Logistics
Aldwell ( pictured ) says new capacity hitting the water in 2025 is “ concerning to everybody .” Kuehne + Nagel
you start to see those markets kind of normalizing , I think you will see traffic going through Bab el-Mandeb Strait , into the Red Sea through the Suez Canal . So far , there ’ s no indication that that ’ s easing up at all .
I think if we look further out , if you assume that you get into a normalized world where the Red Sea is open , I think the influx of capacity is concerning to everybody in the industry . What will that do in terms of volatility for markets , and will it drive changes into the way that services are structured ? We also have the introduction of Gemini [ in February ], and that ’ s really the biggest change in modus operandi that we ’ ve seen in a very long time for ocean carriers .
LaRocco : We are seeing the push here in the US for AI . How ’ s your company going to approach the use and deployment of AI to help your customers ?
Aldwell : I think you ’ re ... going to see a substantial utilization of AI to improve data quality , to get better data in a timely fashion into systems and reports . This will help customers and logistics providers and carriers and all the participants in the industry make better , more informed decisions in a timely effect . They can also use AI to start to build out better predictive models for the future and see what inventory needs are and how planning is going to work . I think the big opportunities are in quality and optimization . LaRocco : How will it help in the velocity of trade ? Aldwell : I think it ’ ll help the velocity of inventory that ’ s not related to core movements . At the end of the day , I think you ’ re going to have climate regulations , vessel sizes and other things that are regulated . There are port-to-port moves , and then we ’ ve got terminal productivity . AI will help shippers choose to move inventory to different locations and make better decisions [ about ] stocking quantities . The smarter the inventory models you can get , you are going to be able to be linear with what you can do . The only challenge then is to end up with disruptions like we ’ ve had so many of over the last five years . Of course , you need to be able to factor that in as well .
LaRocco : The company acquired a 51 % stake in IMC . Walk me through the strategic thinking behind this . How is it going to enhance the company moving forward ?
Aldwell : During the pandemic , our industry became front page news because of all the challenges . The biggest challenges that came in the industry were landslide logistics . Terminals got blocked up , ports got blocked up , the rails got blocked up . You couldn ’ t get boxes moving around the country . We all lived through that , and we set out in force to remedy that by making a different kind of commitment to the future for our customers and what infrastructure and ability to execute we wanted to have .
We were looking for a few things . The first one was a company with scale . Second , a company with great DNA . Third , was a company with great technology , and the fourth one was a national network . With IMC , we took a majority shareholding in a business that we really believe in , and that ’ s going to help our business serve our customers better into the future because we can make much better commitments about what kind of performance we can engage in down the line with that company .
We ’ re absolutely committed to keeping IMC as an independent brand that runs itself in the marketplace .
LaRocco : Do you think we ’ ll see more of these assetbased investments in the future in terms of being nimble to serve the needs of the client ?
Aldwell : Potentially yes , when we think it ’ s the right thing for our business . I can ’ t speak to the competition . You saw some of the ocean carriers also go in and start acquiring those kinds of companies in the US and in other parts of the world . We think investing in ... assets or asset-like commitments on the land side with a scalable organization makes sense for us because we can deliver a higher degree of certainty around performance to customers .
“ You still can ’ t get insurance to sail through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait .”
LaRocco : Looking at 2025 , what has you excited in terms of innovation or opportunities around the world ? Aldwell : AI , of course , has us excited . We ’ re really interested to see how AI can help us innovate and how it can help us build a more and more customer-centric organization that meets the needs of people . I think the huge amount of investment going into the infrastructure that ’ s needed to power AI on a worldwide basis is an opportunity for logistics companies .
In terms of a potential recovery in Europe , if we see an end to the war in Eastern Europe , this could create an economic rejuvenation and more confidence in European markets , so those are the things that we ’ re watching closely .
“ Newsmakers ” is a periodic interview with a key industry player conducted by Journal of Commerce contributor Lori Ann LaRocco .
email : loriann . larocco @ nbcuni . com www . joc . com March 3 , 2025 | Journal of Commerce 39