CRLC | Supply Chain Evolution
October 15 @ 8:00 am – 4:00 pm
The Columbus Region Logistics Council (CRLC), an initiative of the Columbus Chamber, is all about industry collaboration.
CRLC: Supply Chain Evolution
Supply Chain Evolution brings together industry leaders to explore the trends shaping the future of logistics, manufacturing, transportation, and distribution across the Columbus Region.
Through keynote presentations, expert panels, workshops, and facility tours, attendees will gain practical insights into how supply chains are evolving, the challenges and opportunities ahead, and the strategies organizations can implement to prepare for the next 5–10 years.
Whether you’re in manufacturing, logistics, operations, transportation, or business leadership, you’ll leave with new connections and actionable ideas to help your organization navigate what’s next.
We want to extend a special thank you to the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals Columbus Roundtable; Columbus Logistics Breakfast Club; WERC/MHI; Association of Supply Chain Management; Ohio Trucking Association; CBUS Retail; Columbus Fashion Council; and Clean Fuels Ohio for their support and collaboration!
Keynote Panel
Agenda
- 8:00 – 8:55 AM – Registration, Continental Breakfast, Networking & Vendor Expo
- 9:00 – 11:30 AM – Keynote Panel: State of the Industry
- Air & Rail Transportation – Bryan Schreiber, Columbus Regional Airport Authority
- Warehouse & Material Handling Trends – John Paxton, MHI
- Manufacturing & Supply Chain – Dulith Hewa, ACCEL
- Trucking & Freight – Chris Burroughs, TIA (Transportation Intermediaries Association)
- 11:30 AM – 12:00 PM – Lifetime Achievement Award Presentation
- 12:00 – 1:00 PM – Lunch, Networking & Vendor Expo
- 1:00 – 4:00 PM – Choose One Experience:
- Workshops:
- Workshop 1: Expand vs. Build New?
- Workshop 2: Building Your Leadership Pipeline – A Playbook for Developing Leaders at All Levels (Including Yourself) in a Logistics Organization
- Workshop 3: Story-Driven Marketing for Logistics-Driven Businesses
- Workshop 4: Manufacturing in Transition: Technology, Talent & Transformation
- Tours:
- Tour 1:
- 1st stop: Circular Columbus
- Behind the scenes look at sustainability at the OSU Union and at the state-of-the-art Rumpke Recycling & Resource Center.
- NOTE: this tour will leave promptly at 12:30p and return at 4p.
- 1st stop: Circular Columbus
- Tour 2: Get a behind-the-scenes look at how Axium Plastics and Advanced Drainage Systems are advancing manufacturing through cutting-edge engineering, technology, and innovation.
- 1st stop: Axium Plastics
- 2nd stop: Advanced Drainage Systems Engineering and Technology
- Tour 1:
- Workshops:
Workshop Details
Description:
When your operation outgrows its four walls, the clock starts ticking and the decision you make next will shape your business for the next 20 years. This session brings together experts in commercial real estate, construction, and financing to walk supply chain owners through the expand-vs.-build-new decision the right way: what to consider, what it actually costs, where deals go sideways, and what Ohio incentive programs can change the math. Part structured presentation, part open panel. You’ll leave with a clear framework and real answers from people who’ve done this.
Who should attend?
- Owner/Founder
Workshop Organizer:
Description:
Most logistics companies invest heavily in equipment, technology, facilities, and customer growth – but few intentionally develop a pipeline of leaders capable of sustaining that growth. In this highly interactive workshop, participants will learn how to develop their own “Leader Philosophy” and then design, implement, and sustain a leadership development program specifically for the unique challenges of supply chain operations. Using a proven framework, attendees will work through a process to identify leadership competencies, build development pathways, create learning experiences, measure impact, and secure organizational support. By the end of the session, every participant will leave with their own draft Leader Philosophy, and a practical Leadership Development Playbook containing the tools, templates, and framework necessary to build a leadership program within their own organization.
Who should attend?
- Supervisor/Team Lead
- Manager
- Director
- Executive/C-Suite
- Owner/Founder
Workshop Organizer:
Description:
Learn a branding agency’s practical, systematic approach to knowing clearly your right next marketing move and maximizing the return on investment for any logistics business.
Who should attend?
- Executive/C-Suite
- Owner/Founder
- Emerging Leader
- Director
Workshop Organizer:
Description:
Explore how manufacturers are navigating the rapidly changing landscape of automation, AI, and workforce development. Hear firsthand insights from industry leaders, then collaborate with peers in an interactive discussion to identify practical strategies and solutions for the future of manufacturing.
Who should attend?
- All Leadership Levels
Workshop Organizer:
Breakout Session B
Ohio’s energy market is at a crossroads. With capacity charges skyrocketing due to increased demand, retiring plants, and grid reliability reforms, we’re seeing real cost pressures on consumers. Take a deeper dive into contract timing, risk management, and procurement strategies. Exploring the role of sustainable energy solutions in building resilience and long-term affordability to give consumers viable offerings in a unpredictable market.
This panel will involve industry experts from many perspectives of automation implementations, from vendor to end-user. The panel will explore best practices starting with Strategy (Is this the right move?) to Solution Fit (Which one? Why?) to Real-World Justification (What are my tangible and intangible costs?). Panelists will share the “wins” from when these steps have been well-followed, and the “lessons learned” from when they have not.
- Tariffs? What is my number?
- Make vs Buy?
- Nearshore?
- Global source?
- Source from which countries?
- India, China, Vietnam, Mexico, Poland, South Africa?
- Where are the sourcing leaders to go?
- How can we navigate Tariffs? What are we to expect going into 2026 and beyond?
Hiten Shah will explore these questions, which are at the center of companies, small and large, across variety of industries including automotive, agriculture, housing, industrial, electrical, electronics and primary materials.
Hiten Shah founded Metrics holdings, which owns global supply chain business with operations in 7 countries (MES – www.mesinc.net). They also own manufacturing and logistics operations in Mexico, US, Poland and India (www.metricsworks.com) as well as SaaS business focused on enabling small and medium manufacturers to grow (www.meshworks.com). Through this broad view, Hiten will try to provide some simple frameworks to help sourcing, purchasing and engineering teams to help make decisions on sourcing and supply chains.
Over the past 5 years, multichannel brands have faced a multitude of supply chain challenges that have kept them on their toes to find optimal supply chain solutions for their companies and customers (COVID, increased demand/not enough inventory; decreased demand/too much inventory; tariffs/deminimus changes; labor challenges; automation improvements; emerging technologies; AI; social marketing; etc.)
In the fast-paced world of warehousing, stressed-out managers face demanding customers, constant deadlines, and a tight labor market — so workforce productivity is vital. Fortunately, there are 7 practical ways to improve warehouse labor productivity in just one day, without spending a lot of money. Attendees will discover the key differences between labor productivity and labor performance, and why they matter. Other takeaways include the fundamental factors that drive labor performance and which ones are easiest to improve, plus exploration of a sample performance assessment.
In 2024, nearly $900 billion in merchandise was returned, indicating that the experiences and operations surrounding returns can no longer be viewed merely as a minor component of a broader, generic cost-saving initiative. As companies strive to optimize their inbound supply and outbound logistics, developing and implementing a comprehensive returns strategy can yield favorable outcomes in areas that have historically been overlooked. Join Brendan Gualdoni from Aries Solutions and Dylan Telford from Summit Advisory Team as they explore how leveraging returns can significantly impact unexpected tariff fluctuations, the efficiency of outbound order fulfillment, the end-customer experience, and ultimately, your financial performance.
Breakout Session C
Join this session to hear from four powerful women in supply chain and logistics as they sit down together to talk about the perspective of their journey to their roles, how they are mentoring other women in the industry, and what they would change if given the chance.
Become a planetary and profitability hero! In just fifty minutes, you’ll learn over a dozen ways to cut your costs, energy consumption, and environmental impact by 20% to 50% or more, while improving your customer experience.
As the former Chief Sustainability of a $165M distributor and the creator of the Supply Chain Sustainability & Profitability Playbook, I’ll give you a simple framework you can use to slash costs and environmental impact from your logistics operations, plus insights into the technology trends that will be shaping fleets over the next decade.
For example, your 3PL is probably overcharging you for transportation and packaging, increasing not only your costs but your environmental impact. Fortunately, I’ll share information to ask for, so you can get pretty dramatic reductions in both.
As Ohio’s chief compliance officer, the Auditor of State makes Ohio government more efficient, effective, and transparent by placing checks and balances on state and local governments for taxpayers.
Learn more about what our office does and how we utilize the principles of Cohesive Teams to best serve Ohio taxpayers.
The Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Teams is based on New York Times best-selling author Patrick Lencioni’s groundbreaking model for developing cohesive teams through five key behaviors: Trust, Conflict, Commitment, Accountability, and Results.
With more than 3.2 million copies in print, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team is a cornerstone methodology for teamwork and organizational development. Propel your team to the next level with this high energy, high impact training session while learning about a state agency that touches millions throughout Ohio.
Objectives:
- Embrace a highly effective framework that can guide your team to become more effective and efficient.
- Identify team-related stumbling blocks.
- Recognize the main characteristics of cohesive teams.
Collaboration and cohesion within a team are essential for achieving joint goals and promoting collective success. When team members work together harmoniously, they can share their skills, ideas, and perspectives to creatively and effectively solve problems.
“Packaging is often overlooked, but it’s one of the fastest, most practical levers for reducing both costs and emissions in the supply chain. This session will explore how leading companies are rethinking packaging to drive measurable savings in transportation, storage, and materials, while also advancing sustainability goals.
We’ll cover actionable strategies for right-sizing, material reduction, and packaging standardization, as well as the use of data and digital tools to uncover hidden inefficiencies. Real-world examples will show how even minor changes to packaging design can deliver major impact across the network, lowering freight costs, improving cube utilization, and cutting Scope 3 emissions.
Attendees will leave with a framework for identifying packaging opportunities in their own operations and a clearer understanding of how packaging fits into the broader supply chain optimization playbook.”
The session discusses the importance and methodology of benchmarking in improving warehouse efficiency and productivity within the consumer goods supply chain sector. It outlines a step-by-step approach to benchmarking, including key metrics, data collection, and performance comparison to identify gaps and implement improvements. Challenges in benchmarking and attributes of effective performance measures are also highlighted to aid organizations in achieving best practices.
Breakout Session D
In workforce, begging, borrowing, and stealing isn’t a sin—it’s a strategy. This session shares the lessons, tools, and templates we wish we had from the start, so you can skip the guesswork and go further, faster.
Ohio is facing a workforce challenge that directly impacts supply chain, similarly to manufacturing: not enough qualified technicians and production talent to meet industry demand. In this session, workforce leaders from the Mahoning Valley and statewide technical assistance will share how Ohio is aligning education with industry through sector-based strategies that are already producing results.
Join Joe Chambers for a showcase of how portable extended reality (XR) technology is transforming sales training and product demonstrations. In this session, you’ll gain a clear, jargon-free understanding of the key differences between augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR), and how each can be applied in real-world sales environments. Discover how XR can replicate high-impact, in-person training experiences using just a single headset – delivering interactive role-play, immersive product walkthroughs, and on-demand coaching that enhances product knowledge, boosts confidence, and improves pitch effectiveness.
One of the industries that no one mentions or talks about directly is work in the supply chain industry. For many who work in it now, it was not intentional. With all the growth in Central Ohio around the supply chain industry, we have to prepare now for later when the workforce is needed the most for new employers and to fill open positions for retirng employees. Attend this session to learn more about Ohio’s newest Industry Sector Partnership (ISP), O-SCAN, Ohio Supply Chain Academic Network. Find out what O-SCAN is planning for drawing attention to this industry from middle school and up.
Learn how to get the most out of your existing warehouse space, and/or plan for your next facility. What is the right type of storage and material handling equipment and technology to support your operation? How do you develop an efficient material flow and layout design?
Struggling to grow your workforce in a tight labor market? Chances are, you’re overlooking a sizeable segment of the population that is eager to fill those open positions. In this panel discussion, hear from experts in disability inclusion, industrial labor trends, and warehouse employment strategies as they discuss the benefits of creating an inclusive warehouse and ways to improve accessibility. Attendees will gather useful strategies, tangible tools, and insights into technologies that support warehouse accessibility. Real-world examples of the positive effects of inclusion on warehouse productivity and workforce turnover will be shared.
Pricing
Member
- Registration: $125
- Member Registration with Lunch: $150
- Exhibit Table: $350 (includes 2 tickets)
- Exhibit Table with Lunch: $400 (includes 2 tickets + 2 lunches)
Non-Member
- Registration: $200
- Member Registration with Lunch: $235
- Exhibit Table: $500 (includes 2 tickets)
- Exhibit Table with Lunch: $570 (includes 2 tickets + 2 lunches)
Are you a member? Look up your company here!
Location
Parking
- Parking is free and is located either in the front or rear of the building based on the meeting location.
*Registration is required. Day-of registration is not encouraged.*
Registration fees are considered non-refundable. This is a ticketless event. Reminder communications and further details will be sent in the days prior to the event.
The Columbus Chamber reserves the right to cancel or reschedule this event in the case of severe or unsafe weather conditions. Registrants will be notified via email in the event of a cancellation.
Registration Questions – Contact Events – events@columbus.org
Sponsorship Opportunities – Learn more here!
Thank you to our Sponsors!
Presented by Leader Sponsor
Presenting Sponsor
Chairman’s Circle
Signature Sponsors
Impact Sponsors
Investor Partners
