AR for Logistics

According to Digi-Capital’s latest forecast, augmented reality (AR) will constitute an $83 billion market by 2021.  While a good chunk of that may go to popular games in the mode of Pokémon GO, AR also can also serve wholly practical purposes and improve logistics.

Among the items covered in the Tech Trends 2017: The Kinetic Enterprise from Deloitte University Press was a look the benefits of mixed reality (MR) offer industry.  It enables access to “actionable information to any location where work is done—on site, on the shop floor, or in the field,” and that can take logistical operations to a whole new level of efficiency.

DHL’s report Augmented Reality in Logistics details four areas in which the technology can effectively be applied:

• Warehousing operations
• Transportation optimization
• Last-mile delivery
• Enhanced value-added services

Read more in 

Augmented Reality Gets Beyond Games to Help Logistics

Software a food bank can bank on

We've recently come off the holiday season—a time when most people are more likely to be charitable. While that's a boon for charities in general, it does create headaches for organizations like Second Harvest, which can be inundated with food donations in a relatively short span of time.

Some of the food donations—particularly cans and boxes of dry goods—can be kept for quite a while and distributed at times when donations are lighter. But some of the food is near the end of its shelf life, so it must be identified quickly so that it be given to people before it spoils. That's where accurate real-time tracking can make all the difference.

- Read more at A Food Bank Banks on Logistics Software

3D printing for more efficient factories

"We make your factory run better" is the tagline for the maintenance services offered byATS.  

One of the ways it accomplishes that mission is by providing necessary parts, which it can now do faster, better, and cheaper with 3D printing. I spoke with Mike Waltrip, general manager of Industrial Parts Services at ATS, about the benefits 3D printing brings to his business in particular and manufacturing in general. 

Read more in 

Making Factories Run Better with 3D Printing

Related posts: 

3D Printing Reshapes Automotive Supply Chain

Lean Thinking for Sustainable Supply Chains

5G: potential and challenges for the brave new world of IoT

The progression to 5G from 4G is different from the previous advance from 3G because that shift was all about speed and now it's all about connection on an unprecedented scale.

More specifically, this time around, the new factor is IoT, and as Aicha Evans, corporate vice president and general manager of the Communications and Devices Group, Intel Corp.(Nasdaq: INTC), observes, this "new paradigm will require major changes to traditional cellular network topology."

Indeed, the 5G realm will encompass a lot more devices, technologies and participants than anything we've seen before. Consequently, collaboration within the industry is essential to keep the various components in communication with each other and on the same page about standards and plans. 

That's one of the key differences between the upcoming change and previous progressions, and it holds a great deal of promise for, as well as a number of challenges, for the industry.

To get some insider insight into the journey that lies ahead for arriving at 5G over the next five years, The New IP checked in with Evans via email

Read her insights in 5G & the IoT Factor

Robots are coming to warehouses

Today, we really do let our fingers do the shopping and click through to make our purchases that we want. Next day delivery has become standard for a host of consumer and business products. Keeping up with that expectation drives those in the business of logistics to press for greater efficiency in logistics. Robots can play a role in meeting that demand.

On April 29, Fetch Robotics unveiled new a robotic system made specifically for the logistics industry.  The system that consists of "Freight" and "Fetch" is based on ROS, the open source robot operating system. Freight refers to the mobile base, and Fetch to the mobile manipulator. In addition to working with each other, the robots are designed to work with people and with the warehouse software. 

Read more in 

Robots Improve Logistics in the Electronics Supply Chain

IoT to boost supply chain to the tune of $1.9 trillion

"We're all connected" served as the tagline for New York Telephone back in the last century.  That was way before people envision the level of connection made possible by the Internet of Things.  We've come a long way and will go much further, according to the forecast of a recent trend report from DHL and Cisco on the positive impact IoT will have for supply chains.
Read more in 

IoT to Deliver $1.9 Trillion Boost to Supply Chain

3D printing for cars: not just for prototyping

Efficient supply chains can be identified by a handful of components: proximity, flexibility, and minimal waste. Now, the automotive industry is hoping to capture some of these same benefits through the use of 3D printing. 

Though it hailed 3D printing as the "third industrial revolution" in 2012, The Economist  cautioned that it "is not yet good enough to make a car." Since then, though, 3D printing, referred to as the additive manufacture in the auto industry, has advanced to the point that car bodies can and have been printed. In future, additive manufacture will likely be an integral part of the car supply chain, and not just at the point of creating models for design or rapid prototyping. 

This past year, Deloitte University Press published a detailed study of the future prospects for car manufacturing in an article titled 3D Opportunity for the Automotive Industry. The value of 3D printing for rapid prototyping and realizing innovative new design has already been established across industries, but it can also be used in manufacturing the end product. That is what has the potential to really transform the supply chain for the car industry.

Read more in 

3D Printing Reshapes Automotive Supply Chain 

See the carbon fiber body of the Strati car beign printed in this video.

Tablets for a better hospital experience

Tablets have already made a place for themselves in healthcare as doctors use them to upload information to patient electronic health records. Successful pilot programs have proven that there are even more benefits to be realized from putting tablets into the hands of patients. 
Read about two successful pilot programs in 

Tablets for Patients: Pilot Programs Demonstrate Benefits

For more ways in which such technology can be tapped to improve the patient's hospital experience, see 

Tablet Computers: The Way Forward for Better Patient Experiences

Making supply chains sustainable with lean thinking

Nigel Southway is a productivity consultant and the co-author of Cycle Time Management, a guide to applying lean thinking to organizations to maximize efficiency. His perspective is informed by his first-hand observations of economies in Europe and China, as well as in the NAFTA region. Read more with additional insight from Nigel Southway in the comments in 

Lean Thinking for Sustainable Supply Chains

The role 3D printing can play in Canada

According to Nigel Southway, the real transformative power of 3D printing  lies in its potential for engineering more efficient tools of production. Read more in 

3D Printing Might Bring Manufacturing Back to Canada

How green is my internet?

The late Ed Koch, who served as mayor of New York City for multiple terms in the 1980s, was famous for asking, “How am I doing?” Extending the question to the impact of its operations on the health of the planet, eBay has developed a way to get an automatically updated response. And the online auction powerhouse hopes to encourage other businesses to ask the same question, too.

In March, eBay released Digital Service Efficiency (DSE) -- http://dse.ebay.com/ -- a dashboard designed to reveal the company's datacenter energy efficiency in the style of a car’s MPG rating. The metric is based on “four key areas: performance, cost, environmental impact and revenue,” eBay said. Quarterly performance reports are measured against the yearly goals.

On May 24, eBay posted its first quarter results on its DSE blog.

Read more in 

Everybody Wins in eBay's Eco-Friendly Bid

Collaboration as a winning strategy

We're used to thinking of competition as the key to lower prices. But in certain cases, cooperation leads to more efficient use of resources. That was the case for an Ohio hospital alliance that realized substantial savings just a few months after pooling resources. Read more in 

Collaboration & the Supply Chain