Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

CSCMP EDGE 2020

Greening the supply chain

From electric vehicles to right-sized packaging, UPS continues to lead the way in sustainability, conference session shows.

UPS is greening the supply chain

By the end of this year, a quarter of all the vehicles UPS purchases annually will be powered by alternative fuel or advanced technology, according to Peter Harris, director of sustainability for the transportation and logistics giant. And though that’s just one measure of the company’s far-reaching efforts to promote a sustainable supply chain, it’s an important milestone that speaks to the growing importance of environmentally friendly business practices in the broader industry.

Harris talked about UPS’ company-wide sustainability efforts in an educational session at the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals’ (CSCMP) Annual Conference Monday afternoon. Titled “Sustainability and Supply Chain,” the session was presented by the Wall Street Journal and hosted by Robert Welch, the Journal’s vice president of enterprise media and partnerships.


In a question-and-answer format, Harris and Welch covered UPS’ sustainability efforts across its transportation and facilities operations, pointing to investments in electric vehicle technology, alternative fuels, robotics, and packaging operations, among other areas. Some highlights: 

  • Governmental changes are helping the firm make a dent in its effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging more walking and cycling in cities across Europe. In many places, Harris said, UPS is using walkers and cyclists to handle a large portion of last-mile deliveries, reducing the number of vehicles in operation.

  • The company continues to invest in alternative fuels, particularly renewable natural gas (RNG). Earlier this spring, UPS agreed to a multi-year purchase of RNG that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its ground fleet by more than 1 million metric tons, for instance.

  • The company will continue to expand its investment in electric vehicles, Harris said, saying that electrification is “the biggest single technology shift we are engaged in right now and will be for the medium-term future.” 

  • Packaging is taking center stage as well. A partnership with right-sized packaging firm Packsize is helping to reduce the company’s use of cardboard and helping it save space in vehicles. The company also has a packaging design and testing lab aimed at developing an eco-friendly packaging program. 

Recent

More Stories

AI image of a dinosaur in teacup

Amazon to release new generation of AI models in 2025

Logistics and e-commerce giant Amazon says it will release a new collection of AI tools in 2025 that could “simplify the lives of shoppers, sellers, advertisers, enterprises, and everyone in between.”

The launch is based on “Amazon Nova,” the company’s new generation of foundation models, the company said in a blog post. Data scientists use foundation models (FMs) to develop machine learning (ML) platforms more quickly than starting from scratch, allowing them to create artificial intelligence applications capable of performing a wide variety of general tasks, since they were trained on a broad spectrum of generalized data, Amazon says.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

Logistics economy continues on solid footing
Logistics Managers' Index

Logistics economy continues on solid footing

Economic activity in the logistics industry expanded in November, continuing a steady growth pattern that began earlier this year and signaling a return to seasonality after several years of fluctuating conditions, according to the latest Logistics Managers’ Index report (LMI), released today.

The November LMI registered 58.4, down slightly from October’s reading of 58.9, which was the highest level in two years. The LMI is a monthly gauge of business conditions across warehousing and logistics markets; a reading above 50 indicates growth and a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

Keep ReadingShow less
chart of top business concerns from descartes

Descartes: businesses say top concern is tariff hikes

Business leaders at companies of every size say that rising tariffs and trade barriers are the most significant global trade challenge facing logistics and supply chain leaders today, according to a survey from supply chain software provider Descartes.

Specifically, 48% of respondents identified rising tariffs and trade barriers as their top concern, followed by supply chain disruptions at 45% and geopolitical instability at 41%. Moreover, tariffs and trade barriers ranked as the priority issue regardless of company size, as respondents at companies with less than 250 employees, 251-500, 501-1,000, 1,001-50,000 and 50,000+ employees all cited it as the most significant issue they are currently facing.

Keep ReadingShow less
diagram of blue yonder software platforms

Blue Yonder users see supply chains rocked by hack

Grocers and retailers are struggling to get their systems back online just before the winter holiday peak, following a software hack that hit the supply chain software provider Blue Yonder this week.

The ransomware attack is snarling inventory distribution patterns because of its impact on systems such as the employee scheduling system for coffee stalwart Starbucks, according to a published report. Scottsdale, Arizona-based Blue Yonder provides a wide range of supply chain software, including warehouse management system (WMS), transportation management system (TMS), order management and commerce, network and control tower, returns management, and others.

Keep ReadingShow less
drawing of person using AI

Amazon invests another $4 billion in AI-maker Anthropic

Amazon has deepened its collaboration with the artificial intelligence (AI) developer Anthropic, investing another $4 billion in the San Francisco-based firm and agreeing to establish Amazon Web Services (AWS) as its primary training partner and to collaborate on developing its specialized machine learning (ML) chip called AWS Trainium.

The new funding brings Amazon's total investment in Anthropic to $8 billion, while maintaining the e-commerce giant’s position as a minority investor, according to Anthropic. The partnership was launched in 2023, when Amazon invested its first $4 billion round in the firm.

Keep ReadingShow less