WSI’s Warehouse Wire: June 26, 2026

Your connection to what’s happening across warehousing, transportation, and supply chain operations.

This month’s edition covers WSI’s own new survey on manufacturer warehouse strategy, the Longview paper mill disaster and its implications for process safety, ongoing chemical supply chain disruption tied to Middle East conflict, the post-IEEPA tariff landscape, OSHA’s updated Hazard Communication deadlines, and what the latest data says about chemical plant closures altering supply chains globally.

Check back monthly for timely headlines and practical insights on the state of warehousing and supply chain operations.

Chemical Plant Closures Are Triggering a Supply Chain Domino Effect

A new analysis from Deloitte finds that more than 120 publicly announced chemical plant closures since 2022 are not only reducing capacity but fundamentally altering how chemicals flow through global supply chains.¹ Closure announcements have continued into 2026, highlighting ongoing structural pressures.

The structural pressures point to what the report calls a “hollowing out of the middle,” with the chemicals industry diverging into two models: mega-scale, integrated commodity complexes that compete on cost, and differentiated specialty platforms that compete on performance and customer relationships.

This is transforming chemical supply chains, which shortens them as production moves closer to end markets, while others are getting longer as production is concentrated in a few advantaged regions. Geographical concentration is also a key vulnerability, increasing exposure to logistic disruption and geopolitical shocks.

The practical implication for chemical manufacturers and the 3PLs that serve them is clear; as production assets rationalize and supply chains restructure, having flexible regional warehousing, reliable hazmat-capable storage, and strong carrier networks will matter more, not less, as the industry moves through this transition.

Tariff Landscape Shifts Again as Section 122 Deadline Approaches

Following the Supreme Court’s February ruling that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorize the President to impose tariffs, manufacturers and importers have been navigating a new trade policy landscape. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a decisive 6-3 vote that IEEPA did not grant the president unbounded power to impose tariffs, and the decision has immediate impacts for importers and global supply chains.²

The ruling opened a refund process for IEEPA duties already paid. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is developing a centralized, automated refund system within its Automated Commercial Environment, known as the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE). Under CBP’s current framework, importers or their customs brokers will be required to submit refund requests through a CAPE claim portal in ACE, providing data on the entries for which they are seeking refunds.³

In the meantime, the Section 122 tariff imposed as a replacement expires after 150 days, on July 23, 2026. If it lapses without replacement, tariff-induced cost increases would fall close to zero for many goods, though substantial tariffs would still apply to goods covered under Sections 232 and 301, such as computers and electronics, electrical equipment, and fabricated metal products.⁴

Manufacturers should work with their customs brokers to assess refund eligibility, review contracts built around prior tariff structures, and model scenarios for what happens after July 23.

OSHA HazCom Deadline Window Is Closing for Chemical Handlers

Chemical manufacturers, importers, distributors, and employers subject to OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard face an approaching compliance deadline this fall. In January 2026, OSHA extended all HCS compliance dates by four months to allow more time for guidance materials to be finalized. The extended deadline of §1910.1200(j)(2)(ii) is now November 20, 2026, and subsequent deadlines have all been pushed back by four months as well.⁵

The updated HCS aligns primarily with the 7th Revised Edition of the Globally Harmonized System for Classifying and Labeling Chemicals (GHS), and changes affect hazard classifications, container labels, Safety Data Sheet requirements, and employee training. Hazard Communication issues continue to be one of the most common reasons facilities are cited under existing OSHA standards; in 2024, OSHA issued more than 2,500 hazard communication citations, including more than 1,000 for missing written programs.⁶

Most of the time, the problem is not reckless behavior, but small gaps that compound: SDS libraries that haven’t been reviewed in years, secondary containers that get refilled but never relabeled, and training that happened only once and isn’t refreshed or documented.

The four-month extension is not a reason to wait. Facilities that arrive at the November deadline with outdated SDSs, untrained employees, or unreviewed labels are taking a compliance risk that documentation and preparation can eliminate.

ISM: Manufacturing Expects Capacity Growth, But Uncertainty Persists

The Institute for Supply Management’s mid-year economic outlook projects manufacturing production capacity to increase nearly 10% in 2026, with 76% of respondents expecting capacity increases, a significant jump from the 2.8-percentage-point increase reported in 2025. The 10 industries expecting an increase in capital expenditures for 2026 include Primary Metals, Computer and Electronic Products, Electrical Equipment, Appliances and Components, Transportation Equipment, Fabricated Metal Products, and Food and Beverage Products.⁷

At the same time, a pervasive theme across all responses is uncertainty. Many comments highlighted the difficulty of planning amid rapidly shifting policies, with one respondent noting that “the uncertainty and constant changing of tariffs has caused a lot of disruption and extra work.”

The combination of rising capacity expectations alongside persistent uncertainty about trade policy means manufacturers are planning larger footprints but hedging on how to staff and source them. These manufacturers are seeking flexible capacity models, regional distribution support, and 3PL relationships that can scale alongside production growth without locking manufacturers into commitments that may not reflect where trade policy lands by year end.

WSI Survey Finds U.S. Manufacturer Warehouse Networks Are Falling Behind

WSI released new research this month revealing a manufacturing warehousing sector under compounding pressure and actively restructuring. The survey, conducted with 306 supply chain and operations leaders at U.S. manufacturers, found that three-quarters say their warehouse network grew organically rather than by strategic design, and nearly the same share say the model they have today was built for a different operating environment than the one they face now.

The data shows that nearly 50% of manufacturers still operate their primary warehouse with their own internal teams, while 80% of significant warehouse decisions are driven primarily by supply chain or operations leadership rather than finance. Warehouse operating costs are the top challenge cited, named by 48% of respondents. Storage capacity and inventory accuracy each come in at 35%.

Resilience investment is real but costly: 63% have increased safety stock in the past 24 months, 50% have added excess storage capacity, and 46% have added a warehouse location in a different region as a backup.

Three-quarters of leaders say their warehouse network evolved organically over time rather than being strategically designed, and nearly the same share say their current model was built for an operating environment that no longer exists.

Fatal Chemical Tank Implosion at Washington Paper Mill Raises Process Safety Questions

On the morning of May 26, a 900,000-gallon tank of white liquor imploded at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging mill in Longview, Washington. Eleven workers were killed and seven more suffered burns and inhalation injuries, along with one firefighter.⁸

Nippon Dynawave Packaging produces 300,000 metric tons of premium paperboard annually, which it sells under the Structure-Pak and Structure-Serv brand names. The facility also produces northern bleached softwood kraft used for tissue products, wrapping paper, and other items. Production at the site has remained halted as of mid-June, with Nippon Paper reporting that critical equipment was not severely damaged, but an investigation is ongoing.⁹

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board opened an investigation and dispatched a team of investigators to the incident site in Longview on May 27. Chemical safety experts say the implosion likely resulted from a combination of factors including tank venting, the properties of white liquor, and the timing of shift changes that placed more workers than usual on site.¹⁰

Containerboard capacity fell by 5.1% in 2025, and implications for paper and packaging supply chains are emerging from the facility’s extended shutdown. The incident is a stark reminder for industrial and chemical logistics operators that process safety documentation, inspection records, and emergency response readiness matter before an incident, not after.

References:

1. https://www.soci.org/news/2026/6/chemical-supply-chains-are-being-reshaped-by-the-domino-effect
2. https://www.bdo.global/en-gb/insights/tax/indirect-tax/united-states-supreme-court-reins-in-ieepa-tariff-authority-what-happens-now
3. https://www.bonadio.com/article/ieepa-tariffs-struck-down-what-recent-court-rulings-mean-manufacturers-distributors/
4. https://taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/how-supreme-courts-ieepa-ruling-and-new-section-122-tariffs-reshape-costs-across-industries
5. https://www.thecompliancecenter.com/help-center/articles/osha-pushes-hcs-deadlines-back-four-months/
6. https://www.jjkellersafety.com/resources/articles/2025/hazcom-standard-cited-over-2500-times-in-FY-2024
7. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ism-reports-economic-activity-to-expand-through-2026-302803079.html
8. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/longview-paper-mill-implosion-what-3-investigations-are-examining/
9. https://www.packagingdive.com/news/nippon-dynawave-packaging-longview-washington-chemical-accident/821209/
10. https://www.csb.gov/us-chemical-safety-board-opens-investigation-into-fatal-chemical-tank-implosion-at-nippon-dynawave-paper-mill-in-washington/