Articles
3PL Line: Third-Party Logistics Perspectives
The Seven Abilities of Highly Effective 3PLs
The right logistics provider can bring you convenience, cost savings, and competitive advantage as you work to deliver the right product to the right place at the right time at the right price. Execution is the key, central to responding to fluctuating pressures of production schedules, capacity, weather, or other influences on your strategic supply […]
Read MoreFirst-Time Outsourcers Can Keep Customers Happy
Companies that are considering outsourcing warehouse operations for the first time should keep several issues in mind. Most important is ensuring that customer service is enhanced, rather than diminished, in the process. Another important consideration is what logisticians call Optimized Network Design—or, more simply, “Where should I locate my outsourced warehouse, and how many should […]
Read MoreLast Mile Logistics: Key to Competing in the Retail Race
For U.S. retailers with broad global supply chain operations, “last mile”—the portion of transit from the final delivery center to the customer’s door—is really the last hundreds of miles from the destination port to the store. This crucial part of logistics, which accounts for the majority of a shipment’s cost and complexity, is becoming increasingly […]
Read MoreFreight Payment: Getting Back to Basics
At the beginning of the new millennium, many freight payment companies added the latest “whiz bang” gadgetry to their information systems or freight payment products. Now, those companies’ disappointed customers want their providers to get back to basics. Although information tools remain important, freight payment basics are now the priority. Today, shippers seek a freight […]
Read MorePremium Freight Makes JIT Fit
Just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing is a tremendous advantage—when everything works perfectly. But what happens when the supply chain falls out of sync—when an overseas supplier has equipment problems, environmental factors delay deliveries, or defective parts are discovered on the assembly line? How do suppliers avoid chaos and keep JIT production rolling? One solution is premium freight—last-minute […]
Read MoreMinimize Total Landed Cost: Strategize, Model, Act
Total landed cost is the sum of all costs associated with making and delivering products to the point where they produce revenue—usually your customer’s door. So, if you employ tactics to reduce costs in all discrete functions from manufacturing through delivery, you’ll have a lower total landed cost, right? Theoretically, yes. But in the real […]
Read MoreSelecting a Logistics Supplier? Think Supple
We all know why companies outsource logistics functions—outsourcing should allow them to save money and focus on their primary goals. “Should,” however, is the operative word. To turn “should” into “does,” companies need to partner with a supple supplier. What is a supple supplier? One that has no set ideas on best practices when providing […]
Read More3PLs Deliver on the Global Promise
Businesses need many qualities to succeed in today’s global market, but uniformity, consistency, and flexibility are the most critical. Strong organizations leverage these qualities to capitalize on the economic benefits of worldwide sourcing and distribution, while satisfying their customers’ needs—whether the customer is around the block or across the ocean. Best-of-breed 3PLs share the same […]
Read MoreThe Five Inventories: Invisible to Customers, Crucial to the Bottom Line
Investment sage Warren Buffett once described business as a vehicle in which the rear-view mirror is always clearer than the windshield. He was right, and mismanaged logistics is the reason for the mud on the windshield. Failure to see and manage global supply networks in response to demand makes for muddy business indeed. In the […]
Read MorePremium Freight: Costly Expense or Strategic Initiative?
Today’s lean manufacturing environment, shaped by just-in-time stocking and razor-thin margins, has made the use of premium freight a daily reality for manufacturers. Though once used only on occasion to protect plants, shipping goods via premium freight is now a regular occurrence. While this shipping method can be expensive, manufacturers that incorporate premium freight as […]
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