Thursday, October 8, 2020


10:00 AM

HIGHLIGHTS OF DAY ONE

Conference Chair:
Nick Gaganiaras
, Executive Managing Director, Colliers International


10:10 AM

THE PANDEMIC’S IMPACT ON E-COMMERCE: HOW MANY WERE CAUGHT UNPREPARED? IS THE DEMAND TEMPORARY OR A STRUCTURAL CHANGE IN THE MARKET?

As the events of COVID-19 kicked off quickly in early March, so did the stockpiling of toilet paper, groceries and hand sanitizer and demand for online purchases skyrocketed and pressure on supply chains intensified. How quickly was e-commerce distribution able to ramp up? What businesses were able to respond, and who were caught unprepared? To what degree is the amount of demand going to be sustainable going forward?  Will demand soften as we come out the other end? How is last mile delivery being impacted and what does this mean for warehousing and distribution?

Moderator:
Alan Taliaferro
, Partner, Supply Chain Management, Retail Industry, Logistics and Distribution, Deloitte  

Speakers:
Brian Best
, Director, Warehousing & Distribution, London Drugs
Dwayne Johnson, Director, Retail and eCommerce Strategy, SCI Group Inc.


10:40 AM

CONCURRENT SESSIONS (Select B1 or B2)

SESSION B1

THE EMERGENCE AND GROWTH OF MICRO-FULFILLMENT CENTRES

Microfulfillment centers (MFCs) are small warehouses that are compact enough to place almost anywhere, and they are designed to fulfill online orders fast and efficiently, close to where customers live. To satisfy the expanding demand for e-commerce fulfillment, click-and-collect, and home delivery, MFCs seek to transform last-mile delivery logistics so that on-demand e-commerce can become a profitable and scalable business model. What does this mean for the future of site selections and larger footprint distribution facilities? As these smaller centres begin to densify, what does this mean for transportation costs? How much of a roll will automation play as demand for labour increases?

Moderator:
Lance Fielding
, President, Fielding Insights 

Speakers:
Alex Dale
, Retail Solution Consultant - Micro Fulfillment, Dematic
Remon Hanna, Associate Vice President, eCommerce Fulfillment, Canadian Tire Corporation
Saif Sabti, Vice President, Sales & Operations, SSI SCHAEFER


SESSION B2
UNDERSTANDING MAJOR TRENDS AND CHALLENGES IN THE INDUSTRIAL REAL ESTATE MARKET: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE DISTRIBUTION LOGISTICS SUPPLY CHAIN AND MANUFACTURERS

Advancements in transportation, technology and construction continue to converge and alter the logistics landscape. When it comes to industrial real estate, how is this asset class performing? When looking at Canada’s largest markets – Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto and Montreal, how do they compare? Rental rates are growing at 18% compounded year over year since 2016 and availability rates dropping by about 24% over that same period. Contrast that with going into the pandemic with a vacancy rate of 1%. What can be expected of rates over the next 12-16 months?

Moderator:
Gord Cook
, Executive Vice President, Colliers International

Speakers:
Bill Bolender
, Vice President, Country Manager, Prologis
Chris Holtved, Senior Portfolio Manager, Real Estate, HOOPP
David Owen, Chief Operating Officer, PIRET 


11:20 AM

BREAK


11:30 AM

CONCURRENT SESSIONS (Select C1 or C2)

SESSION C1
THE EVOLUTION OF THE BIONIC SUPPLY CHAIN AND ITS IMPACT ON EFFICIENCY, AGILITY AND FLEXIBILITY

A bionic supply chain leverages the best of what both machines and humans have to offer and allows them to work together seamlessly. This group of panelists will discuss how robots and advanced technologies are merging into day-to-day operations and helping organizations understand what it means to have a bionic supply chain, and how this will affect the industry moving forward. What are the advantages of a bionic supply chain and how can it be best utilized and implemented?

Moderator:
Tom Napier
, Product Manager, Automated Pack Station Solutions, PSI Engineering

Speakers:
Fergal Glynn
, Vice President, Marketing, 6 River Systems Inc.
Adrian Kumar, Vice President, Solutions Design North America, DHL Supply Chain


SESSION C2
THE CHALLENGE OF SITE SELECTION: MID-MARKETS VS. SUBURBS VS. INNER CITY LOCATIONS

Join industry leaders and experts as they discussion some of the most important factors that are at play when determining site selection. To what extent are taxes, population growth, infrastructure, and favourable municipal planning policies and approval processes affecting developers and investors’ decisions?

Moderator:
Chris Steele
, Vice President, Advisory, Conway

Speakers:
Didi Caldwell
, President and Founder, Global Location Strategies
Jordan Slatt, President, LDC Logistics Development Corporation


12:10 PM

NETWORKING BREAK


12:40 PM

CONCURRENT SESSIONS (Select D1 or D2)

SESSION D1
FOOD DISTRIBUTION SUPPLY CHAIN: FROM UNPRECEDENTED DEMAND TO INCREASED SAFETY MEASURES

Food and beverage supply chain has a unique role in ever growing economy because it is universal to human life and health. How is the food distribution and food retail supply chain dealing with high demand during the current pandemic? What are some of the challenges that the food and beverage supply chain face? This session will look at food supply chain trends and challenges that this area faces as it relates to health and safety, supply and demand, and more.

Moderator:
Lara Sowinski
, Founder & Editor, Supply Chain Sparrow 

Speakers will include:
David Singer
, President, Thomas, Large & Singer Inc. 


SESSION D2
PREPARING AN RFP FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OR RETROFIT OF AN INDUSTRIAL BUILDING: WHAT LANDLORDS NEED TO UNDERSTAND? WHAT TENANTS AND OCCUPANTS NEED TO KNOW?

The RFP process is layered with complexities that vary depending on the type of development at play. Whether it be an RFP for a lease, a new build or retrofitting an existing space there are different factors that are important and critical to the process that may often times be missed. This session will cover an assortment of “odds and sods” that people often experience in the RFP process and do not always fully understand from a landlord, developer and legal perspective.

Moderator:
Chris Denda
, Executive Vice President, Industrial, JLL

Speakers:
Greg Lipsett
, Director, Real Estate, Lowe’s Canada
Alistair Pickering, Vice President, Industrial, Oxford Properties


1:20 PM

CONCURRENT SESSIONS (Select E1 or E2)

SESSION E1
LABOUR AVAILABILITY & ISSUES: FROM HEALTH & SAFETY LESSONS OF COVID-19 TO THE IMPACT OF INCREASED AUTOMATION

COVID-19 has not only reignited and pushed to the forefront the importance of workplace safety, but it has also sparked the issue of labour availability and labour costs. What are some of the main issues impacting labour availability within the supply chain? How is automation impacting recruitment, retention and adaptability particularly as e-commerce demand continues to rise? How are roles shifting and changing as a result of the pandemic, but also innovation and automation?

Moderator:
Ian O’Reilly
, Founder & President, The STORY Group

Speakers:
Dr. Alauddin Ahmed
, Managing Consultant, ValueInfinity Inc.
Lea Bottoni, Director, HR Operations, E-Commerce, Sobeys
Tammy McNeil, Vice President, Human Resources, DHL Supply Chain


SESSION E2
ADVANCEMENTS IN COLD STORAGE AND TEMPERATURE CONTROLLED CENTRES FOR FOOD, STAPLES, MEDICAL AND PHARMA PRODUCTS

As the pandemic took off in early March in Canada, almost overnight there was an increased spike in panic buying and hoarding behaviours by consumers. Medical supplies and PPE became scarce and staple grocery items disappeared from the shelves. There was increased pressure on the temperature control supply chain to get products to where they’re needed most, all of which have specific temperature requirements for storage and transportation to maintain the quality, freshness, safety and efficacy of these goods. What are the best practices to efficiently run these cold chain operations and what are the different types of temperature-controlled logistics? What are the critical touchpoints and hand-off processes that need to be understood? What technologies are being implemented to assist in the tracking and monitoring of these goods? Will consumer-demand for online grocery delivery be here to stay after the pandemic is over? As we look ahead 12-16 months, how will distribution of an eventual COVID-19 vaccine be managed. Will the supply chain have the bandwidth to handle the capacity to get this to the market in a timely manner?

Moderator:
Kirk Short
, Consultant, High Gear SCM


2:00 PM

CONCURRENT SESSIONS (Select F1 or F2)

SESSION F1
LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE PANDEMIC: PREPARING FOR THE NEXT MAJOR DISRUPTION IN YOUR SUPPLY CHAIN OR INSIDE YOUR BUILDING

The global impact of this pandemic has created unprecedented strain on the supply chain and business processes worldwide. How can you best prepare for the impact of a natural disaster, whether it be a tornado, a flood, earthquake, etc.? Or alternatively, how can you prepare and limit your vulnerabilities for the next cyber attack? Or anything significant which limits your ability to continuing meeting your customers’ demands? This session will discuss a variety of risks and opportunities that need to be considered as businesses look to combat any disruptions that they may face, whether it be to their physical building, or the supply chain as a whole. What have been some lessons learned from COVID-19 as the industry looks ahead?

Moderator:
Sarah Cardwell
, Principal Strategist, Twigg & Co Consulting 

Speakers:
Gary Newbury
, Retail Supply Chain Strategist and Serial Transformation Executive (CSCO), Canadian Retailing Industry
Jon Ratnasamy, Director, Distribution & Logistics, Wolseley Canada
Erik Valiquette, President, Canadian Blockchain Supply Chain Association


SESSION F2
NEXT GENERATION WAREHOUSING AND LAST MILE DISTRIBUTION STRATEGIES IN URBAN CENTRES

Urbanization combined with e-commerce has changed the supply chain landscape for both retailers and distributors. Your end consumers are located in high-density cities and no longer will they wait weeks, or even days, to receive online and in-store orders. This panel will discuss strategies needed to address the challenges of the changing consumer profile and how to grow business in an e-commerce-driven economic climate.

Moderator:
Sam Starr
, Independent Consultant, Supply Chain & Logistics 

Speakers:
Kim Baudry
, Market Development Director, Dematic
Chris Jarvis, Executive Vice President, Logistics, GoForDelivers
Franklin Jones, CEO & Founder, B-Line Urban Delivery
Nick Klein, Director, Business Development, Canada, Bastian Solutions


2:50 PM

CLOSING SESSION
PREDICTIONS FOR 2021 AND BEYOND: WHAT CAN WE EXPECT AS THE NEW NORMAL?

A roundtable discussion examining the market for the remainder of 2020 and beyond. What do they see occurring over the next twelve months and beyond? What is their strategic thinking going forward? What factors are key to their decision-making? As operators of distribution centres, logistics and warehouses? As industrial owners and developers? How will technological advancement be disruptors or transformational? What will the next generation supply chain look like? 

Moderator:
Nick Gaganiaras
, Executive Managing Director, Colliers International

Speakers:
Charles Brewer
, Chief Operating Officer, Canada Post
Prakash David, Executive Vice President, National Investments and Development, Triovest


3:20 PM

CLOSING COMMENTS

Conference Chair:
Nick Gaganiaras
, Executive Managing Director, Colliers International


3:25 PM

ADJOURNMENT