A Year of Pandemic: Logistics Companies Adapted as Needed
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The supply chain has come through severe trials since the coronavirus was declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020, by the听World Health Organization. Trucking and related organizations describe the challenges and their progress.
铀︹櫐铀
Logistics companies that diversified, were nimble and leveraged data-driven technologies had the best chance to continue operating throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
Transportation Intermediaries Association President Anne Reinke stressed the changes were vital.
鈥淓ven if they themselves don鈥檛 necessarily have a diverse mix but they can figure out a way to flip [to a different type of load], have the resourcefulness and that kind of thing, they鈥檝e been able to fare well,鈥 Reinke said. 鈥淎nd some of our customers who can鈥檛 necessarily flip the switch have had a really tough time.鈥
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She said there was a five-week period at the beginning of the pandemic when volumes collapsed. But afterward, some lanes did really well while others continued to struggle.
People were going out less because of the pandemic so the lanes that did well were associated with people staying home, such as grocery stores as opposed to restaurants.
鈥淵ou鈥檝e got to be nimble, fleet-footed and try to broadcast your horizon 鈥 to the extent you can,鈥 Reinke said, adding that some members resolved: 鈥淲e got to focus on culture, we鈥檝e got to focus on what we can control.鈥
Logistics providers were also forced to use data-driven technologies to better predict needs and communicate them with partners.
鈥淭hose companies that have invested in technological solutions to make themselves a difference-maker, to make them more predictive in terms of their carrier arrival times and their carrier relationships,鈥 Reinke said. 鈥淭hose are the ones that recognize how important it is to make those investments.鈥澨
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