jmckenna

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Life-Saving Drones: Zipline in East Africa
jmckenna
Posted on November 15, 2017 at 10:13 pm
Zipline is a drone company that partners with governments to enable quick delivery of critical medical supplies in Eastern Africa, saving lives and reducing healthcare costs.

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On November 30, 2017, jmckenna commented on Climate Change and ABI :

Thanks for the thought provoking read! In regards to your second question- while ABIs products are usually themselves recyclable, they are often consumed in contexts with extra waste (solo cups etc.). ABI could consider taking advantage of their strong brand equity to use their ads and packaging to educate customers about waste management in the settings in which alcohol is consumed.

On November 30, 2017, jmckenna commented on A Federal Agency is Winning the Race on Supply Chain Sustainability :

Thanks for the interesting read! Maybe I’m too much of a millennial, but I wonder if the solution to the USPS problems is the gradual scaling down of the services. With the continued advent of digitization of documents, email, online advertising etc. I bet that most consumers almost never receive mail that is urgent or very important. Perhaps daily deliveries in these cases are a waste of time and resources and consumers could be scaled back to 2 or 3 deliveries a week, unless they opt to pay an extra delivery fee. I always feel guilty when I get mail and its only ads, and that’s at least 70% of the time.

On November 30, 2017, jmckenna commented on Looking for a high-end watch? How newcomer Filippo Loreti is playing digital disruption to its advantage :

What a cool product- I’m struck by the contrast of this model with other e-commerce models that prioritize fast delivery. Due to the supply chain, the watches often take weeks to deliver, yet the manufacture has succeeded in making this part of the experience- something that actually differentiates it from other D2C watch companies. At the same time, this inventory-less model likely allows the startup to scale with little inventory and no danger of over ordering unpopular styles. Plus they look pretty cool.

On November 30, 2017, jmckenna commented on JD.com – Smart Warehousing For The Future :

Thanks for this article! It’s clear that automation of warehouses both reduces costs and increases productivity, but I wonder if there are diminishing returns to these investments. While JD is doubling down on warehousing, many competitors are likely investing in the next, and longest, leg of the delivery process- actually moving the goods from warehouse to end consumer. If companies don’t invest in both areas might they be left behind?

On November 30, 2017, jmckenna commented on Blockchain and Burgers :

Thanks for the thought provoking article- I’m especially struck by the idea you raised of using this technology to monitor employee behavior. This seems to be a crucial step to me as many food safety issues are caused by incorrect storage or preparation, and even maintaining the block chain will require employees to scan and cook the correct items in the correct order. Hopefully, automation of many of the food prep processes in the future will further contribute to consumer food safety.

On November 30, 2017, jmckenna commented on Digitization: Amazon’s competitive advantage? :

This was a really interesting read, and I agree that digitalization would certainly allow (and hopefully is already allowing) Amazon to optimize their operations. However, I wonder if the increase in fulfilment and shipping costs are net of this progress already occurring and are driven by consumer behavior/demand for faster shipping and delivery, rather than inefficiencies in Amazon’s logistics network. Normal Amazon prime is presumably getting cheaper, but customer demand for next and same day delivery may be rising.