DELIVERY MANAGEMENT: And now it’s ‘returns season’ – Balancing customer satisfaction and productivity
By Neil Baker – Head of Auto ID Sales for Northern Europe, BIXOLON Following the festive peak season, there is little respite for retailers. Unwanted or unsuitable gifts will be returned, making the efficient handling of returns essential to minimise financial and resource losses. 2025 marked a pivotal time for returns. The number of “serial […]
Supply chain trends to look out for in 2026
Supply chains are in a new era where disruption is the norm and agility defines success. 2026 looks set to build on 2025’s trend of building a resilient supply chain that can withstand external pressures, whilst affording businesses the flexibility to change things at short notice. While the future points to autonomous supply chains powered […]
2026: A turning point for loading automation?
By Wouter Satijn (pictured), Chief Revenue Officer, Joloda Hydraroll Companies are constantly looking for ways to optimise and automate their warehouses and production facilities: ‘optimisation’ has been the word of our industry for some time now. Yet one critical area is frequently overlooked. When it comes to loading and unloading, there is still an enormous amount […]
Alleviating driver stress through intelligent routing
With peak season well underway, fleets across the globe are bracing for an ever increasingly busy time of year. To emphasise how intense the period is, in 2024 FedEx forecasted that parcel carriers would distribute 6.2 billion shipments across Europe between October and December 2024, a 9 % increase over the 5.7 billion delivered in […]
WEBINAR: Alinea Customs and Trade Treasury Payments release The Exporter’s Handbook
Crossing a border should be the easy part of a successful export. Unfortunately, for too many businesses, that is the point in their international journey where uncertainty begins. A shipment can be commercially sound and competitively priced, yet still run into penalties, delays, or unexpected duties because of how it is valued, classified, documented, or […]
The countdown to the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) has started. Is your business prepared?
From 1 January 2027, the United Kingdom will introduce a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) tax on commercial imports of iron, steel, aluminium, hydrogen and fertilisers that fall within the scope of the new legislation. The UK CBAM will begin with a 12-month transitional reporting period, with the first CBAM return due by 31 May […]
Smart Manufacturing: Five ways to properly digitise Your business
Manufacturing is one of the UK’s most ambitious sectors, having embraced digitalisation with open arms. With 90% of UK manufacturers planning or progressing with smart factory initiatives, it’s safe to say that technology is already having a marked impact by making firms more efficient than ever. AI is the latest hot topic for companies across many other […]
ORDER FULFILMENT MONTH: Imposing control through clarity within global logistics
Geopolitical unrest and supply chain uncertainty are adding costs at every stage of the transport management process. For the 90% of companies reliant upon third-party logistics (3PLs) companies, planning the movement of goods from manufacturer to end market has become ever more complex. Contingency planning encompasses not only attacks on shipping, weather events and port strikes, but also […]
Complex, costly & confusing: The end of de minimis
When the United States quietly killed its $800 de minimis threshold in August 2025, few outside the e-commerce world took much notice. But for thousands of small and mid-sized exporters in the UK and EU, the impact was anything but quiet. Now there are moves to do the same in the UK and the EU. […]
Exporter’s Playbook launch webinar: 16 December
Global supply chains face rising geopolitical fragmentation, border checks are increasing, and authorities are stepping up post-clearance audits. For exporters, there are many practical challenges including getting valuation right, classifying products accurately, proving origin under FTAs, and using Incoterms® in a way that doesn’t create unnecessary tax or risk exposure. On 16 December, Alinea Customs, […]