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• JUNE 26, 2020 • Midlands Business Journal
TRANSPORTATION, DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSING A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal
June 26, 2020
While not impervious, transportation, distribution and warehousing industry sees demand by Michelle Leach The current crisis has presented many opportunities for organizations in the transportation, distribution and warehousing industry. “The value and essentialness of the trucking industry couldn’t have been clearer than when the pandemic crisis was first unfolding,” said Nebraska Trucking Association President and CEO Kent Grisham. “Truckers always Grisham respond in times of emergency.” During the 2019 floods, for instance, truckers operated continuously to bring emergency supplies to stricken areas. “With COVID-19, store shelves from coast-to-coast were empty,” he said. “Hospitals and first responders were running out of supplies throughout North America. The relief for those conditions were all dependent on our truckers.” This emergency has given trucking the opportunity to demonstrate its essentialness on a national level. “In the end, I believe that will translate into more people looking to our industry for
career opportunities, and into improved relationships with shippers and receivers alike,” Grisham said. That said, trucking isn’t invulnerable. “Some trucking companies will have to cut back, especially if they are not hauling freight related to pandemic relief or essential retail supplies,” he said. “But we remain optimistic that the recession will be short-lived, and that we can play our Beals part in reopening and re-energizing the economy.” In its 80th anniversary year, the association has been able to shine as an advocate and to bring critical information, education and training. “With our help, many of our members have been able to still add drivers and trucks to their fleets, despite the number of closures and reductions in service,” Grisham said. TDW businesses, said NAI NP Dodge Vice President Marketing and Community Relations Jeff Beals, tend to be among the healthiest in the economy right now. “Because so many people are still stuck at home, either because their offices are closed
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Tim Aschoff talks with a driver at Crete Carrier. (Photo courtesy of Crete Carrier) or because they may have health vulnerabili- years to come. ties, they are ordering more products shipped “Also, TDW space is generally pretty to their homes,” he said. “This has greatly easy to convert to manufacturing space, expanded the need for TDW buildings, and which gives building owners even more I do not see that changing any time in the options,” he said. “It looks like we'll see a near future.” manufacturing boom in the United States In fact, Beals said those who own TDW over the next five to 10 years. real estate should be in great shape for many “The pandemic exposed the critical vulnerabilities of the ‘just-in-time inventory’ philosophy. If too much of your supply chain is vulnerable during a time of crisis, the very existence of your business is at risk. I think you will see a substantial amount of manufacturing repatriation. Much of that new U.S.based manufacturing will be sophisticated, high-value-added stuff.” In the few years leading up to the pandemic, industrial real estate had been in “super-high demand,” according to Beals. “So not much is changing,” he said. “Vacancy over the past few years has been just above 3% in Omaha and I expect it will continue to be tight for a long time. Industrial tenants love high ceilings, plenty of dock doors, flexible space and easy access to freeways.” Crete Carrier Corporations was fortunate, said President and COO TIm Aschoff, to have most of its customers be in the food production and consumer packaged goods space related (Kellogg’s, General Mills, Nestle Purina, Conagra and Kimberly Clark) — or in related retail space (Walmart, Hy-Vee and AWG). “We saw some interruption at some Continued on next page.
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Transportation, Distribution & Warehousing — inside JUNE 26, 2020
THE BUSINESS NEWSPAPER OF GREATER OMAHA, LINCOLN AND COUNCIL BLUFFS
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VOL. 46 NO. 26
YMCA of Greater Omaha pilots operational models with innovation
THIS WEEK 'S ISSUE:
by Richard D. Brown
Lawn card greeting business sees growth spreading uplifting messages. – Page 2
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Schorr Zach helps spread, expand ICAN’s message. – Page 3
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Pandemic hastens process improvements, technology integration in legal industry. – Page 4
Maximum involvement from all sectors of the community makes for a strong YMCA; innovative programs can propel the trajectory of what’s accomplished. Chris Tointon, who is starting his fifth year as president/ CEO of YMCA of Greater Omaha, said the organization’s 154 years in Omaha have been marked by an eclectic mix of programs and strong, unwavering support from the community. Tointon oversees some 1,600 employees and a $25 million operational budget supplemented by philanthropy to operate programs over a five-county area in five contiguous counties in eastern Nebraska and western Iowa. The budget, which has been increased by $7 million during his tenure, reaches a wide range of participants from a grade school student struggling with addition tables in an after-school supervised program to senior citizens dancing to Nat King Cole’s Continued on page 7.
President and CEO Chris Tointon … Building community partnerships and adjusting programming to reach community. (Photo by MBJ / Becky McCarville)
Built on connecting with partners, Omaha STEM Ecosystem stakeholder base surges by Michelle Leach
When Omaha STEM Ecosystem got its start in 2016, the organization boasted 180 partners. Today, stakeholders number more than 800 and, by way of its 2019 annual report, those supporters’ 1,462 hours of volunteer time are valued at upwards of $37,000. “We are a collective impact organization,” said Director Julie
Sigmon. “That means we’re not running programs. We don’t do summer camps. We do serve as that organization that works to change systems and pulls together stakeholders. We say, ‘We’ve got a workforce issue. How do we address this together?’ When you’re a collective impact organization, it’s complex. It takes a while to understand what Continued on page 7.
Elizabeth Pooley, founder of Square Donut.
From opening during pandemic to new demand, small businesses adapt by Michelle Leach
Director Julie Sigmon … Collective impact organization measures strides toward a robust STEM pipelinewith surge in stakeholder/ partner base.
Editor’s note: This article is part of a series sharing firsthand experiences from local organizations on how their respective industries are adapting to COVID-19. Body Basics Fitness Equipment has been in sprint mode since March. “We’ve seen unprecedented demand since pretty much all of the gyms closed down for a period of time,” said founder and President
David Kutler. “There has been uncertainty about when they would open up, and uncertainty about whether people wanted to go back to a health club.” Suppliers worldwide have experienced total sellouts of inventory. “We’re getting calls from people across the country, looking for dumbbells and weight-benches, anything related to strength training,” he said. Problems are compounded Continued on page 6.