[#196] Supply Chain in Numbers - Sep 11, 2023
Wabash adds 10k dry van production capacity, Just 10% of visits are dine-in, DB Schenker has a 600k sqft DC, Estes wants Yellow terminals, Redwood Materials raises $1 billion
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.
10,000 dry van trailers per year
The transportation, logistics, and distribution equipment provider Wabash opened an advanced dry van trailer manufacturing facility in Lafayette, Indiana. Announced in July 2021, the strategic capacity expansion can produce an additional 10,000 dry van trailers annually. The company expects the full impact of this additional capacity to be notably realized in 2024. The conversion of Wabash’s Lafayette-based South Plant from refrigerated trailer capacity to dry van capacity is the largest investment Wabash has made in a single operation in the company’s 38 years. [DC Velocity]
10% of visits are dine-in
Fast-food customers rarely dine in the restaurant anymore. Dine-in customers represent less than 10% of visits in most American McDonald’s restaurants compared with around a quarter of domestic sales before the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, major chains are developing new layouts and investing in technology to offer fresh, clean looks and swift ordering and fulfillment options. Across U.S. fast-food chains, diners ate 14% of orders at a restaurant in the first five months of this year, less than 21% before the pandemic. [WSJ]
600,000 sqft with Zero Emissions
DB Schenker will open a new zero-emissions logistics hub in Tampines, slated to be completed by the first half of 2025. The 600,000 sq ft facility — called RedLion2 — is designed to house the latest advanced automation solutions, such as intelligent conveyor systems, automated storage and retrieval systems, and autonomous guided vehicles. It also aims to support the semiconductor and healthcare industries with logistics solutions. [Straits Times]
$1.3 billion for truck terminals
Estes Express Lines is taking a crucial role in the selloff of assets at bankrupt rival trucker Yellow. Estes struck a deal to buy Yellow’s sprawling network of truck terminals for a minimum of $1.3 billion giving the shuttered business enough to cover the loans the company accumulated before its collapse. Estes, the №5 operator in the less-than-truckload market, already has 280 terminals across North America. Other rivals say they’re also interested in Yellow’s properties, many considered prime sites in a trucking market where it’s challenging to build terminals. [WSJ]
$1 billion Series D
Redwood Materials, the battery recycling startup founded by former Tesla co-founder and CTO JB Straubel, has raised over $1 billion in a Series D round at a post-money valuation of over $5 billion. The company says it will use the funds to continue building capacity, expanding the domestic battery supply chain, and allowing customers to buy battery materials — like lithium, nickel, and cobalt — made in the U.S. for the first time. Most battery materials are sourced or produced in China — it processes and refines 59% and 75% of the world’s lithium and cobalt, respectively, compared to 3% and 3.5% for Canada and the U.S. combined. [Tech Crunch]