new
orders, said Philip Evers, a logistics profes-
sor at the University of Maryland’s Robert
H. Smith School of Business. “A tax cut
could certainly spur investment in some
of those new technologies, but industrial
buyers won’t necessarily buy more expen-
sive equipment than whatever will get
the job done,” Evers said. “They’re more
attuned to purchasing what’s needed,
nothing more.”
—Mark B. Solomon, with Ben Ames
At the American Trucking Associations’ 80th Annual National
Truck Driving Championships in Orlando, Fla., Glen Kirk, a
linehaul driver based out of Old Dominion Freight Line’s
Indianapolis service center, took first place in the three-ax-le class. In other Old Dominion news, the carrier has won
market research specialist Mastio & Co.’s Award for Quality
for the eighth consecutive year. … Inc. magazine named
Transportation Insight and enVista to its 500/5000 list of
the fastest-growing privately held companies in the U.S.
for the 10th and seventh consecutive year, respectively. In
addition, Symbia Logistics made its debut on this year’s
500/5000 list, coming in at No. 1 in Colorado, No. 3 in the
logistics and transportation category, and No. 68 overall.
… Yard management systems provider Pinc has received
the 2017 New Product Innovation award from Frost &
Sullivan for its autonomous inventory robotics solution, Pinc
Air. … North American supply chain solutions provider NFI
and transportation and logistics service provider Schneider
have been named to the Environmental Protection Agency’s
“SmartWay High Performers” list. The list recognizes shippers, truckers, and logistics service providers that are leaders
in the field with respect to sustainable freight movement. …
The Material Handling Equipment Distributors Association
(MHEDA) has presented Clark Material Handling with its 2018
Most Valuable Supplier award, in recognition of Clark’s commitment to its dealer network, employees, and community.
… Data capture and mobile tech specialist Barcoding Inc. has
honored Mirabito, a full-service energy provider, as its 2017
“innovator of the year.” This award recognizes a team within
a company that has implemented a mobile or automated data
capture solution that greatly improved the business’s efficiency, accuracy, and connectivity. … Open Sky Group, an authorized reseller of JDA warehouse, labor, and transportation
management software, has announced that two of its clients
received awards after implementing the newest versions of
JDA’s warehouse management software. Norwex, a provider of chemical-free home care products, was honored with
the JDA Real Results award, while an initiative at Clemens
Food Group made Supply & Demand Chain Executive’s list of
“Top 100 Supply Chain Projects” of 2017. … Rich Logistics, a
Roadrunner Transportation Systems company, was presented
with the 2017 Global Leader award at the Automotive Leaders
Summit in Mexico City. … The Hershey Co. has chosen transportation and logistics service provider Werner Enterprises as
its 2017 Carrier of the Year. Werner received the honor for
its one-way temperature-controlled unit services. … Alliance
Shippers Inc. was honored with a Smart Way Excellence Award
from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as an industry
leader in freight supply chain environmental performance
and energy efficiency.
accolades
