Loup Transloading Network: Creative Shipping Solutions Expand Market Reach
Learn how Loup creates seamless transportation solutions by combining the economics of long-haul rail service and the flexibility of over-the-road shipping to reimagine supply chain opportunities.
The Challenge
One of the leading roofing manufacturers in North America moves locally manufactured roofing shingles from a non-rail-served facility in the Inland Empire to Utah. This business moved via long-haul truck, but they were running into supply chain hurdles as they faced limited truck capacity and rising costs. They knew rail could open more shipping capacity, but without direct rail access, they needed help. They called Loup.
The customer needed a site in the Los Angeles area that could manage more than 700 annual truckloads of product. The site needed to be efficient and cost-effective and incorporate their inventory and visibility systems.
The manufacturer needed a supply chain solution that offered reliable capacity for their products, but also felt like a seamless part of their network. In a city the size of LA, where do you even start? They needed a partner to help them pull together the pieces and offer ideas on how to solve their capacity constraints.
The Solution
Loup, a wholly owned subsidiary of Union Pacific Railroad, is an expert at developing supply chain solutions and drumming up new ways for shippers to move their product. Loup seeks to understand their customers’ goals to build efficient and effective shipping solutions.
Loup knows a thing or two about rail and they creatively combine the economic advantages of rail shipping with the flexibility of trucking to create door-to-door solutions.
“When this customer came to us, we were excited to work with palletized roofing shingles because it was a new market for the team,” shares Kiley Freeman, General Director of the Carload Team. “At Loup, we love to hear customers’ ideas and help them pencil out different options. We are fortunate to have incredible partners and a deep bench of experts to reimagine potential transportation solutions.”
To help this customer, Loup leveraged their relationships with 800+ transportation providers including railroads, trucking companies, and transload facilities. This network allowed Loup to find a transloading partner in the Los Angeles area that fit the bill. Once the location was identified, Loup created a customized solution that created new shipping capacity, met the customer transportation budget, and made it easy to get access to rail.
Incorporating rail provided a green alternative, and this sustainable solution reduced the customer’s carbon footprint by 490 annual metric tons.
In addition to Loup’s shipping and transportation design capabilities, Loup strives to simplify transportation for their customers. They have the capability to bundle any combination of rail, trucking, storage services, and specialized services into one seamless invoice. This ability enables the customers to free up their back-office and streamline billing processes.
As a result of this new relationship with Loup, the manufacturer expanded their shipping capacity, increased their selling and growth opportunities, reduced their carbon footprint, and simplified billing. They found a new partner to help them with the next supply chain opportunity in Loup.
To learn more:
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www.louplogistics.com