Transportation Management
Controlling Inbound Transportation to
Reduce Freight Cost and Improve Efficiency
REM Associates of Princeton, Inc. recently completed a project with a major food manufacturer to implement a inbound transportation program aimed at bringing in-house all inbound transportation activities. This program began with an assessment of vendors and lanes in order to prioritize effectiveness of the effort and maximize savings opportunities.
Objectives were to:
- Analyze sourcing for opportunities and synergies with current transportation in order to leverage buying power for inbound product
- Decrease landed product cost
- Work with current carrier network to increase shipments and decrease “dead-head” time
- Remove variation in deliver timing and service
Key issues of the effort were:
- Developing opportunities for improvement with procurement for largest suppliers
- Determining suppliers where inbound and outbound transportation costs could be synergized for savings opportunities
- Determining traffic lanes with greatest savings opportunities
- Implementing inter-company functions for routing
- Determining consolidation potential by supplier and traffic lanes
Results of this work:
- Greater efficiencies
- Improved vendor service at lower cost
- Cross-functional cooperation within the company
- Improved visibility of all inbound transportation
- Improved scheduling with operations and production
- Decreased inventory levels
If your current environment in any way resembles the “Existing Situation”, contact REM Associates to develop an action plan for process improvements directed at achieving similar results.