Finally, today has arrived. For several months now, the editorial team here has been working toward this first issue of the Warehousing Management Edition of Modern Materials Handling . And now it's in your hands.

As you may know, Warehousing Management had a great nine year run covering warehouse and distribution operations. Unfortunately, it ceased publication last November. And that's where this new edition of Modern Materials Handling comes in.

Starting with this issue, we will be covering all the key aspects of what it takes to be a successful warehouse or distribution center manager. In addition to the materials handling coverage that has been a hallmark of MMH for nearly 60 years, this edition will cover other key topics of interest to you including management trends, best practices, and maintenance, repair and operations.

This month our Management feature (Achieving a "hire" level ) is on hiring the right people for your warehouse or DC. Senior Editor Dave Maloney talked to managers at American Eagle Outfitters, FedEx Ground, Verizon and others to find out what works for them. While there's no silver bullet when it comes to hiring, they talked about important factors such as personal character, specific skill sets, team orientation and flexibility, to name a few.

For Best Practices (Winning with warehouse automation ), we focused on when and where automated handling and information systems deliver big payoffs. Considerations such as number of stockkeeping units and orders as well as labor requirements all figure prominently in the equation, reports Editor at Large Tom Feare.

With this being January, we figured it would be high season for a piece on heaters for the warehouse. For this Maintenance, Repair & Operations story (Keeping warehouses warm ), Assistant Editor Megan McCoy gets into all the advantages and tradeoffs of the various types of gas- and electric-fired heaters.

In addition to those stories, we have carried forward the interview piece (Steady as she goes ) that was a hallmark of Warehousing Management. This month it's with Jim Smith of Avnet, which is also our Warehouse of the Month (Small parts specialist ). He explains how key decisions from warehouse site selection to software have made Avnet a leader in electronics distribution.

We also hope that you'll take a look at our First and News/Trends sections to catch up on the latest in news affecting warehousing and distribution. Senior Editor Ben Ames guided this effort to ensure that you are up to date on breaking stories from lift truck safety to new sprinkler requirements for racking with solid shelves.

We hope you're as excited about all of this as we are. It would be great to hear from you about this new edition of Modern Materials Handling. My e-mail is gforger@reedbusiness.com. Meanwhile, happy reading.