Articles

3PL

Jeff Luthman

Extending the Life Sciences and Pharmaceutical Supply Chain

In the life science and pharmaceutical area, an inefficient supply chain can cause serious problems including product degradation and late deliveries of life-saving medications. Third-party logistics (3PL) providers specialize in streamlining their customers’ supply chains, merging logistics expertise with state-of-the-art innovations. While manufacturers search for ways to distinguish products in a competitive marketplace, many do […]

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Download the Inbound Logistics Planner App Today

Find the right solutions, carriers and partners to drive efficiency in your supply chain operations and enable your enterprise to navigate the twists and turns, ups and downs of the coming year. The Logistics Planner, 25 years strong, is updated this month with profiles of leaders in transportation, technology, logistics, supply chain management, education and […]

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Leveraging Your Routing Guide

A routing guide plays an important role in setting the strategy for carrier selection. It is essentially a shipper’s guide to choosing a carrier to move a particular shipment. While there are many forms of routing guides, an increasing number of companies switched from paper to online portals and beyond to enhanced transportation management system […]

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Bob Daymon

Going for Brokers

Over the past 18 months, we have seen a significant shift toward shippers utilizing brokers as their primary carriers. Many shippers abandoned the strategy of focusing on asset-based carriers, and now load their routing guides with brokers as the choice of record. We also see brokers being able to meet the detailed requirements of many […]

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Andrew Lynch

How Specialized Transportation Can Improve Customer Service

As a shipper, what does it look like to deliver on stellar customer service? Your buyers are looking for undamaged, on-time, seamless orders. But you are only able to control a portion of this. Somewhere along the way, a truck driver, warehouse worker, or dispatcher is involved in delivering on your customer service promises. Typically, […]

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GOOD QUESTION | When choosing a carrier/supplier, what’s more important: cost or customer service?

GOOD QUESTION | When choosing a carrier/supplier, what’s more important: cost or customer service?

While reducing operational costs is top of mind for businesses, customer service comes first to ensure rising expectations are met with improved visibility and accuracy—especially in today’s increasingly competitive environment where loyalty must be earned and options are many. Steve Rice Director of Product Management, TAKE Supply Chain Bang for the buck. There are a […]

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Danny Slaton

Accurate Transit Times: The Backbone of Efficient Supply Chains

Q: CarrierConnect® has been a crucial SMC³ product for nearly 20 years, and the company has continued to make upgrades during that time. How have customers been reacting to recently added features in CarrierConnect XL 2.0? A: GlobalTranz was the first technology partner to integrate the new XL features, and they discovered true strategic value […]

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Walter Lynch

Instill Passion, Purpose, and Leadership To Attract and Retain Logistics Talent

The talent gap in the logistics field is vast, touching everyone from truck drivers and warehouse staff to supply chain and third-party logistics (3PL) professionals. Finding the right people, and fast, is an ongoing struggle. Seventy-nine percent of 3PLs feel they are unprepared for the looming labor shortage and its impacts, states the Council of […]

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Rob Kriewaldt

Complying With Big-box Retailer Requirements

Complying with big-box retailer regulations is not a one-person job for 3PLs. An integrated team approach is the best way to ensure your company, as a logistics provider, is able to be absolutely reliable to the retailer. Specifically, customer service, compliance, and transportation and operational services equally aid in the assurance of complying with big-box […]

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Keith Biondo

Still Pushing Your Customers Around?

Inbound Logistics published its first healthcare logistics article back in 1994. That article revealed several important reasons for companies to move to demand-driven logistics, even those not in the healthcare value chain. Hillarycare was introduced the year before that article ran. My opinion then was, “Fine, look at Hillarycare, but first cut costs and boost […]

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Jamie Overley

How to Stand Out From the Crowd

The changing needs of today’s manufacturers, coupled with the intense challenges third-party logistics (3PL) providers face—from greater reliance on just-in-time inventory and the increasing role of technology, to port congestion and the truck driver shortage—have led to a landscape ripe with competition. Arguably more diversified and sophisticated than ever, the 3PL sector is seeing an […]

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