Take a look down at your possessions.  Most of you are probably sitting at some sort of desk while reading this.  If you are like me, the scene on your desk is as follows: some sort of drinking glass, a cell phone, writing utensils, a notebook, a landline phone if you are at work, your monitor, and inevitably other miscellaneous items.

Or how about your wardrobe?  Jeans, pants, shirts, shoes.  If you take a look at these labels, you will see tags that say made in China, assembled in Malaysia, fabrique en France, realizado en The Philippines.

Most, if not all of the items on and around your person have been constructed and assembled in other locations.  Aside from the products you purchase specifically because they are manufactured and marketed locally, most items have had to travel before reaching your local stores.

So how does all this transport occur?  Shipping is the physical process of transporting goods and cargo by land, air, or sea.  Many products require multiple forms of shipping including some combination of sea, air, and land transport.

Many if not most of the goods we purchase, including food, have been transported from elsewhere.  The shipping industry has thus become a multimillion-dollar industry that is a vital part of commerce worldwide.

This week, we will be exploring various trends in both shipping and logistics, and how IVR can integrate with various applications to make the industry more efficient and streamlined.

Whether we acknowledge it or not, shipping is a vital part of our everyday lives.  Have you eaten fruit or vegetables in the last 12 months?  Chances are that the fruit came to you either nationally or internationally on a plane, train, ship, or truck.

In addition, there are a multitude of seaports and airports worldwide that process cargo, making both important points of national security.  Not only could cargo be dangerous, it could also potentially present various health risks if it is transported without being properly screened.

The shipping industry is heavily dependent on being streamlined and on time, and over the course of this week, we will explore how IVR can contribute to both supplier and client side efficiency.