Visibility

Companies worldwide are accelerating their adoption of advanced logistics technologies—from cloud platforms and control towers to generative and agentic AI—as they push toward higher levels of automation, autonomy, and real-time decision-making. Yet with markets, industries, and regulatory environments maturing at different speeds, success hinges on strong data foundations, selective tech investment, and a phased roadmap that builds from analytics and automation toward predictive and fully autonomous logistics capabilities.

As rail and intermodal rebound from years of underinvestment, new technology and AI-driven analytics are helping to modernize networks, improve service levels, and restore shipper confidence. With visibility, safety, and fluidity on the rise, industry leaders say rail’s digital transformation is finally catching up—setting the stage for a new era of intelligent, data-driven logistics.

Data, AI, and automation are transforming motor freight management as shippers, carriers, and brokers use digital tools to cut costs, improve visibility, and manage risk in a volatile market. Experts from Gartner and MIT say the real advantage comes when companies align people, processes, and technology to turn digital investments into lasting performance gains.

The 30th Annual 3PL Study reveals how evolving partnerships and emerging technologies are reshaping the supply chain landscape amid disruption, cost pressures, and labor gaps.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are evolving rapidly to meet the demands of modern supply chains by integrating AI, edge computing, and advanced smart technologies. These systems are bridging the gap between traditional supply chain management (SCM) modules and best-of-breed solutions, offering real-time, data-driven decision-making.

CHR said its Item-Level Solutions, which are comprised of advanced analytics, tailored solutions, scale, and the company’s 120 years in business, provide shipper customers with end-to-end visibility and control across inventories and supply chains “at the most granular level—by the individual item or SKU,” including tracking items in motion or at rest, managing orders and inventory with sharp precision, and enabling real-time insights for better planning, cost control, and customer service while reducing blind spots.

The tool helps companies spot delays and take quick action—automatically rescheduling, rerouting, or notifying teams in real time.

The company is focusing on cold storage, temperature-controlled delivery, and faster service worldwide.

"Easy Metrics' guide, The 7 Deadly Sins of Warehouse Labor Management, reveals costly inefficiencies in warehouse operations and provides actionable strategies to boost profitability by addressing critical labor management mistakes."

Earlier this week, Beaverton, Ore.-based DAT Freight & Analytics, operator of the largest North American-based truckload freight marketplace sad it has acquired Trucker Tools, a Reston, Va.-based provider of trip planning, shipment visibility and freight matching solutions.

Bellevue, Wash.-based Seagull Software, a provider of label management software for designing, printing, and automating the production of labels, barcodes, and RFID tags, announced that it has merged with Boca Raton, Fla.-based Mojix, a provider of item-level inventory management and traceability services. Seagull’s proprietary label management software, called BarTender, will now integrate with Mojix’s platform.

This white paper addresses the urgency of closing the Visibility Gap™ in supply chains to reduce inefficiencies, costs, and operational blind spots through improved visibility and technology.

The company said that this business unit now has more than $200 million euro ($218.2 million USD) in freight under management and is on track for $2 billion ($2.18 billion USD) by 2028.

A survey recently published by global management consultancy McKinsey, entitled the “Supply Chain Pulse,” highlighted the ongoing changes in the ways companies are managing goods flow processes, including sourcing new materials, manufacturing, and distribution, as it relates to global trade and commerce, which tallies $32 billion annually across goods and services.

Lacking real-time visibility and saddled with manual processes, a growing pet product manufacturer partnered with a WMS provider to improve productivity, streamline inventory management, and scale without increasing headcount.