Transportation TIP List: Week of August 19th, 2018

This week’s TIP List includes a number of trends currently making waves in transportation – including the manufacturing backlog of big rigs and insight into the value that Control Tower visibility can bring to shippers’ operations. Read on for all of the stories, and make sure to let us know which industry trend is having the biggest impact on your supply chain. Reply in the comment section below or vote on our Twitter page!

• Get in Line: Backlog for Big Rigs Stretches to 2019: According to industry analysts, an unprecedented run of orders for big rigs has pushed the backlog at truck factories to nine months. Typically, the backlog is five months for the trucking industry’s manufacturers.

• Control Tower Visibility: Delivering Value in Transportation: Companies today are facing significant transportation challenges — tight capacity, rising rates and more demanding delivery expectations from customers. Those companies using Control Tower technology are improving their supply chain visibility and overcoming industry challenges.

• Retail Sales in 2018 Could Climb Higher than Forecast, says NRF: Spending at retailers – excluding automobiles, gasoline stations and restaurants – is predicted to climb at least 4.5% in 2018, the NRF recently said. That’s compared with a prior forecasted range of 3.8 to 4.4%.

• How the U.S.’s Intermodal Woes Threaten Trade, GDP Growth: The imminent cancellation of interline service on almost 200 joint Union Pacific Railroad–CSX Transportation lanes transiting Chicago is causing many intermodal shippers to scramble, particularly in light of the upcoming peak season.

• Cass Freight Index Points to Strong Shipments and Expenditure Gains in July: Through July, the most recent month for which data is available, freight shipments and expenditures have now seen annual gains for 19 and 22 months, respectively. This is based off of information from the Cass Freight Index Report and Cass Information Systems.