Why Yard Automation Is Harder Than Autonomous Trucking

Most supply chains talk about AI, automation, and visibility. Meanwhile, many yards still run on clipboards, spreadsheets, radio calls, and operational guesswork. When execution breaks under pressure, the yard is often where the failure finally becomes visible. In this episode of the Resilient Supply Chain Podcast, I’m joined by Adam Newsome, CEO of Lazer Logistics, Blaine Dirker, CTO at Lazer and leader of Yard Nexus, and Pini Usha from Buffers AI to unpack one of the least glamorous but most consequential bottlenecks in modern logistics: yard operations. Lazer moves more than 30 million trailers annually across North America, so this discussion is grounded in operational reality, not PowerPoint theory. We examine why fragmented data, disconnected systems, poor forecasting, and labour constraints collide in the yard long before executives see the downstream consequences in customer service, transport costs, or inventory disruption. And this matters now because supply chains are under simultaneous pressure from labour shortages, geopolitical instability, cost volatility, tighter service expectations, and growing demands for real-time operational visibility. Companies are investing heavily in AI and automation, but as Blaine points out early in the episode, many sites still rely heavily on pen and paper processes. What genuinely changed my thinking in this discussion was the argument that yard automation may actually be harder than autonomous trucking. That sounds counterintuitive until you hear the operational reality: hundreds of constantly changing trailer movements, constrained spaces, multiple priorities competing simultaneously, and incomplete data everywhere. We also break down why bad forecasting creates execution chaos downstream, why labour often “breaks first” in poorly managed yards, and why some organisations are simply digitising old chaos instead of fixing underlying operational problems. Kismet: one of the strongest insights in the episode is that a yard problem often doesn’t start in the yard. The yard is simply where fragmented planning, weak forecasting, disconnected systems, and operational stress finally become impossible to hide. This episode is for supply chain leaders, logistics operators, procurement teams, warehouse managers, risk leaders, and anyone trying to make real operational decisions under disruption and cost pressure. If you’re dealing with these challenges on the ground, I’d genuinely like to hear how you’re handling them. 🌍 Podcast website: https://www.resilientsupplychainpodca... 🎧 Follow the podcast on your favourite platform 📩 Subscribe for more conversations on supply chain resilience, operational risk, sustainability, and logistics execution ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 – Why supply chains still rely on pen and paper 00:33 – The yard as a supply chain choke point 04:43 – Why fragmented planning shows up in the yard 09:18 – The labour crisis behind logistics execution 14:54 – Why visibility without execution still fails 20:31 – Forecasting failures and operational chaos 28:55 – Why yard automation is harder than trucking 30:51 – The dangerous persistence of legacy systems 35:14 – Why labour breaks first in bad operations 41:38 – What resilient yard operations actually require