Dr. Kevin Strathy

Special Guest Blog Post written by Jeff Eckel, Director of Product Marketing, e2open   “Dad, why are they out of my favorite cereal?” your 10-year-old asks you at the grocery store, noticing that their favorite breakfast food is missing. The answer is more complex than they could imagine – hurricanes don’t just bring bad weather; they create far-reaching supply chain disruptions that affect everything from food to toys. Each hurricane season often brings catastrophic floods and wind damage. While communities will rebuild after the devastation, supply chains – the force behind keeping stores stocked – also experience powerful shocks beyond the storms’ path. The ripple effect of hurricanes across global trade The impact extends well beyond the immediate devastation. Critical port hubs for global trade close as hurricanes batter coastal regions. Cargo ships carrying essential goods like food, medical supplies, and consumer products must reroute or anchor offshore, waiting for storms to pass. This creates massive supply chain delays. Ports with backlogs of ships trying to dock and unload. Over-the-road and rail transportation networks face fallen trees, flooded roads, and damaged infrastructure that make movement difficult. Inland distribution centers face pressure Inland distribution centers – strategically located hubs where goods…

Special Guest Blog Post written by Dr. Johannes Hangl with e2open   AI is no longer an experiment in global trade compliance. It’s already being applied in product classification, document-to-declaration workflows, risk targeting, and sanctions screening. At the same time, regulators and customs authorities are adopting AI themselves. This is raising expectations for data quality, transparency, and governance across the entire trade ecosystem. With the EU AI Act set to apply from August 2026, companies that have not yet implemented human-in-the-loop controls, drift monitoring, and defensible audit trails are running out of time to close the gap.   Where AI is already adding real value today: HS and ECN classification   Product classification has become one of the most practical AI use cases. Modern tools can now suggest harmonized system (HS/ HTS) and export control (ECCN) codes, explain the rationale, and attach confidence scores and audit metadata to each decision. This direction mirrors what customs authorities are doing. Administrations such as German Customs have discussed using machine learning to improve targeting and risk detection. It appears both sides of the border are moving toward data-driven decision support. AI does not remove accountability. It changes how accountability is exercised.   Practical…