After several weeks on the road, SCDigest editor Dan Gilmore wonders if he can discern any consistent themes from his journeys. He thinks yes, including the relentless, Wall Street-driven pressure to reduce supply chain costs, Lean mania, supply chain organizations being run very thin, and more.

Is the US transportation infrastructure in crisis or not? How much does the answer really matter to shippers? Supply Chain Digest addresses these questions and more, stemming from a forum at Georgia Tech that focused on capacity and infrastructure challenges for the supply chain.

Supply chain transformation happens for all kinds of reasons. In the case of Coats North America, a dramatic change in its customer base due to low cost country sourcing meant its supply chain network was badly misaligned. The company took that opportunity to not only reconfigure its supply chain network, but to transform to strategy, processes and technology to move from push to pull.

SCDigest editor Dan Gilmore attended the annual Warehouse Education and Research Council (WERC) conference in Nashville. He found the conference and material, which focused almost exclusively on warehousing and distribution topics, to be excellent. We review the conference, and summarize a few of the most interesting sessions we attended.

Just what is a Supply Chain Best Practice? We tackled this issue a few weeks ago, and generated a great amount of reader response. This week, we publish highlights of some of the best comments we received from Supply Chain Digest readers.

At some point, the magic tipping point will be reached, and some consumer goods and other companies will be able to start RFID tagging in manufacturing. That will open a virtual warehouse of opportunities to finally get ROI, but the big question is Will anyone have the WMS software to do it?

Most companies are pursuing global supply chain strategies, but how many are really doing it well? SCDigest editor Dan Gilmore continues to talk to companies that just aren't getting what they hope to from global supply chain initiaitives, and he offers some perspective on the challenges, as well as announcing a new report of Global Logistics from Supply Chain Digest.

Supply chain network planning and optimization tools have been around for years. But can the recent trend by a few leaders like Frito-Lay towards use of the software on a more continuous basis provide these companies with a powerful competitive advantage? Our research suggests the answer may be yes.

Two years ago, Supply Chain Digest detailed a promising new technology for addressing the capacity and throughput challenges of our ports and highways. Container movement based on Linear Induction Motors may be the answer right now, though the vision was started by the legendary Malcolm McLean of Sealand in the 1970s. We provide an update on this fascinating story and technology, which may finally get some traction in 2007.

SCDigest editor, Dan Gilmore, examines the disconnect between supply chain projects and their ultimate goal of improvement in operating results.