For the first time in a long time, all four of my kids (who are all adults now) have been home this week.
It’s been nice, especially since my wife and I will become “empty nesters” this fall when our youngest daughter heads off to college.
The only problem is that we seem to run out of food every 27 and a half hours. Milk, eggs, yogurt, strawberries, blueberries, grapes barely last a day in the fridge. I grilled 5 packages of chicken thighs the other night and there were no leftovers. Even the veggies are going fast.
In fairness to our VP of Logistics and Replenishment — that is, my wife — the kids didn’t eat this much, and so fast, when they were younger and smaller. Or maybe they did and we’re just out of practice.
All I know is that as the VP of Finance, I’ll need to adjust our food budget (and water and laundry budget too) the next time we have all the grown birdies in the nest again.
Moving on, here’s the supply chain and logistics news that caught my attention this week:
- $20 billion in tariff refunds paid so far, with more on the way (NBC News)
- U.S. Government Hits First Brands With $286 Million Claim in Underpaid Tariffs (WSJ – sub. req’d)
- Federal regulator pauses review of Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern’s $85 billion merger (Reuters)
- Walmart Enhances Supply Chain to Bring Customers What They Need, When They Need It
- DHL eCommerce and USPS enter $10 billion – plus, long‑term exclusive agreement
- Stord has raised $250M at a $3B valuation
- IQAX Surpasses One Million Electronic Bills of Lading, Laying the Digital Foundation for Global Trade
- ArcBest Launches ArcBest View, a Unified Platform for Shipment Execution and Insights
- TMV Logistics Launches $200M Maritime and Logistics Fund Anchored by American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and Prologis Ventures
- Survey of 25 Port Executives Finds U.S. Ports Face $6.7 Billion Cargo Equipment Investment Need Over Next Five Years (NAWE)
- Supreme Court rejects Florida’s bid to sue Western states over truck licenses for immigrants (AP)
- EU, Mexico to Sign Updated Trade Agreement (WSJ – sub. req’d)
What Will It Take to Modernize U.S. Ports?
Back in October 2021, we asked members of our Indago supply chain research community — all supply chain and logistics professionals from manufacturing, retail, and distribution companies — “Which parts of the physical supply chain are the most broken (need the most fixing)?” Given the backups and delays occurring at the time, it wasn’t surprising that “Ocean ports” received the most votes (74%), followed closely by “Labor” (70%).
Based on The Container Port Performance Index 2020 to 2024 published by the World Bank and S&P Global Market Intelligence, the U.S. still trails the world’s leading ports by a significant margin. The top-performing ports in 2024 were concentrated in China, Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa — with 10 of the global top 20 ports located in China. One of the few bright spots in the U.S. is the Port of Philadelphia, which ranked 26th globally — the only U.S. port in the global top 50 and the highest-ranked port in North America.
How did Philadelphia rise in the rankings and outperform other U.S. ports? “PhilaPort has continued to invest heavily in modernization, with over $1 billion in public and private investments over the past decade,” according to a press release the organization issued last year. “These improvements have strengthened the Port’s ability to serve ocean carriers and shippers efficiently while driving economic growth for the region.”
In short, productivity improvements didn’t happen by accident. They required sustained investment and a willingness to modernize operations.
Which brings me to two notable news items from this week.
First, “The National Association of Waterfront Employers (NAWE) released new survey findings based on input from 25 senior port and terminal executives, revealing that U.S. ports require billions in near-term capital investment to maintain efficiency and global competitiveness.”
The findings underscore the scale of the challenge.
According to the survey, respondents estimate that $6.7 billion in total investment will be needed for cargo handling equipment at U.S. ports over the next five years. Of that total:
- $2.74 billion is needed for new STS crane purchases
- $2.4 billion is needed for large yard cargo handling equipment and additional STS cranes
- $917 million is required for rail-mounted large yard cargo handling equipment
- $790 million is needed for repairs to existing STS cranes and cargo handling equipment at marine terminals
Also this week, TMV announced the launch of TMV Logistics, LP, “a $200M venture fund dedicated to maritime and logistics innovation and safety…TMV Logistics will back pre-seed through Series A companies rebuilding the core infrastructure of maritime, shipbuilding, ports, and intermodal logistics.”
Here are more details from the press release:
Ports and intermodal logistics networks face growing pressure to increase capacity amid geopolitical disruption, energy volatility, and labor constraints. These dynamics are accelerating adoption of automation, AI, robotics, and alternative energy systems, reshaping how global supply chains operate.
The TMV Maritime and Logistics fund will invest across five core technology themes:
- Industrial-grade autonomy and operationally resilient systems
- Verticalized robotics for real-world deployment
- Operational AI for decision-making and orchestration
- Maritime dual-use technologies
- Energy transition and next-generation fuels
In other words, investors clearly see an opportunity — and a need — to modernize the infrastructure, systems, and operating models of our ports.
Of course, labor unions also have an important role to play in determining how quickly ports modernize and adopt new technologies.
Remember when the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) canceled its June 11, 2024 Master Contract talks with USMX “after discovering that APM Terminals and Maersk Line are utilizing an Auto Gate system, which autonomously processes trucks without ILA labor,” according to a press release the ILA issued at the time?
Included in the press release was a photo of several longshoremen holding signs that read: “If it’s a fight they want, it’s a war they’re going to get.”
As I wrote at the time, “while other nodes in the supply chain are racing ahead implementing a variety of automation technologies — such as autonomous mobile robots in the warehouse and robotic process automation for document processing — to improve productivity and throughput, port workers want to keep using clipboards and paper documents for gate entry.”
The bottom line is that everybody agrees the U.S. needs more productive, resilient, and globally competitive ports. The investments are available. The technologies are available. The need is obvious. The question, as always, is: Will stakeholders work together to modernize U.S. ports before competitive pressures force the issue?
And with that, have a meaningful weekend!
Song of the Week: “Riptides” by Death Cab for Cutie
