The complexity of global supply chains often results in areas of ineffectiveness, but technology changes, according to people with shipping and logistics experience that participated in the NWA Supply Chain Trends Expo which was held in Bentonville on April 10.
The half-day event, organized by the University of Arkansas and Plug & Play, made it possible to discuss how innovation and technology transform the supply chain to include better visibility, flight prevention, waste reduction and increased efficiency.
Shelley Simpson, CEO of JB Hunt Transport Services based in Lowell, said that technology is integrated into Hunt’s state of mind in the company of 33,000 employees, and this dates back to at least 40 years.
“I think that is what has differentiated us in recent years,” said Simpson, who was the event speaker of the event. “Our technological state of mind helps in the way we think about connectivity in total and to explore how we can achieve an end -to -end agility. And we believe that technology is the future of freight and led us to a long innovation. But you know, it is not only our idea that started it all. Mr. Hunt had the idea of many, many years ago. ”
She recalled the day in October in 1984 when the co-founder of the JB Hunt company overthrew a switch, and the company went from an old paper registers and invoices to computers. Simpson said there was a great sigh of relief when the screens were on, but the company kept the paper system in place for a while after being sure.
“We were one of the first transport companies to allow computers to feed our business,” said Simpson. “It was the way Mr. Hunt gives us a strategic advantage 40 years ago.”
360 platform
But she said that the trucking industry was slow to use new technologies. Nine years ago, she said that the process used computers, but that technology did not allow many parts of the system – including people – to be more visible for all those involved. It was at this point that Hunt developed its Shipper 360 technology so that its customers offer a complete view of freight because it was moved from one place to another. The platform has also listed the charges available for transport.
Simpson said Hunt had allowed others to use technology, and he became popular with small carriers who did not drive for Hunt, because this has given them the opportunity to take larger jobs due to the traceability that they would not have otherwise. JB Hunt 360 was launched in 2017 as a digital freight correspondence platform and allowed 3.5 million drivers to access the platform. She said two other companies innovated at the same time with similar systems. One was a Uber freight. Systems allow drivers to reduce the hours of inactivity and empty miles, allowing better profitability.
“Our vision was to create the most effective transport network in North America,” said Simpson. “You see, we did not think about it right for ourselves. We realized that technology then allowed unlimited connectivity. We better manage our trucks and help other drivers to succeed. Since 2019, we have eliminated 13.5 million empty miles in our fleet. Now, we have no data on all these other fleets, but we are talking about millions of waste.”
Freight flight, sensors
Hunt was the victim of freight flight, an increasing problem of industry. Simpson said the pirates infiltrated the carrier’s operating system a few years ago. She said that the company had used internal and external professionals to combat vulnerabilities.
She said it was a difficult time to put alarms on all system processes. She compared it to the implementation of a separate alarm system in each room of your house with two and three levels of clearance necessary for each. Simpson said Hunt had received an industry award for his efforts to protect freight and push threats.
“We had the impression that our hair was on fire at the time, but this technology allowed us to reduce our flights by 90%,” she said.
Simpson said technology continues to be used in trucks and trailers that transport hunting. Large platforms slowly obtain some of the technological passenger cars for years, such as lane starting notifications, Bluetooth connectivity and front oriented cameras inside taxis to guarantee drivers on the road. The emergency cameras are slower because they are expensive for large platforms, according to the exhibitor of the exhibition, Anil Khanna, product director for Daimler Truck Na.
Srikanth Bala, Executive Director of Cummings Inc., said that trickening fleets have so many sensors that a plethora of data is generated, but given overlapping, it may be difficult to determine the single source of cause in a vehicle accident.
Overall, trucking safety has improved. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) reported 166,000 accidents involving large trucks in 2021, but this fell to 150,000 in 2024 due to a reduction in driving hours, improved safety equipment in truck fleets and better awareness of drivers. Until February of this year, 17,000 truck accidents took place, according to FMCSA data.
Robotics, software support
The supply chain is not only trucks that move goods. It also includes warehouses that store and run orders for users from top to bottom of the supply chain. Claryo, based in San Francisco, is a startup dedicated to the use of spatial generative artificial intelligence to improve and optimize warehouse performance. Mohamed Amer, co-founder and CEO of Claryo, spoke of the technology that his business deploys.
Founded in 2022, Claryo focuses on improving warehouse operations by creating a digital twin of the operation and its process that is practically accessible to better solve the problems that arise from arrears, accidents or botched processes. Amer said that a virtual warehouse is created by scanning the subject and all of its operations and processes inside. He said that once the model made, it can be manipulated and formed over time to solve problems such as work stoppages or arrears.
Amer said that spatial generative technology can be applied to outdoor construction projects or entertainment locations to help safety or crowd planning. However, he declared that Claryo is now focused only on the optimization of the warehouse space due to limited resources.
“Deliberate technology”
Michael Newcity, former technology director at Fort Smith Arcbest, considers the generator as a game changer for companies working in the supply chain. While consulting companies, he tells them that AI can improve short -term operations, but they must also think about how this could fundamentally change their industry in five to seven years.
“We are in a period today which brings me back to 1991 when the Internet began to arouse excitement,” said NewCity. “In 1993, I was a programmer with Arcbest and charged the Internet Plan of our company. I had worked with old technologies and inherited systems and I had to try to weave the nascent technology together. I did not feel the same way on the technological landscape until the AI arises.
He said the AI will increase GDP in countries and completely disrupt technological infrastructure, computer infrastructure and cultural infrastructure as it matures. Newcity considers it a tool to improve workers’ performance. He compares him to light a lighting switch and obtain electricity. Newcity said it would be omnipresent between industries, applications that applications are created and refined to facilitate the tasks that can be automated and also acquire knowledge. He said the challenge for businesses is thinking about the longer term and innovating how to use technology to help resolve more difficult questions.
He thinks about implications for health care in which doctors can more precisely diagnose diseases because they have easy access to more data. He said that a more intelligent supply chain will increase income because waste will be reduced or eliminated.