Bold move to drive U.S. high-value exports

Department of Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank recently selected Brandon Fried of the Washington D.C.-based Airforwarders Association to the newly formed U.S. Advisory Committee on Supply Chain Competitiveness.

The Advisory Committee on Supply Chain Competitiveness will act as a liaison between industry and government, and is an important step toward ensuring regular contact with the supply chain industries, including manufacturers, freight forwarders, shippers, distributors and exporters. The committee’s advice will also be useful in the development of a national freight policy and in executing the National Export Initiative, which aims to double U.S. exports by the end of 2014.

Airforwarders play a critical role in the movement of freight both in the United States and around the world. The U.S. is the largest and most extensive freight transportation network in the world and the Administration is right to focus on this critical sector.

To her credit, this is something U.S. Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank recognizes:

“The Advisory Committee on Supply Chain Competitiveness will provide crucial input on issues related to national freight infrastructure and policies so that we can best support millions of U.S. business export goods, compete domestically and globally, and support American jobs,” she said.