The Chinese powdered milk company Synutra has hired a Michigan industrial equipment supplier to provide it with automated guided vehicles, conveyors and other automation to build what eventually will be the world’s largest powdered milk manufacturing facility. The facility, which currently is under construction in Carhaix, Brittany, in northwestern France, will use automation provided by … Read more
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel participated in the unveiling of a new pallet depot on the city Southeast Side last week. The grand opening was held Wednesday, December 3, at the PECO Pallet depot located at 2924 E. 126th St., in Chicago’s Hegewisch neighborhood, can process up to 500,000 pallets per month and stre up to … Read more
Here’s a special sneak preview of some of the stories you will find this week on the Bahrns blog: Black Friday may have been a bust for some retailers, according to industry observers. But that doesn’t mean overall holiday shopping will be down. We’ll explain why. The good news is that the US economy is … Read more
First, the good news: The US economy grew 3.9% in the third quarter — from July to September — according to a report issued last month by the US Commerce Department. That rapid growth rate comes on the heels of an even more astonishing 4.6% growth rate during Q2, from April to June. That rosy … Read more
The US Postal Service is projected to lose $5.5 billion during 2014, despite increasing operating revenues by more $569 million thanks to a January rate hike and the continued strong performance of its package handling group. But can the world’s oldest and most reliable postal service continue to operate at a loss, especially when fewer … Read more
When the widening and deepening of the Panama Canal is completed next year, it will allow significantly larger cargo container ships — known as “Panamax” ships — to pass from the Atlantic to the Pacific. But representatives of the union representing tugboat pilots working in the canal say one particular stretch known as the Gaillard … Read more
One of the unintended side effects of the rapid growth of digital communications and affordable Internet-accessible devices is a rise in electronic waste, or eWaste. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, in the period between 1999 and 2009, the number of electronic devices sold in the US doubled from about 215 million to 438 … Read more
In an effort to attract more cargo container ships, port operators in Seattle and nearby Tacoma announced that they were forming a strategic alliance that would unify their cargo terminal management. “We must make it clear that this is not a merger,” said Tara Mattina, a spokeswoman for the Port of Tacoma. Instead, the new … Read more
One word that definitely can’t be used to describe workers at one Australian workplace is “patient”. Frustrated that a car had been parked while apparently blocking a driveway, rather than waiting for a tow truck, some frustrated and outraged workers used a forklift to lift the vehicle out of the way. The forklift listed the … Read more
Here is a special sneak preview of some of the stories you will find on the Bahrns blog this week: You’ve heard about e-Commerce, e-Mail and probably even e-Learning. But what about e-Waste? It’s a growing problem that could put people at risk, especially children. We’ll tell you why … The US Postal Service is … Read more
