Know What's Happening in Supply Chain
Know What's Happening in Supply Chain
VinFast scales EV deliveries and launches $500M plant in India
VinFast delivered 3,520 electric vehicles in a single 24‑hour period in Vietnam, showcasing its production and logistics capabilities. The company is breaking ground on a $500 million plant in Tamil Nadu that will support a 150,000‑vehicle‑per‑year capacity and serve as a regional export hub for right‑hand‑drive markets. Its next logistical test will be expanding into India and Indonesia.
Also developing:
Canadian developer BMI Group has assembled five former industrial sites in Ontario and Quebec into a “Critical Minerals Corridor” aimed at bolstering the North American battery supply chain. The repurposed pulp and paper mills now serve as deployment‑ready hubs equipped with power, water, and transport links to roads, ports and rail. Since 2014, BMI has invested more than C$200 million in acquiring and modernising these assets. CEO Paul Veldman stresses the firm’s role as infrastructure provider, not miner or processor.
QatarEnergy announced it will invoke a multiyear force majeure on several long‑term LNG contracts after two of its export trains were struck by Iranian missile attacks. The suspension affects key offtakers across Asia and Europe, potentially curtailing deliveries for years....
QatarEnergy's Golden Pass LNG, its first liquefaction plant outside the Middle East, is slated to begin shipments from Texas next week. The plant could help narrow the global LNG shortfall caused by the unexpected shutdown of Qatar's flagship Ras Laffan export...
Industrial tenants are moving large‑scale distribution from coastal port markets to cheaper inland logistics hubs, according to Cushman & Wakefield. Port‑proximate markets captured only 19% of U.S. industrial net absorption in 2025, the lowest share in 15 years, while overall...
The Texas Transportation Commission approved $160.4 million for rail‑grade‑separation projects across the state. Funding, sourced from the Off‑System Rail Grade Separation State Fund, will support five initiatives in San Antonio, Houston, Laredo and Amarillo. The projects aim to eliminate road‑rail conflicts,...
U.S. resin exporters are seeing a surge in container bookings as the Iran‑Israel conflict disrupts the Middle East’s dominant plastics supply chain. On March 16, Vizion recorded 6,191 daily export bookings, nearly double the 3,500‑4,500 range typical for 2026. The first...
We don't use it? Five ships: APL Eagle, Alliance Fairfax, CS Anthem, Stena Imperative and Maersk Yorktown with 100+ American mariners are stuck in the Persian Gulf right now. No communication with the military or navy about escorts or when...
E‑commerce fulfillment centers that own automation hardware face severe risk from equipment failures, especially during peak seasons. The article outlines a practical framework for conducting a component criticality audit, prioritizing single‑point‑of‑failure parts, and building a targeted spare‑parts inventory costing $5,000‑$25,000....
BWXT, a nuclear‑technology firm, secured a $1.6 billion federal contract to expand a munitions plant on the outskirts of Jonesborough, Tennessee, to refine depleted uranium for nuclear weapons. The project, which would emit up to 250 pounds of radioactive dust per year,...
Iraq has instructed international oil companies operating in the country to curb output, invoking force majeure retroactively to March 3 because export routes through Basrah are effectively blocked. The loss of roughly 3.4 million barrels per day of export capacity follows a...
FREIGHT BROKER SUED OVER CARGO THEFT: "Zurich American Insurance Company filed suit on March 18, 2026, in the US District Court for the Central District of California, targeting TForce Worldwide, Inc., a licensed freight forwarder it accuses of ignoring its...
RailTechnology has launched its Silent Track (ST) rail‑grinding system, a spark‑free, water‑efficient solution designed for confined urban tunnels. The electric‑powered unit uses oscillating, water‑cooled abrasive stones to achieve full rail coverage in a single pass, eliminating diesel engines and hydraulic...
Indian spice exporters are confronting a sudden halt in US buyer outreach after the Iran war erupted, threatening a $500 million annual trade stream. The suspension of early‑year call‑ons has stalled order flow, while soaring freight, insurance and war‑risk surcharges inflate...
Two versions of the Dalilah's bill are in Congress: House - Out of committee and up for a vote. Non-dom CDLs expire within 12 months. Senate - Still in committee. Non-dom CDLs expire within 6 months. TD Cowen estimates that...
if iran retains one-third of its reported 10,000 per month production it would produce more drones per day than it is currently firing.
The logistics marketplace for third‑party providers still relies on 1990s‑style pre‑sales methods, creating friction for shippers seeking partners. Ryan, co‑founder of Warematch, turned his own distribution challenges into a tech solution that adds a digital matchmaking layer between shippers and...
The Detroit Engineer District will open the Poe Lock at the Soo Locks on March 25, 2026, officially starting the Great Lakes shipping season. After a 10‑week winter shutdown, crews completed extensive repairs, including gate work and an experimental ice‑shedding...
Amerequip has deployed CADDi Drawer, an AI‑powered data platform, to consolidate a century‑old library of engineering drawings, specifications, and part numbers into a single searchable environment. The new workflow replaces a cumbersome multi‑system process with instant, cross‑referenced results, cutting search time...
OpenTug introduced Signal Optimization, a new BargeOS feature that streamlines marine logistics planning by matching demand signals with the appropriate barge assets. The tool lets charterers, shippers and commercial teams capture inbound demand, evaluate equipment against operational and commercial constraints,...
Diesel retail prices jumped to $5.18 per gallon, up sharply from $3.81, while the cost of diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) has remained flat around $4.30‑$4.60 per gallon. The raw material for DEF—urea—saw its benchmark price surge from $482.50 to $712.50...
The Nuclear Scaling Initiative released a 73‑page report that maps critical bottlenecks in the U.S. advanced nuclear supply chain, highlighting fuel shortages, downstream manufacturing constraints, and a skilled‑labor gap that together create a market‑paralysis cycle. It recommends coordinated actions by...
The article outlines nine unconventional ways to leverage the AI Lean Coach, especially its Coach Me mode, which asks questions instead of providing direct answers. It demonstrates how the tool can act as a role‑play partner for 5 Whys, a rehearsal aid...
Food giant Kraft Heinz announced a $250 million investment to upgrade its Mont Royal processing plant in Montreal. The 70‑year‑old facility, which produces 41 product lines and employs more than half of the company’s 2,000 Canadian staff, is described as its...
Insight Works released Order Fulfillment Worksheet version 1.6 for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, adding usability upgrades such as default view management, cleaner filter formatting, and dynamic date placeholders. The tool helps warehouse teams instantly identify shippable orders by scanning sales...
The Russian LNG tanker Arctic Metagaz, damaged by a Ukrainian naval drone in early March, has been drifting unmanned in the Mediterranean for over two weeks. It is now about 53 nautical miles north of Tripoli and, based on current winds...
The war between Israel and Iran has escalated into direct strikes on oil and gas infrastructure, effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz and pushing crude prices above $100 a barrel. Missile attacks have damaged the South Pars gas field and...
The Hong Kong‑flagged tanker Sea Horse, loaded with Russian diesel originally bound for Cuba, has diverted to Trinidad and is expected to arrive on Monday. The change follows a U.S. Treasury decision to tighten a waiver, now excluding sales to...
What if I told you inflation is sticky because nobody is watching the ships? What if I told you nobody can predict the effect of Hormuz on energy price shocks because nobody understands shipping? What if I told them, they could...
🤣 We’d have a bottomless pit of capacity and trucking spot rates would be trending towards a dollar
Yamayoshi Seika, the Hyogo‑based maker of the popular Wasabeef potato chips, announced on March 17 that it has suspended production of six product lines because heavy oil deliveries were halted after the Strait of Hormuz was closed. The shutdown underscores...
This is the US Flagged UMX/MUS/MECL service that calls the port of Jebel Ali. The service originates in Savannah before going to Norfolk, New York, and then across. It is a very popular service for US Exports as well as USGOV...
The best factories don’t rely on just tech—they align tech, operations, and people. #DigitalManufacturing #TechOps #SmartFactory #Industry40 #ManufacturingLeadership #DigitalTransformation https://t.co/JZqZ0xHGN6
The ongoing conflict in the Strait of Hormuz has left more than 20,000 seafarers trapped aboard roughly 3,000 vessels in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea. Ports are denying docking requests as ships run out of water,...
First day of spring/equinox = a supply chain reset: refresh assumptions, clean data, align priorities. Want more predictability? Contact LMA. #SupplyChain #SIOP https://t.co/T9DVT39eRQ
CHINA ALREADY GOT ITS FIRST WIN FROM THE WAR IN IRAN In today's newsletter, I wrote about how the long term trend of countries reducing their oil imports by substituting them with Chinese tech is already accelerating since the start of...
Amazon is conducting a survey of FBA sellers to evaluate its ten returns‑management solutions and a dedicated dashboard. The questionnaire captures which tools sellers use, their satisfaction levels, and likelihood to recommend each option. It also asks participants to compare...
Metrolink will temporarily reduce weekday service beginning March 23, cutting roughly 40 trips – about one‑fifth of its schedule – as it grapples with a surge in mechanical failures and a shortage of replacement parts. The cuts affect six of...
"At least 107 fuel stations across the state of New South Wales (NSW) in Australia have run out of diesel as panic buying has outstripped supply, premier Chris Minns said today." https://t.co/zXWc5xVLPK
Chinese photovoltaic manufacturers JinkoSolar, LONGi Green, Tongwei and Aiko booked more than 4.67 GW of overseas module orders in March. Europe accounted for 51.1 % of the volume, Australia 42.5 %, with the remainder split across Asia‑Pacific and the Middle East. JinkoSolar led...
Here is something I had not realized. Functionally, the US' strategic petroleum reserve may have less capacity than the stated figures. Should stocks fall below a certain threshold, it could damage the structural integrity of the actual storage facility. https://t.co/AIeGeWdXWV...
FedEx reported its most profitable holiday peak season as it accelerated the rollout of Network 2.0, with about 35% of eligible shipments now processed through nearly 400 optimized facilities. The carrier improved on‑time delivery to 95.3% in December 2025 and saw...
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Swissport have renewed their decade‑long partnership, extending it for another five years. The new agreement emphasizes AI‑enabled services, hybrid cloud, and data platforms to modernize Swissport’s global ground‑handling operations. TCS will drive operational resilience, faster...
The El Paso airspace shutdown earlier this year was triggered by a counter‑drone operation that employed GPS‑jamming technology. The incident exposed how national‑security measures can unintentionally disrupt the satellite‑navigation systems that modern cargo aviation depends on for routing, fuel‑efficiency and timing....
Fleets are starting to feel a little feisty... Class 8 truck sales coming in STRONG (157%+ YoY)
“If you plan to sell in the next few years... identify excess inventory and use it up. Go to a just-in-time system if possible. Remember, we want to maximize profits while minimizing the required capital. This makes your business look...
Kuka has added two mid‑payload robots to its KR Cybertech line, offering 25 kg and 35 kg capacities while keeping the same compact footprint. The models feature a redesigned IP67‑rated wrist for higher rigidity and precision, and both are AI‑ready and ISO 10218:2025 compliant....
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Chick‑fil‑A will break ground on a $50 million distribution and warehouse facility in Lubbock, Texas, slated for May. The site, positioned near Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport, will store and ship food and related products to the chain’s restaurants across the region....
Physical AI equips drones, forklifts and other moving assets with cameras and computer‑vision models to continuously digitize warehouse inventory, eliminating manual barcode scans. The approach is hardware‑agnostic, leveraging off‑the‑shelf equipment to keep capital costs low and enable deployment in extreme...
Above the Fold: Supply Chain Logistics News (March 20, 2026) - https://t.co/6N5W6UvR9N @FedEx @amazon @DescartesSG #AI #supplychain #logistics #transportation #IranWar #Trumptariffs #trucking
The Baltic Exchange’s TD3 tanker rate, which benchmarks Middle‑East‑to‑China freight, was forced to continue referencing Saudi Arabia’s Ras Tanura port despite the Strait of Hormuz being effectively closed. With almost no actual voyages, shipbrokers were left to price a hypothetical risk,...
