The management team of Blue Sky Logistics, Inc., a new company recently formed by several industry executives, have joined forces to provide innovative software solutions and services for customers looking to further optimize their supply chain networks.
Blue Sky Logistics' first creation is a package called Insight', a visibility dashboard that was designed to monitor critical decision information at all management levels. Insight' is a web-native application that uses a company's real-time data to track and monitor key performance metrics and trends. Insight' comes with a vast library of predefined supply chain gauges and alerts and is integrated with some of the top planning and execution systems on the market.
Blue Sky Logistics was formed by Randy Marble, Steve Hensley, Richard Stanford and Brian Deterling, all veteran application software specialists with vast industry experience. At one time, the foursome worked together at EXE Technologies and shared a common vision of providing clients with a tool, like Insight', to allow them to manage their end-to-end logistics operations using an exception-based management dashboard. Marble serves as chief executive officer while Hensley is president; Stanford is Blue Sky Logistics' chief technical officer and Deterling is chief software architect.
'We knew from past experiences with customers that there is tremendous need for solutions and services targeted to the area of exceptions management,' said Marble. 'The proliferation of technology to manage logistics operations means that managers today are overwhelmed with data. Our solutions will enable them to extract the information that will result in more timely and better decisions ' and with less clutter in their information streams.'
Hensley, who will direct the company's sales and marketing efforts, added, 'There is a vital need in the market for products like ours. Our immediate success has validated the fact that a company that offers end-to-end visibility solutions will find a strong market for its products and services.'
Market reaction for their services has been well-received so far. The company has gotten off to a fast start, landing such prestigious clients as Staples, Nash Finch, Ahold USA, Whole Foods, Military Distributors of Virginia, Woolworth LTD, K-VA-T and Hy-Vee.
Hensley went on to say that Blue Sky Logistics' integrated, real-time application will oversee a company's extended operations, including planning, sourcing, manufacturing, delivery and returns. 'Unfortunately, most information systems today operate in a vacuum, focusing on only one area,' he said. Our applications provide an expanded view that encompasses data from all areas of the supply chain.'
Blue Sky Logistics has adopted the Supply-Chain Council's Supply Chain Operational Reference (SCOR) model metrics, which provides customers with more than 250 standard metrics for tracking and monitoring their supply chain on an exception basis. This will be the basis for additional products and services in the future.
