Best Practices of a Shipping and Logistics Company

Anyone who is thinking of venturing into business or is in the process of expanding an existing company understands that the success of any business is intricately linked to the performance of the supply chain. The resources a company has in place that involve moving its products efficiently to the customer plays a vital role in facilitating and optimizing the flow of products allowing companies to create better relationship value with their clients and overall business efficiency.​

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Due to the unpredictable demands of today’s customers for lower delivery costs and pricing, companies require an all-encompassing array of strategies beyond mere logistics enhancement and mechanization for enhanced discernibility and traceability, minimized waste and costs, streamlined and cohesive operations. This, in turn, can allow a company to boast of an improved product and material flow, customers’ real-time response and easy access to product, an enhanced financial flow and a companies’ overall ability to address and adapt to the ever-increasing complexities that come with its logistics.
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There is an increased demand of bridging the gap between buyers and suppliers that begs for a business’ increased flexibility to adapt to variable demand, lead time, time to market, eliminating higher shipping expenses and minimizing supply chain disruptions, which will ensure rebuilding a sustainable and robust supply chain but it all comes down to logistics, warehouse, and shipping fulfillment.

Businesses that are just starting out or those are growing quickly and require unique packing and shipping needs may consider employing the services of a logistics company that will store their products and take care of their entire order. This can be a daunting process especially if the business has never dealt with logistics companies before and in most cases, small businesses have had to learn the hard way especially when they incur some heavy blows and losses somewhere along the supply chain process. But how exactly does a business know which logistics company best suits their needs and one that is capable of delivering on their promises? Here are some common characteristics of a leading logistics company that businesses should consider:

Supply Chain Visibility and Compliance
This is the most significant aspect of a leading logistics company and a must in today’s logistics because it involves adherence to any applicable local, state, and federal laws for supply chain entities. Supply chain visibility is the ability to track a product’s location, temperature and condition while in transit from the manufacturer to its final and most crucial destination being the client. 
With SVC, customers can get instant information and real-time access to their freight’s to remove unnecessary concerns. Supply Chain Visibility and Compliance have become very important in logistics with new or updated federal or state regulations concerning the transport of goods, the carriers and drivers who are delivering them being regularly executed.

Emphasis on hiring the right people
A good logistics manager works with production crews, store managers, and transportation departments to ensure everyone is on the same page when it comes to the day-to-day flow of information concerning goods. He/ she oversees activities from the production of goods to the point they reach consumers. They use computerized systems to keep up with production, track shipments, maintain inventory, and ensure the safe distribution of merchandise. 

Their analytical prowess, their strong organizational and communication skills enable them to devise the most efficient and cost-effective methods for allocating supplies, equipment, and materials, so there is no waste and minimal defects in production and shipping goods. A logistics manager plays a vital role in the accurate documentation that reflects details such as unexpected costs, account for damaged or substandard goods and above all create guidelines that hold workers along the supply chain accountable for the goods they produce, ship and distribute. All this is to assure a customer that their product is in capable hands.

Hands-on use of Big Data
Data analysis is the most important aspect of supply chains and logistics industry. Big Data Analytics can be used in creating verifiable forecasts for needs in inventory or packing goods even before an order is received, to identify inefficiencies such as sensing potential problems and supply chain disruptions before something goes wrong or other issues such as severe weather, hurricane, or a transport route shut down during peak season. The use of Big Data can create proposed solutions and implement solutions in the hopes of creating an excellent experience for clients through identifying and responding to any roadblocks that could impact the smooth delivery of products to end-users.

Big Data works on real-time data information and analysis and uses technology that tracks purchase orders and determines whether any potential challenges could delay the progress of the order. This is important because, not only does Big Data help logistic companies understand their operations and market better, it gives them the flexibility and dexterity to predict the probability of an event so that they can take timely business decisions that can have an impact on its overall operating performance and ensure customer needs are met as well.

Inventory Management and Optimization
Due to the tremendous challenges to match increasing supply volumes and product ranges to customer demand, organizations without optimized inventory run the risk of overpaying and underperforming. And without an organized approach and prevailing analytical tools, the proactive management of large inventories becomes an impossible task. 

Inventory optimization depends on precise and defined suppositions for needed items and requires a broad assessment of sudden changes in the market that can impact manufacturing, shipping, and other aspects of the logistics process. The key to inventory optimization is to have the right IT system in place to fully support the operational side of meeting customer demands, supplying the production line and supporting demand fluctuations. 
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It also involves the recording of data that include capital investment, cash flow, seasonal fluctuations, completion of supplier deliveries and changes in order volumes. All this consists of an integration of the supply chain, including data from internal and external systems.​

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