DC Velocity - July 2015

inbound

Trucks of the future could someday cross the continent from Mexico to Canada along the north-south corridor of U.S. Route 83— without the hassles of passports, visas, or even a human hand on the wheel, according to a plan being pushed by the Central North American Trade Corridor Association (CNATCA).

The proposed “autonomous-vehicle corridor” would stretch from Mexico City in the south, and up through Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and North Dakota. The route would continue into Canada before finally reaching Alaska.

The concept sounds impossible, but it actually relies on some of the same technologies that engineers are now applying in self-driving vehicles already on the roads, such as the fleet of Google cars navigating the streets of Mountain View, Calif., and the Daimler 18-wheel Freightliner truck that carried several passengers across the Hoover Dam in May.

Neither technology takes humans out of the loop entirely. Instead, they rely on sensors to monitor basic driving speeds and highway cruising conditions, only calling on drivers to handle difficult tasks like navigating local roads and pulling up to loading docks.

The concept of an autonomous-truck corridor, which was introduced at CNATCA’s 2014 Trade & Transportation Summit, appears to be gaining traction. Supporters are now performing feasibility studies.

“Robo-truck” corridor could connect
Alaska and Mexico

A stack of splintered pallets sitting in the corner of a driveway looks like a pile of extra work to most folks, but one Utah boy saw those old pallets as a ticket to summer camp.

When 11-year-old Sam Davies of Brigham City, Utah, told his parents he wanted to go to Boy Scout camp, his parents said he could—as long as he earned the money himself, according to the TV station KSL Broadcasting in Salt Lake City.

With a goal of making $200 in a month, Sam looked around for ideas … and saw an American flag his family had made years before out of a wooden pallet. Inspiration struck.

“We already knew how to make them, so why not make more? I decided to make three of them,” Sam told the station.

His mother posted the painted pallets on a local classified advertising website for $25 apiece, hoping for 10 orders to cover the cost of paint. Instead, the family fielded 50 orders in the first 10 minutes and a hundred by the next morning.

To keep up with demand, Sam hired his three older sisters and solicited a family friend to donate more pallets. The profits will be plenty to send the kid to camp—as well as all the other Boy Scouts and adult leaders in his troop.

Scout strikes gold with patriotic pallets

The Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) has announced that it will be the industry sponsor and certifying body of the LINCS (Leveraging, Integrating, Networking, and Coordinating Supplies) in Supply Chain Management consortium.

LINCS is an education and certification program for entry- and mid-level employees that encompasses eight disciplines: customer service operations, demand planning, inventory management, manufacturing and service operations, supply chain management principles, supply management and procurement, transportation operations, and warehousing operations.

The program aims to help participants
increase their skills and secure employ-
ment. LINCS also benefits employers by
providing certified entry- and mid-level
candidates with the supply chain knowledge
companies increasingly require, according
to CSCMP
The LINCS program is open to anyone
but is tailored for displaced and long-term
unemployed or underemployed workers,
as well as veterans looking to enter into or
advance their careers in supply chain man-
agement. Online and hybrid learning will
allow students to continue their education
while balancing other demands.

CSCMP will administer all tests and issue all certifications within the LINCS consortium. In addition, CSCMP will help to connect newly certified supply chain managers with potential employers in their area. The LINCS certifications complement CSCMP’s SCPro certification program, which is designed for more senior-level professionals.

Developed through a $24.5 million grant from the Department of Labor, LINCS is available through CSCMP and the consortium’s 12 member colleges and universities, led by Broward College in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. For more information, including a list of participating schools, visit https://cscmp. org/education/lincs, call CSCMP at (630) 574-0985, or e-mail LINCS@broward.edu.