Logistics Expo MODEX Going Ahead Despite Coronavirus Concerns
By: Sara Warden
2 min read March 2020 — Despite Coronavirus concerns, this year’s MODEX conference is going ahead as scheduled on March 9-12 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. The conference attracts 900 exhibitors and, as logistics companies, all have a stake in the developments currently fragmenting the supply chain.
The Covid-19 outbreak that began in China at the end of January has already shut down national and international borders, but this is one reason why expos such as MODEX are so important. The companies present in Atlanta will be supply chain and logistics optimization companies whose goal is to optimize operations by reducing or even eliminating human involvement.
One of the technologies to be launched at the expo is the Puck 32MR, a joint venture between California’s Velodyne Lidar and South Korea’s Seoul Robotics. The technology is a lidar sensor that can detect obstacles in a warehouse setting, allowing for safe automated navigation. “Supply chain systems need to continue to become smarter and safer, more efficient and further automated. To address these requirements, companies are turning to lidar to play a key role in enabling the next generation of manufacturing and supply chain solutions,” said Jon Barad, Velodyne’s vice president of business development, in a press release.
Another company presenting its portfolio will be industrial vehicle automation company Elokon, which has a global presence and U.S. operations headquartered in Atlanta. One notable product that will be presented at the expo is MHI Innovation Award-winning solution ELOshield, which is a sensor that detects proximity and provides collision warning with specific warning and protection zones.
And Atlanta-based Elemica provides a cloud-based supply network that provides tracking transparency and optimizes product shipment. “These enhancements improve use of inventory, streamline onboarding for inter-business connectivity, improve search, including hazardous material (Hazmat) criteria, and allow for more in-depth visualization for track and trace of product safety and knowing where orders and shipments are at all times,” said Arun Samuga, Elemica’s Chief Technology Officer in a press release.
The transportation management system (TMS) market in North America is poised to grow by $1.62 billion during 2020-2024 and Atlanta is at the forefront. American Software, an Atlanta-based supply chain software solutions provider, was recently upgraded to a Strong Buy rating by Zacks. The company’s president, Allan Dow, said in the company’s most recent earnings call that the software will allow customers to be “better positioned to overcome the growing supply chain talent shortage that may impact their profitable growth and ability to respond to rapidly changing market conditions or unanticipated supply chain disruptions.”
And with there being no signs of the Coronavirus slowing down and quarantine numbers growing by the day, more integrated, automated supply chains and logistics systems could be just what the economy needs to boost trade activity.
To learn more, visit:
https://www.gwcca.org/georgia-world-congress-center/
