June 11, 2020

Covid-19, Warehouse Automation and National Security

June 11, 2020/ john mabe

One big takeaway from Covid-19, is that we have learned the lengths people will go to for a roll of toilet paper, hand sanitizer or pasta, and even gluten-free pasta. Shoppers behaving badly was mildly amusing, albeit a little sad as panic buying emptied store shelves quicker then they could be restocked. Grocery stores and supply chains in general were wildly unprepared for a pandemic and the sudden surge in demand for certain products.

June 01, 2020

The Decimation of Retail Jobs in One Chart

June 01, 2020/ john mabe

The number of warehousing and storage jobs since 2010 has more than doubled in the U.S. while retail employment has been flat (and negative since Covid-19) over the same period of time.

Chart shows the percentage change in employment since 2010.

September 05, 2018

Ways to think about the Supply Chain of the Future: Artificial Intelligence

September 05, 2018/ john mabe

The fact that supply chains and logistics companies already have a vast amount of data and processes that could be turned into actionable insights rather quickly, just means that there is potential for AI to take supply chains on a journey from very good to perfect.

Artificial intelligence techniques allow for vast amounts of data to be analyzed, categorized, and then turned into actionable insights with reduced or no human input. As an example,

September 28, 2017

Connecting the Dots on Amazon's patents in Logistics

September 28, 2017/ john mabe

I've dug into Amazon's patent filings over the last five years and mined the patent titles for keywords related to inventory and logistics. Patents range from the mundane like optimization of packaging sizes or allocating regional inventory to reduce out-of-stock costs to the more technologically advanced like autonomous vehicles, mobile ground-based fulfillment centers, and drones. At the far end of the spectrum are topics that appear to be more the realm of sci-fi fantasy like underwater warehouses, airborne warehouses, and beehive-like warehouses, but hey, who knows.

June 04, 2017

The Amazonification of Logistics

June 04, 2017/ john mabe

The evolution of eCommerce has had a dramatic impact on both retail and logistics. Much of the changes have been spearheaded by Amazon who are largely responsible for shaping customer behavior and driving customer expectations around delivery. Many customers now want their packages next-day, same-day, or even within one hour and as a result logistics networks have evolved to reflect these changing customer preferences. Amazon has had such a major impact on eCommerce...

May 16, 2017

Flexe, the Airbnb of Warehouses, a threat to Amazon?

May 16, 2017/ john mabe

Flexe, the Airbnb for warehouse space, announced a new next-day delivery service, which the company said would give brands the ability to reach 98 percent of U.S. customers faster than Amazon Prime two-day shipping. This was a natural next step for Flexe as they began offering fulfilment services last year.

March 14, 2017

What's that Giant Sucking Sound? Amazon and Retail Revenue

March 14, 2017/ john mabe

At its current growth rate, Amazon could double in size in the next three years. Or, to be more blunt, Amazon could suck the same amount of value out of the U.S. retail market in three years as it has in the previous twenty. Let that sink in. Even though the size of eCommerce is relatively small - just under 10% of total retail, Amazon is building an almost unassailable moat around online retail.

January 19, 2017

Amazon’s Moat Widens: The Dominance of Amazon in one Chart

January 19, 2017/ john mabe

Everyone knows that Amazon dominates the U.S. eCommerce retail market, but exactly how well are they doing? According to data from Slice Intelligence, which scanned more than 1 million digital shopping receipts, Amazon accounted for 46 percent of all online spending in the U.S. in the final weeks leading up to Christmas. Overall, Amazon took 39% of all online spending from Thanksgiving to Christmas.

January 14, 2017

Amazon's Growing Robot Workforce is 45,000 Strong

January 14, 2017/ john mabe

According to a recent report in the Seattle Times, in 2016 Amazon significantly expanded the deployment of Kiva Robots in their fulfillment centers. Amazon acquired Kiva Systems in 2012 and the robots automate the picking and packing process. According to the report, Amazon has 45,000 robots deployed across 20 fulfillment centers which represents a 50% increase over the previous year and a 200% increase since 2014. Since 2014 the human workforce has increased by roughly 100%.

January 11, 2017

Surging Package Volume Explains Why Drones Make Sense

January 11, 2017/ john mabe

The continued rise of eCommerce coupled with the growth of urban populations has put increased strain on last mile delivery in cities. Added to this, is the fact that a growing number of people in large cities expect to get their orders quickly - next day, same-day, or within an hour or two. And, by the way, delivery should be cheap too!

January 03, 2017

Logistics Technology Trends That Will Dominate 2017

January 03, 2017/ john mabe

Making predictions in technology, even just one year out, are generally an exercise in futility, so this really isn't a forecast for 2017, but more a list of trends that I am interested in and keeping my eye on. Technology is rarely released according to plan and surprises can come from many directions. However, it makes sense to keep tabs on what’s coming and it's also great fun to think about what’s coming next. Here's what I will be looking out for in 2017:

December 29, 2016

Amazon Patent Reveals Flying Warehouses that Send Delivery Drones to You

December 29, 2016/ john mabe

Amazon has recently made waves in the industry with a series of moves that illustrate that it is serious about getting into the logistics business. Amazon leased 20 cargo planes to deliver goods to and from fulfillment centers, registered as an ocean freight forwarder in China, and built an ‘Uber for Trucking’ app to match truck drivers with shippers. But what if all of these moves are indeed just short-term plays to add capacity to their operation and supplement, instead of replace partners like UPS and Fedex? Maybe Amazon just needs excess capacity until a fully unmanned and aerial warehousing and delivery network becomes a reality. And while that last sentence sounds awfully fantastical...

December 22, 2016

The 2016 Techgistics Year in Review

December 22, 2016/ john mabe

2016 was an incredible year for tech in logistics as companies both large and small are working on some transformational technologies not just for logistics, but for society as a whole. Here’s a few interesting tech advancements in 2016 that were important for the year, but could also point to what’s to come in the near and long-term future.

December 19, 2016

Who will Own Same Day Delivery: The Case for Uber

December 19, 2016/ john mabe

In the previous post I highlighted a handful of the emerging on-demand same day delivery startups and the complexities inherent in building a 3-sided marketplace. In addition to these startups, I wanted to do a deeper dive on two non-traditional logistics companies that are approaching same-day delivery from different angles and could be well-positioned to be market disruptors for same-day delivery. They are of course Uber and Amazon; Uber has a first mover advantage via their existing ride-sharing platform. a deep and re-purposable delivery fleet with optimised routing algorithms combined with the ability to raise enormous capital. And then you have Amazon...

December 06, 2016

Amazon Go and the Jobless Future in Retail

December 06, 2016/ john mabe

Amazon is testing a retail store without check-outs; instead, you simply tap your phone when you enter and 'machine learning and computer vision' track what you pick up and let you just walk out. In order to do this, Amazon is launching an app called Amazon Go which customers will use to register when they're in the store and the app will track the products picked up as they move about the store.

Logistics Technology