CSCMP Releases 23rd Annual State of Logistics Report

On June 14, 2012, the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) released their Annual State of Logistics Report entitled: "The Long and Winding Recovery". The report states that transportation costs rose to 6.2 percent in 2011, due to increased rates, not increased volume. In regards to increased revenue in 2011, the big winner was the railroad sector who saw a 15.3 percent increase. The third-party logistics providers and forwarding sector increased 9 percent; while, the trucking sector increased 6.2 percent. The non-asset based logistics providers rose 10.9 percent and were gaining strength at the end of the year.

The report also indicates that Government regulations like FMCSA's Compliance, Safety, and Accountability (CSA) and new Hours of Service rules will have a huge impact on capacity concerns and driver productivity. The CSCMP report cites a 2011 Morgan Stanley shipper survey in regards to CSA. The survey found that 55 percent of polled shippers were hesitant to use a carrier that has at least one of its seven BASIC scores above the CSA threshold. It is estimated that the new Hours of Services rules will decrease driver productivity 3 to 8 percent because of the reduction of the number of hours a driver can work in a week.

The report's author Rosalyn Wilson, Senior Business Analyst for the Delcan Corporation and Independent Consultant ends the reports with a warning, "capacity issues are on the horizon. I urge everyone to begin making contingency plans for the day you cannot get a truck. The railroads are standing by with a great offer and have the capacity to take up the slack."

Industry update provided by Chris Burroughs, Policy Manager, Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA) and reproduced courtesy of the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA). For more information on the TIA, please visit their website.