The Daily: May 3, 2022
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Good morning, supply chain expert. You ready for a new day? ☀️
The trucking shortage has been the tip of the supply chain issues iceberg. Carriers have been searching for new ways to combat the issue; higher pay and greater incentives seem to be drawing in fresh prospects. Now, while there is still a “driver shortage”, there is an influx of driver students.
Check out today’s featured article from MSN for details on the trucking school overflow. ☕️
"Almost everything worthwhile carries with it some sort of risk, whether it's starting a new business, whether it's leaving home, whether it's getting married or whether it's flying into space."
- Chris Hadfield
Today’s Featured Article:
Fighting the trucker shortage: Higher pay and incentives lead to influx of trucking students (msn.com)
“The trucking industry has been facing a massive worker shortage, leaving some store shelves empty. The truck driver shortage in America hit an all-time high in fall 2021 with more than 80,000 open positions, but the industry has changed in recent months.”
The Latest On…
American Economy 🇺🇸
Consumer Sentiment Ticked Up in April, but the Level Remains Low | AIER
“The final April results from the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers show overall consumer sentiment bounced higher in April after hitting a multiyear low in March.”
The Great Resignation is becoming a “great midlife crisis” - Vox
“With prices soaring and analysts predicting a recession on the horizon, it might not seem like the best time to quit your job.”
Artificial Intelligence 🤖
As supply chains tighten, logistics must optimize with AI | VentureBeat
“We’ve all felt the tightening of supply chains in recent months. From skyrocketing fuel prices to supply shortages not meeting pent-up demand, the world is still trying to adjust to the new normal.”
The “Race” to Win the Autonomous Truck Market - Logistics Viewpoints
“There is no doubt that autonomous trucks will change the face of logistics. But there are questions that many would like clarity on around this cutting-edge technology.”
News Bag 🗞
Above the Fold: Supply Chain Logistics News (April 29, 2022) (talkinglogistics.com)
“If Elon Musk would like to make a “best and final offer” for Talking Logistics, I’m sure that our board members (Me, Myself, and I) would seriously consider it. No poison pill or anything like that. Just saying.”
Amazon’s Pause in Profits; Redirecting Gas; Drilling Supply Chain Woes | Wall Street Journal Logistics Report
“Amazon is setting its focus on profitability and efficiency after a period of unrelenting expansion of its logistics footprint.”
Electric Vehicles 🔋
Detroit rivalry remains even as GM, Ford and Stellantis take on Tesla (cnbc.com)
“Even as the Detroit automakers change and adapt to compete with electric vehicle leader Tesla, some things in the Motor City stay the same.”
Unions 🪧
Public-sector Union Membership Is Slowly Shrinking | City Journal (city-journal.org)
“Both progressives and conservatives have sound reasons to support better data collection on public-sector unions, whose members constitute half of the American labor movement.”
Amazon’s Quandary: Cutting Workers Without Fueling Labor Unrest | 2022-05-01 | SupplyChainBrain
“Amazon.com Inc., having added hundreds of thousands of workers during the pandemic, now faces a quandary: how to trim its workforce to match slowing e-commerce sales growth without fueling labor unrest and giving unions more ammunition.”
Vote tally begins in 2nd Amazon union election in NYC | AP News
“A federal labor board on Monday has begun counting ballots cast by warehouse workers in a second Amazon union election on Staten Island.”
Fuel Tech ♻️
The Diesel Engine at 125 Years: Still Going Strong and Getting Even Cleaner [Video] - Fleet Management - Trucking Info
“The first functional diesel engine was tested in 1897, making the “heat engine” 125 years old this year.”
Sustainability and Decarbonization of Shipping - More Than Shipping
“With all the issues with international supply chains and ocean shipping in particular, the main priority of all involved now is getting the goods to their warehouses with reasonable cost levels and being stocked up to meet the customer demands while keeping everyone’s sanity.”
Manufacturing ⚙️
An American Toymaker Doubles Down on Sourcing in China During the Pandemic | SupplyChainBrain
“A least one U.S. consumer-products manufacturer has no intention of giving up on China anytime soon.”
Ports 🚢
Dutch dock workers refuse to unload tanker carrying Russia oil | AJOT.COM
“Dutch dockworkers refused to unload a tanker carrying Russian diesel, as European states edge closer to penalizing Moscow’s energy exports in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine.”
Safety 🚦
$3 million grant awarded to reduce traffic impact of Clear Springs Logistics Park - LebTown
“A $3 million grant from Pennsylvania’s Multimodal Transportation Fund will be used for traffic improvements related to the development of a new South Annville Township logistics park, planned to contain nearly 3 million square feet of new warehouse space.”
Speed limiter mandate would do more harm than good, OOIDA says (landline.media)
“Mandatory speed limiters won’t make the highways safer, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association said. Instead, OOIDA says the requirement would only make matters worse.”
Customer Relations 🤝
'Karens' shine spotlight on customer service in trucking | Commercial Carrier Journal (ccjdigital.com)
“By now, everyone should be familiar with the "Karen" internet meme. Basically anyone – man or woman – with a bad, "let me speak to the manager" attitude can be a Karen.”
Maintenance & Repair 🧰
Tire Choices Provide Pros, Cons for Fleet Maintenance Managers | Transport Topics (ttnews.com)
“In the current environment of high fuel prices and a technology shift looming over many companies regarding last-mile delivery, fleets are challenged to develop a strategy toward tire management.”
Trade & Border Issues 🗺
Biden and Trade at Year One: The Reign of Polite Protectionism | Cato Institute
“Former President Donald Trump no longer presides over U.S. trade policy. Yet, under President Biden, the Trump administration’s trade policy remains largely intact.”
Startup Visa Would Unleash Entrepreneurial Talent | RealClearPolicy
“Congress is making strides toward a competitiveness bill and has an opportunity to unleash entrepreneurship across the country.”
What effect will Russian sanctions have on your supply chain? - Supply Chain Management Review (scmr.com)
“We must carefully plan to limit the impact of bans and limitations on raw materials from neon to oil as well as how cargo can now travel. “
Solving the U.S. Meat Price Crisis Through International Competition | Food Logistics
“The sheer size, scale and complexity of the meat-packing industrial process is a strong barrier to entry for smaller independent players.”
Supply Chain Latest: Russian Cargo Is Snarling Logistics in Europe - Bloomberg
“Russia’s war in Ukraine is gumming up logistics across Europe, in unexpected places like a pop-up container yard that’s a 90-minute drive west of Copenhagen.”
Fuel ⛽️
Diesel Fuel Price Rise Increases Shipping Costs | National Review
“As the price of gasoline has leveled off or slightly declined in some areas, the price of diesel has continued to rise.”
Price of diesel hits all-time high, straining the trucking industry | Fox Business
“The price of diesel hit an all-time high in the United States this week as energy markets around the world cope with ongoing disruptions amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine.”
Business Strategy 💡
Courage to Paint Outside the Lines – Supply Chain Shaman
“As a child, I never painted within the lines. Always as a non-conformist, I pushed the edges and challenged boundaries.”
Post time at last: an interview with Kevin Yoder | DC Velocity
“Recent postal reforms will go a long way toward putting the U.S. Postal Service back on a sound financial footing, says Kevin Yoder, head of the postal advocacy group Keep US Posted. But there’s more to be done to keep the Postal Service healthy.”
US perishables shippers are struggling to keep their markets alive - The Loadstar
“US exporters of perishables are struggling with a litany of woes: from a shortage of containers and lack of vessel capacity, to disruption at destinations, lockdowns and heightened inspections that have stretched transit times alarmingly.”
New research identifies best supply chain management practices - Supply Chain Management Review (scmr.com)
“Researchers at the University of Tennessee say operational and process skills along with relationship and communication skills figure prominently in supply chain performance.”
Roadrunner overhauls business to reduce transit times | Commercial Carrier Journal (ccjdigital.com)
“While much of the blame for shipping delays around the U.S. has been laid at the feet of the trucking industry and its lack of workforce, many experts have said it’s not a matter of a driver shortage but of inefficiencies that could be solved with things like telematics and automation.”
Inflation 💸
Inflation forces consumers to ask: Can I live without it? (cnbc.com)
“Sandy Magny plans to take her teenage daughter to West Palm Beach, Florida, this summer, even though airfares are surging.”
Americans are showing inflation fatigue, and some companies see a breaking point | Fox Business
“Executives running some of the world's biggest retailers, manufacturers and consumer-products makers say they are seeing signs that people are becoming less willing to absorb price increases.”
Industry Forecasting 📊
Supply Chains Flare Up Again, Endangering Global Recovery | 2022-05-02 | SupplyChainBrain
“Global supply chains are knotting up from China to Denmark, sparking re-examinations of things as macro as globalization itself and micro as trucking efficiency around American ports.”
Fleet equipment utilization rates hit 'record' highs | FleetOwner
“Truck dealers, heavy-duty independent parts distributors, and fleets experience rising prices amid ongoing parts shortages and high utilization rates.”
Leadership 🏆
With a Shortage of Everything, what Sales and Operations Planning must be Like | SC Digest
“Should the chief supply chain officer at least temporarily be re-titled as ‘expeditor in chief?’“
AV Logistics Named the Home Depot Dray Partner of the Year | News | wfmz.com
“AV Logistics, a drayage and intermodal asset-based 3PL that services some of the country's largest retailers is proud to have been chosen The Home Depot's 2021 Dray Partner of the Year.”
How to Get Uncommon Success with John Lee Dumas - Small Business Trends (smallbiztrends.com)
“How do you build a company for entrepreneurs that earns 7 figures of profit for the last eight years in a row?”
Rail 🚂
Buffett’s annual meeting set to be crashed by railroad workers | AJOT.COM
“Shareholders attending Warren Buffett’s first in-person Berkshire Hathaway Inc. meeting since 2019 will be greeted by a group of BNSF railroad workers protesting a lack of pay increases and safety issues.”
Tech 📟
Mapping the Seafloor - Innovations In Forward Looking Sonar (FLS) (gcaptain.com)
“All Argos FLS systems use FarSounder’s SonaSoft™ software for processing and displaying data.”
Insurance 📄
Fixing the ‘Family Glitch’ Is Important Step to Closing the Affordable Healthcare Coverage Gap for Small Businesses | Small Business Majority
“Under the current rules, the ACA provides financial assistance through the individual marketplace to customers who would otherwise spend more than 9.83% of their income on their company's health plan premium for employee-only coverage.”
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The Workday Dash is an aggregation of articles regarding the transportation logistics, trucking, and supply chain industries for July 31, 2025, from iLevel Logistics Inc.