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Mary O'Connell

Former pricing analyst, supply chain planner, and broker/dispatcher turned creator of the newsletter and podcast Check Call. Which gives insights into the world around 3PLs and Freight brokers. She will talk your ear off about anything and everything if you let her. Expertise in operations, LTL pricing and procurement, flatbed operations, dry van, tracking and tracing, reality tv shows and how to turn a stranger into your new best friend.
Apr - 2023 -
11 April
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: That’s a lot of coincidences

Inside this edition: West Coast port labor talks continue; sustainability initiatives increasing stock prices; and another acquisition on the books.

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04 April
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The 4-day workweek and the supply chain

Inside this edition: What a 32-hour workweek looks like for the supply chain; the weight of Easter candy; and Mexico collects another auto manufacturer.

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Mar - 2023 -
28 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The battle is over

Inside this edition: The battle over broker transparency might finally be over; carrier retention helps in the long term; and the claim for TravelCenters of America gets another player. 

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24 March
Mary O'Connell

Running on Ice: Answer to sustainability might be vegetable oil

Here you’ll find the latest information on warehouse news, tech developments and all things reefer madness-related.

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21 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Sustainability at what cost?

Inside this edition: Sustainability measures become costly; fully automated warehouses could be the answer; and Walmart’s freshest collab.

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14 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Back-to-back champs

Inside this edition: Mexico hits back-to-back trading partner win; omnichannel the next big move for 3PLs; and big developments in the land of C.H. Robinson.

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10 March
07 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The Amazon Effect

Inside this edition: the Amazon Effect on the supply chain; AI’s role in forecasting; and some acquisitions and growth sweeping the nation.

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Feb - 2023 -
28 February
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Employee attraction and retention trends for 2023

Inside this edition: workplace trends for 2023; growing demand for industrial space at the border; and the hunt for a new CEO.

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24 February
21 February
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Importing and exporting not always same thing

Inside this edition: Showdown between freight forwarders and customs brokers; FMCSA’s new regulations; and shiny new purchases for Overhaul and DHL.

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17 February
14 February
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: There is darkness among us

Inside this edition: Double-brokering tips; the stats on Valentine’s Day; and 2023 might have its theme of the year.

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10 February
07 February
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: What if it’s not the worst time to buy?

Inside this edition: A merger or acquisition might be worth considering; big trends in the supply chain world this year; and a cannabis/3PL deal closes.

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02 February
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The results are in — peak season was weak

Inside this edition: The U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index makes a splash; for-hire carrier rankings are out; and Nowports comes stateside.

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Jan - 2023 -
31 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The one with all the borders

Inside this edition: Regulations for customs brokers get a facelift; Laredo is the MVP; and Credit Suisse provides some new year ratings.

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27 January
26 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The future of warehousing

Inside this edition: Warehousing automation will be key; the automotive sector is hot for 2023; and an upsetting trend hits too close to home.

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24 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Gucci meets logistics

Inside this edition: designer brands relying more on 3PLs; Mexico gains another manufacturer; and more acquisitions.

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19 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Year of the rabbit

Inside this edition: It’s time for Lunar New Year stoppages; rent is on the rise; and big promotions in the logistics world.

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17 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Accessibility for all

Inside this edition: Accessibility training for visually impaired freight brokers; California continues to be complicated; and GXO sets the bar high.

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12 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Let’s get ready to rumble

Inside this edition: FTC proposes to ban noncompetes; the nonshortage shortage of medicine; and Estes moves to hand down the family business. 

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10 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The rise of nearshoring

Inside this edition: Nearshoring to Mexico on the rise; Canada comes out on top again; Not your average Super 8-K makes headlines.

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06 January
05 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Money can’t fix a people problem

Inside this edition: Money can’t fix a people problem; FMCSA announces new oversight plan; and Forward Air adds to its family.

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04 January
03 January
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The year of the relationship 

Inside this edition: Prospecting gets creative; size matters in final mile delivery; and C.H. Robinson makes executive changes.

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Dec - 2022 -
20 December
Mary O'Connell

December market update with David Spencer

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and David Spencer, director of business intelligence at Arrive Logistics, cover the December market update.

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14 December
Mary O'Connell

Crafting RFPs carriers want to bid on

This fireside chat recap is from FreightWaves’ Domestic Supply Chain Summit and focuses on key features that shippers should include in their RFPs.

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Nov - 2022 -
29 November
Mary O'Connell

December market update with David Spencer

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell David Spencer, director of business development at Arrive Logistics, cover the December market update.

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22 November
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: All that for a box, with Scott Lord

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Scott Lord, senior vice president of parcel at Redwood Logistics, discuss all things parcel shipping.

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08 November
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Warehouse yard improvements

Mary O’Connell and Andrew Smith, founder and CEO of Outrider, sit down to talk about all things warehousing and automation

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Oct - 2022 -
18 October
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Data never lies with Arrive Logistics

Mary O’Connell and Alex Schwarm, head of data at Arrive Logistics, sit down to talk about all things tech innovation and integration.

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11 October
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Everyone on the same page with Eric Rempel

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Redwood Logistics Chief Innovation Officer Eric Rempel, sit down to talk about all things tech innovation and integration.

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04 October
Mary O'Connell

One big roundabout with Leaf Logistics’ Anshu Prasad

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Leaf Logistics CEO and co-founder Anshu Prasad sit down to talk about carrier compliance and the role technology plays.

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Sep - 2022 -
27 September
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: September market update with an Arrive Logistics executive

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Arrive Logistics’ David Spencer dive into the September market update.

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20 September
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Modern problems require modern solutions with Anaid Chacón

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Nuvocargo’s Anaid Chacón sit down to talk about all things U.S.-Mexico cross-border and the rise of women in logistics and leadership positions.

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15 September
Mary O'Connell

The August market update with David Spencer

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and David Spencer from Arrive Logistics dive into the August market update.

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13 September
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Look at all those boats with Brian Glick

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Brian Glick from Chain.io, dive into all things ocean freight.

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Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Electronic data interchanges not so standard

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Vector.ai’s James Coombes sit down to talk about all things concerning electronic data interchanges.

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Aug - 2022 -
25 August
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Stop in the name of Brake Safety Week

Inside this edition: CVSA Brake Safety Week; Canada is No. 1; and robots and hot dogs come together.

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23 August
Mary O'Connell

Staying ahead of the pack with JP Wiggins

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and JP Wiggins from 3G dive into market corrections, the benefits of a good TMS and being a resource to customers.

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Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Call the fire department

Inside this edition: Preventing daily fires … the pessimistic outlook on carrier retention … The newest fixer-upper.

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18 August
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Remember, time is money

Inside this edition: What is everyone upgrading? … 2021 was the MVP year … More acquisitions in Q3

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16 August
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Can you ever have too much technology?

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Kyle Ingraham from AFC Logistics dive into technology upgrades, when to abandon a legacy system and whether you can have too much technology.

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Mary O'Connell

Check Call: When is enough enough?

Inside this edition: Getting just the right amount of Tech upgrades; A rift among former customer and service provider; and a newbie joins Nuvocargo’s ranks.

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11 August
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The circle of trust

Inside this edition: Getting ahead of claims, the task force with the hottest acronym, and someone just leveled up.

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09 August
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Don’t stake a claim

Inside this edition: Know what the claims team needs to be successful; LTL quarterly results come in hot; and the tribe has spoken.

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04 August
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: There’s gold in them prospecting hills   

Inside this edition: being a better prospector, transportation costs at a minimum, and FedEx has new toys.

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02 August
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with John Rattay: A sustainable balance

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and John Rattay of Redwood Logistics dive into why shippers aren’t getting what they want from their logistics service providers in terms of environmental, social and governance initiatives.

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Mary O'Connell

Check Call: The early bird gets the ESG worm 

Inside this edition: the rise of ESG initiatives, congestion up again and the future of shopping malls.

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Jul - 2022 -
19 July
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Scott Schara: Selling in a down market

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell sits down with Scott Schara, chief commercial officer and president of 3PL services at BlueGrace Logistics, to talk about selling in a down market.

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12 July
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Sanjay Chopra: Work smarter, not harder

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell sits down with Sanjay Chopra, CEO and co-founder of Cognistx, to talk about the benefits of AI and clean data.

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05 July
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Chris Cassidy: Making new Trax

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and TraxGroup’s Chris Cassidy sit down to talk about sustainability and the future of freight audit and payment.

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Jun - 2022 -
28 June
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Joe Antoshak: Breaking down broker pay

Frightwaves’ Mary O’Connell and Joe Antoshak take a deep dive into the company’s broker compensation white paper.

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21 June
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with David Spencer: Market check 

Freightwaves’ Mary O’Connell and Arrive’s David Spencer return with a June market update.

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14 June
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Fillogic: The final-mile sprint

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell sits down with Bill Thayer and Rob Caucci, co-founders of Fillogic, to talk about issues with final mile and how to make it less of a headache.

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10 June
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Anshu Prasad: Leaves do more than fall

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell talks with Anshu Prasad about creating reliable and effective transportation networks.

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May - 2022 -
24 May
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with David Spencer: The market update

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell sits down to talk with David Spencer about market conditions in April as well as what we can expect to see from May.

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17 May
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Scott Watanabe: Wax on, wax off

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell sits down to talk with Scott Watanabe about building an effective training program from the ground up.

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10 May
Mary O'Connell

FOSC chat: The human-first approach to rework 3PL norms

Collaboration and a human-first approach is the driving factor to Primo’s success.

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06 May
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Data just Zuum’s through the network

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Zuum will demonstrate its platform that connects software and solutions for all aspects of the supply chain.

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04 May
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Convoy’s Jennifer Wong: It’s not easy being green

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Convoy’s Jennifer Wong sit down to talk about decarbonizing the supply chain and the importance of progress over perfection.

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02 May
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: It’s all connected — Redwood Logistics

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Redwood Logistics will demonstrate efficient and reliable ways to build data pipelines.

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Apr - 2022 -
29 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Pay the man before you leave — TriumphPay

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, TriumphPay will demonstrate how to pay invoices quickly and efficiently.

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27 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Automate what you hate — RPA Labs

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, RPA Labs will show how AI, machine learning and natural language processing add value to software development.

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26 April
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Jim Bivens: You’re awesome. Let’s talk!

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Armstrong Transport Group’s Jim Bivens sit down to cover recruitment and the impact of having total support from an organization.

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25 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Start to finish in 20 keystrokes — Full Circle TMS

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Full Circle TMS will show how it can change omnichannel commerce fulfillment.

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22 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Meeting consumer demand with Blue Yonder

As part o FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Blue Yonder will show how it can change the omni-channel commerce fulfillment.

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19 April
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with FreightVana’s Shannon Breen: Brokerages buying trailers

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and FreightVana’s Shannon Breen sit down to cover the hottest collaboration of the year.

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18 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Direct-to-consumer X Delivery

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, X Delivery will show how it can change the way we source warehouse space and utilize final-mile delivery services.

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15 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: The latest, greatest tech at bargain rates — LeanTech

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Lean Tech will show how it can help match talented software developers with those looking to streamline their technology.

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13 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Moving containers without leaving your seat — QuickLoadz

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, QuickLoadz will demonstrate the way it can change how we move shipping containers.

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12 April
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with ArcBest’s Steven Leonard: No charges for LTL

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and ArcBest’s Steven Leonard sit down to cover all things LTL and how to avoid unnecessary charges

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11 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Revenova eases your TMS woes

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Revenova will change how we look at connectivity and collaboration in real time with just a secure internet connection.

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08 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Not just another factoring company — HaulPay

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Haul Pay will be demonstrating its revolutionary freight finance product.

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06 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Stakeholders have more than just a voice with Turvo

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Turvo will be demonstrating its transportation management software that connects all parties to each transaction.

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Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Tyler Cole: More than just planting a tree

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Tyler Cole sit down to talk about the importance of building a sustainable supply chain.

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04 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Empowering brokers with C4

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Cargo Chief will be demonstrating its broker-centered software that saves time and allows for pre-booking freight.

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01 April
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Find the right final-mile size with OneRail

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, OneRail will be demonstrating its final-mile software that matches the best courier option for a shipment.

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Mar - 2022 -
29 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Joe Antoshak: Know your worth

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Joe Antoshak sit down to talk about the top 500 for-hire carrier list and the 2022 driver pay guide just completed.

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28 March
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: Show me the money

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Axle Payments will be demonstrating its payment automation software.

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25 March
Mary O'Connell

Live demo preview: EchoShip the one-stop shop

As part of FreightWaves’ The Future of Supply Chain event, Echo will be demonstrating its EchoShip self-service web portal.

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22 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Ryan Rogers: Where are you now?

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Ryan Rogers from TextLocate sit down to talk about the world of visibility and the struggles that come with knowing where your freight is at all times.

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15 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Don’t fear the flatbed

Don’t fear flatbed shipments, give them a chance; Future of Supply Chain speakers; and the Port of Mobile gets a face-lift.

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Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Kurtis Tryber: Rise of the flatbed

FreightWaves’Mary O’Connelland Kurtis Tryber from EXO Freight sit down to talk about all things flatbed: booking loads, how to get information you need to get started in flatbed and some of the craziest flatbed moves.

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10 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: FreightWaves has no chill

FreightWaves is pedal to the metal for 2022, Russian cargo is no longer a concern for global shipping market, and port congestion might be easing, someday maybe.

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08 March
Mary O'Connell

Check Call: Shipping on a jet plane

Air cargo is booming, Everest Transportation hasn’t missed a beat in Ukraine, and truck maintenance prices are climbing to new heights.

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Mary O'Connell

Check Call with Thomas Wasson volume 2: In the beginning

FreightWaves’ Mary O’Connell and Thomas Wasson sit down to talk about best practices when booking trucks and how to help others avoid rookie mistakes when booking their first loads.

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