Warehouse operating costs constitute an unavoidable component of supply chain expenses that impact a company’s bottom line. Since these costs differ from company to company, there is no universal formula for cost analysis that operations managers can follow. There are, however, common warehouse expenses related to labor and storage that businesses share. By addressing these…
Operations managers routinely look for opportunities to scale up in order to address supply chain cost reduction challenges. Scaling can allow managers to take advantage of lower rates and increased efficiencies. While this strategy can work well for large companies, small and mid-size companies are often unable to realize the benefits of scale. Instead, small…
In response to pandemic uncertainty, logistics managers are closely examining how to lower freight costs by increasing efficiency, reducing waste, minimizing risks, and spending smarter. While the pandemic’s long-term impact on the shipping industry is difficult to foretell, short-term uncertainty has had a significant impact on freight rates. By September 2020, rates on some trucking…
Wood—a fundamental component of nearly every early American industry—has been essential to modern shipping and logistics for decades in the form of wood pallets. But just as the homebuilding and ship manufacturing industries adopted stronger materials than wood, the modern shipping industry has likewise evolved. Nowadays, a simple question like “How strong are wood pallets?”…
Cost reduction is always a challenge in a supply chain. Every step in the supply chain—from sourcing and manufacturing, to warehousing, logistics, and transport—incurs additional costs that businesses try to limit. It is estimated that the supply chain and logistics account for more than 10% of a business’s overall costs. The efforts to lower costs…
In transportation logistics, every mile and every minute matters. Slowdowns and inefficiencies compound. While some supply chain operating costs cannot be significantly reduced, transportation logistics offers opportunities to trim unnecessary time, money, and fuel use. Increasing your supply chain transportation efficiency is simply one of the best ways to lower your total cost of business. …