Logistics Matters with DC VELOCITY

Our guest on this week's episode is Mike Van Bree, director of product safety and engineering at Louisville Ladder Inc. and current president of the American Ladder Institute (ALI). This is Friday the 13th, and you have probably heard that old adage not to walk under ladders. That warning is probably not so much because it might bring you bad luck, but because it is an unsafe thing to do. And that brings us to our guest today:...

Our guest on this week's episode is Jackson Wood, director of industry strategy, global trade intelligence at Descartes. The United States is now at war with Iran in military actions that have now spread throughout the Middle East. With that part of the world being in major disruption, what are the implications for global transportation, ships moving oil and gas, and just supply chains in general? In an interview with Ben Ames...

Our guest on this week's episode is Per Hong, senior partner and global lead of Kearney Foresight. By now we have all heard that the emergency tariffs placed earlier in the year were ruled illegal last week by the Supreme Court, but now we have new tariffs – and the potential of war with Iran. There is lots going on right now that could have major impacts on our supply chains. Our guest helps us to unravel it all and offers ad...

Our guest on this week's episode is Fab Brasca, senior vice president of market strategy at Kinaxis. The use of artificial intelligence is growing and its potential impacts on supply chains might be practically limitless. But how fast should companies move on adopting these technologies – and who is way ahead of the pack in implementing AI? Ben Ames answers these questions with today’s guest.

Our supply chains are supposed to b...

Our guest on this week's episode is Lisa DeNight, managing director and head of North American Industrial Research for Newmark. Before a company can manufacture and distribute a product, they need the proper building designed to house their operations. That is where the industrial real estate market comes in. Like the home real estate market there are ebbs and flows depending on the economy and other factors. But there are sig...

Our guest on this week's episode is Jake Heldenberg, director of sales engineering, Warehouse Solutions, North America at Vanderlande. We are only a bit more than a month into 2026 and it is hoped that automation companies will see a glimmer of hope after a somewhat uneven 2025. Our guest today offers insight into the automation market and he shares trends and predictions for the remainder of the year.

Finding and retaining war...

Our guest on this week's episode is Suketu Gandhi, a partner and global chair in the Strategic Operations practice at management and consulting firm Kearney. The annual World Economic Forum was held last week in Davos, Switzerland. This year it was more politicized than normal, especially with more than 60 heads of state making appearances and lots of international intrigue. But while the politicians stole the spotlight, the p...

Our guest on this week's episode is Ronak Amin - global product marketing lead for fleet, mobility, and transport solutions at Here Technologies. Bridges and trucks are two elements that do not mix well. Many would be surprised to learn that an over-the-road truck strikes a bridge or an underpass every 36 minutes. Of course these accidents risk lives besides disrupting traffic flow. What can be done to prevent bridge strikes? ...

Our guest on this week's episode is Tony Bradley, president and CEO of the Arizona Trucking Association and the executive director of the Arizona Trucking Association Foundation. We have seen huge changes within the trucking industry during the past year based on two big issues – the licensing of non-domiciled drivers and the huge surges we see in freight fraud. Victoria Kickham finds out more about what is being done to addre...

Our guest on this week's episode is Amy Dean, VP of Operations at SC Codeworks. The shipping world is still waiting on the Supreme Court’s ruling on whether the administration can lawfully collect the tariffs that have been assessed on nearly every trading nation. In the meantime, there may be a strategy to mitigate some of those tariff impacts – and that is by using Foreign Trade Zones. 

While employment trends show few new jo...

Our guest on this week's episode is Jason Schenker, president of Prestige Economics and chairman of the Futurist Institute. In what has become an annual tradition, one of our nation’s leading economists joins us to review the economy of 2025 and preview economic trends for 2026. He also focuses on supply chains and the prospects for the material handling market in the year ahead.

When it comes to managing risk in the new year, ...

Our guest on this week's episode is Bill Catania, founder & CEO of OneRail. Christmas will be here before we know it – just a couple of weeks to go. For shippers, that means one final push to get all of those future presents where they need to be. What are the trends driving this year’s peak season? Our guest shares what he has seen from his base of retail customers.  

Ben Ames shares about a new report from industrial  rea...

Our guest on this week's episode is Marc Schaffer, principal economist at Breakthrough Fuel. Sometime in the new year we will likely find out whether the huge mega-merger between two historic railroads will go through. Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern aim to join forces to create a true transcontinental railroad. But it’s not without controversy. What will the effects be on our nation’s supply chains? This week's guest ...

Our guest on this week's episode is Kraig Foreman, president of eCommerce at DHL Supply Chain. While stores are already showing the Christmas spirit with all of their beautiful decorations and being crammed with lots of inventory – peak season has not officially kicked off yet. But it will next week with Black Friday and Cyber Monday. After a tumultuous year for supply chains – are retailers prepared to handle the most wonderf...

Our guest on this week's episode is Alex Saric, CMO at Ivalua. We have definitely seen a lot of uncertainty this year due to changing economic policies and the supply chain shifts that have resulted. It has placed a lot of companies on the sidelines trying to figure out what to do next with their technology investments. How do they get from just being in survival mode to thriving? Our guest today joins Ben Ames with some insig...

Our guest on this week's episode is Noel Thomas, founder and CEO of Dark Watch. Without even knowing it, many companies with extended supply chains may participating in human trafficking and forced labor. It exists around the world and even here in the United States where people are manipulated into modern forms of slavery. What can we do to protect our supply chains and company reputations, while more importantly helping thes...

Our guest on this week's episode is Brodie Sutherland, CEO of Patriot Critical Minerals Corp. Just yesterday a major issue on the agenda for the meeting between President Trump and China’s President Xi’s was access to critical minerals, including rare earth minerals. It looks like the Chinese ban on exporting these crucial minerals will now be lifted, but that ban reminds us of how vulnerable our supply chains are to assuring ...

Our guest on this week's episode is Abdil Tunca, senior principal analyst at Gartner's Supply Chain Practice. While we aren’t quite yet to the era of the Jetsons, we have seen some remarkable advancements in robotics over the past few years. In fact, many future supply chain managers may be managing more robots than human workers. What will that be like? Our guest has some insights.

The trucking industry, and especially th...

Our guest on this week's episode is Frank Kenney, director of industry strategy at Cleo. The Federal government shutdown is in its third week now with no end in sight. Beyond the politics of each party blaming the other for failing to fund the government, there are real repercussions that affect many aspects of American life – including our supply chains. Our guests shares how this latest disruption is adding even more uncerta...