[#101] Supply Chain in Numbers - Nov 15, 2021
Ryder planning a national autonomous fleet, Pepsi finds 67% less lost-work time with wearables, JD buying 100 cargo planes, US is short 80k drivers, Instacart offers same-day alcohol to 75% households
Welcome to “Supply Chain in Numbers.” This newsletter tracks significant digits from the world of the supply chain. Five prominent numbers are published every Monday. If you have any feedback, please send it to me.
20 vehicles
Truck fleet operator Ryder and Gatik will build a national U.S. autonomous short-haul, “middle-mile” logistics network for Gatik, a Silicon Valley self-driving startup, to deliver goods to business customers. Gatik works with Walmart and Loblaw Companies to deliver goods to retail stores from warehouses using autonomous trucks with safety drivers — though in Arkansas the company is already running some driverless deliveries. As part of the partnership, Gatik will lease a fleet of medium-duty trucks from Ryder — initially around 20 vehicles in the Dallas area. Gatik will add its autonomous driving systems to those trucks, which will transport goods to retail locations from fulfillment centers or dark stores. [Reuters]
67% reduction in lost-work time
PepsiCo will ramp up wearable technology used in its beverage division after it enabled frontline employees at its Frito-Lay facilities to reduce lost work time by 67% YoY in the first two quarters of its deployment. Thousands of workers at 34 Frito-Lay manufacturing and distribution centers cut back on improper lifting and posture when using Kinetic’s Reflex wearable device, reducing strain and sprain injuries by 19% YoY, the study said. The belt-mounted device, which Frito-Lay first used in the summer of 2020, alerts employees who are improperly bending, twisting, or reaching. [SC Dive]
100 planes
JD Logistics Inc. is planning to set up its own fleet of planes as the Chinese firm eyes a greater slice of a cross-border cargo market engulfed by global supply chain snarls. The logistics arm of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com Inc. aims to have “no fewer than 100 planes” by 2030, including leased and jointly purchased aircraft. The company, which had previously chartered planes from airlines to transport goods, has already won approval from the Civil Aviation Administration of China to operate its own air freight business. [Yahoo Finance]
80,000 drivers
The trucking industry is short 80,000 drivers, an all-time high for the industry, according to the American Trucking Associations. The shortage, which existed pre-pandemic but has grown worse since then, comes at a critical time in the retail supply chain cycle, with U.S. ports backlogged just before the start of the holiday shopping season. Truck drivers move 71% of the US economy’s goods. The outlook for the next few years doesn’t offer much hope. Based on driver demographic trends, including gender and age, as well as expected freight growth the shortage could surpass 160,000 in 2030. [Chain Store Age]
75% of US households
Instacart is now offering same-day alcohol delivery from 180 Meijer stores, expanding the total footprint of its service to reach more than 85 million U.S. households or nearly 75% of total U.S. households. Out of its more than 700 retail partners, Instacart now counts Meijer among the more than 300, including Aldi, Albertsons, and Costco, that use the company for alcohol eCommerce across 17,000 stores. Chris Rogers, Instacart’s vice president of retail, noted in a statement that eCommerce is a “clear growth driver” that typically increases basket sizes by 25%. [Grocery Dive]