Warehouse

Atlanta - The Home Depot has reached an agreement to purchase HD Supply Hardware Solutions, formerly known as Crown Bolt, a wholesale hardware supplier. The transaction is expected to close by the end of fiscal year 2014 subject to obtaining customary regulatory approvals.

The Home Depot is HD Supply’s largest customer and accounts for about 98% of its annual sales. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Seattle  - Santa may have his elves, but Amazon.com has something better to help send holiday gifts on their way: a robot army. The online giant has deployed more than 15,000  robots in 10 next-generation fulfillment centers it has opened across the United States.  

Seattle – The robots are coming to Amazon.com. According to the Associated Press, the online giant has deployed more than 15,000 wheeled robots in its distribution centers. The robots help bring items off shelves and out of bins to human employees for faster picking and packing.

Lost in the crush of holiday related news this week was a supply chain visibility related announcement involving Walmart and an obscure company called I.D. Systems, Inc.

Walmart uses I.D. System’s trailer and tracking management services branded as VeriWise to manage a range of logistics assets. The new development this week involved a three year contract extension whereby Walmart will continue using I.D. System’s services.

True Value’s boss went undercover, and the cameras were rolling. True Value Company president and CEO John Hartmann will appear in the season six premiere of "Undercover Boss" airing on Dec. 14 on CBS. 

Bentonville, Ark. – Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has extended its contract to use wireless I.D. Systems Inc. VeriWise trailer tracking and management services for its fleet or cargo trailers. The contract extension, which runs through October 2017, has a maximum aggregate value of approximately $14 million.