The countdown has begun to MODEX 2016 – April 4-7 at Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center. MODEX features 800 exhibits and over 100 educational sessions. With the show less than four weeks away, it’s time to register and make plans to attend.MODEX is the most comprehensive supply chain expo in the Americas.

A new analysis and report released by researchers at NC State University's Supply Chain Resource Cooperative (SCRC) and MHI provides detailed perspective on the importance of the supply chain in North Carolina. The report, titled Understanding the Economic Impact of North Carolina's Supply Chain: Conduit for Prosperity and Economic Development, details important trends in the supply chain and the broader economy and their implications for the economic future of North Carolina. The report could serve as a model for supply chain economic impact reports for other states and regions

In the video, Todd Farwell, Innovation architect & Global Deployment Champion at Caterpillar, Inc., discusses how RFID tags can function as the backbone of a real-time locating system, and how this system can be used to improve processes within a facility. 

Peter Diamandis is the founder and chair of the X Prize Foundation, a nonprofit that offers large cash prizes to inventors who can solve grand challenges like space flight, low-cost mobile medical diagnostics and oil spill cleanup. Don’t miss his MODEX Keynote where he will detail what innovations are poised to disrupt our industry in the coming years and how to create a culture of innovation within your company.

MHI recently announced the finalists for the 2016 MHI Innovation Award competition. The MHI Innovation Award serves to educate and provide valuable insights on the latest manufacturing and supply chain innovative products and services. A total of 98 innovations were submitted by MODEX 2016 exhibitors for the competition.

As the number of SKUs continues to proliferate, many distribution centers are turning to alternative strategies to handle the massive explosion in volume. Many companies are expanding their supply chains through such methods as direct-store delivery, direct-store drop ship and drop ships by third-party logistics providers. That way, companies don’t have to move every SKU throughout their internal network.

In the video, David Butler, VP of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Coca-Cola Company, discusses how in today’s constantly shifting market, it can be difficult to react to up-to-the-minute changes. However, startups have the agility necessary to adapt to trending market data and there are a number of strategies established companies can use to harness this power themselves.

The MHI Young Professionals Network (YPN) of MHI is holding a panel on April 5 on diversity in supply chain titled "The Changing Faces in Workforce". This panel will examine the challenges, dynamics and trends in today’s increasingly diverse supply chain industry.

Jack Allen is the keynote speaker at MODEX 2016 on April 5 in Atlanta. Allen is the Senior Director of Logistics and Manufacturing Solutions for Cisco’s Supply Chain Operations group. During this keynote, you’ll learn how, under his leadership, Cisco’s supply chain organization  increased its scope while generating significant cost savings and implementing organizational and systems changes that align with industry best practices – all while keeping a keen eye on satisfying true customer needs.

Loading docks are busy areas. There is a constant flow of trucks, pedestrians, lifting devices and a plethora of other equipment. It is important to identify common causes of loading dock mishaps as manufacturers ensure the loading dock area of facilities are more accessible and safer when it comes to the movement of goods.

MHI will preview its 2016 Annual Industry Report - Accelerating Change: How Innovation is Driving Digital "Always-On" Supply Chains - during the April 6 Keynote at MODEX 2016. During the keynote Scott Sopher, the principal with Deloitte Consulting LLP's Supply Chain practice, will join George W. Prest, CEO of MHI, to present the findings of the 2016 report that details the eight innovations that are driving this change from traditional to digital supply chains. 

MHI view just released a new video on how omni-channel distribution will change the way supply chains are structured in the future. In the video, Industry leaders discuss how unifying your inventory channels can help you meet growing customer demands. 

If you’re registered to attend MODEX 2016 (April 4-7 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta), then you’re probably hoping to learn more about the latest developments in material handling and warehouse automation solutions. If pallet, tote and tray automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) are on your radar specifically, then you won’t want to miss the complimentary on-floor seminar presented by show-sponsor MHI’s AS/RS Industry Group. 

Workers doing manual material handling have the best chance of avoiding injury in workplaces where barrier protection is integrated with ergonomic equipment. In planning or reviewing what safety equipment to use in your plant, look at potential physical risks to workers from machines, slipping and falling and falling debris at the same time as considering ergonomic hazards of the job itself like repetitive lifting, bending, twisting and reaching.

MODEX 2016 will feature several tours of Atlanta-area facilities. The Scanfil tour will provide an inside look at the electromechanical assembly of a number of products from the energy and automation, networking and medtech industries and showcase unique solutions for supply chain optimization, after sales and service and scalability.

The Rack Manufacturers Institute (RMI) of MHI recently released a new standard related to the design, testing and utilization of industrial steel cantilevered storage racks.  The standard, ANSI MH16.3-2016, Specification for the Design, Testing and Utilization of Industrial Steel Cantilevered Storage Racks, applies to free-standing and top-tied cantilevered storage racks made of cold-formed or hot-rolled steel members, and includes guidance on cantilevered storage rack with accessories such as decked shelves, shed roofs and canopies. 

Continued outreach and education were themes embraced on both sides of the table as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and MHI overhead lifting product groups extended their alliance for a further five years.  Through its Alliance Program, OSHA works with unions, consulates, trade and professional organizations, faith- and community-based organizations, businesses, and educational institutions to prevent workplace fatalities, injuries, and illnesses.