Partnering with a third-party logistics (3PL) provider can add new dimensions to your supply chain and help your business succeed. Whether you’re an in-house logistics director looking to show your value by leading organizational change, a CEO seeking to equip your team with the resources they need to do their jobs effectively, or a CFO tasked with improving processes and finances simultaneously, gaining access to 3PL services will put your company in a position to maximize efficiency.
Established 3PLs like ODW Logistics bring deep experience and wide-ranging expertise in all areas of logistics, from warehousing to transportation to fulfillment and everything in between. For companies poised to scale their operations and gain market share, 3PL services come with the added benefit of a true partner to envision and execute growth strategies while maintaining flexibility and minimizing capital expenditures relating to warehousing and equipment. Here are the specific reasons and ways various 3PL services can streamline and strengthen your supply chain:
A warehouse is an intricate ecosystem of processes. With so much going on at every turn, every second of the day, most businesses that manage logistics in-house naturally have warehousing inefficiencies and redundancies that they may or may not be aware of. A 3PL’s first order of business is often to identify, address, and solve inefficiencies in the warehouse using their vast experience and advanced technology.
A warehouse management system (WMS) alone can cost millions of dollars to implement, not to mention a transportation management system (TMS) and any warehouse automation. With 3PL warehousing services, you get the technology to tap into economies of scale, without having to purchase software and equipment outright. In cases where growth is driving the need for a new warehousing solution altogether, a 3PL can assist with location selection and warehouse design from the ground up. Explore warehousing and distribution solutions at ODW.
If warehousing is its own ecosystem, e-commerce fulfillment is its own animal. The fast pace, high volume, seasonal fluctuations, and customer expectations combine to make e-commerce fulfillment one of the most challenging tasks in all logistics. Integrated logistics services from a 3PL help you get out of the day-to-day and see the big picture from all angles. This is once again an area where technology is key to balancing the ever-evolving goals of reducing lead times and increasing customer satisfaction. ODW has invested heavily in warehouse automation at its strategically located e-commerce distribution centers in Ohio to enable speed, agility, and scalability for its customers. Learn what to look for in an e-commerce fulfillment provider.
3PL services gain value as more services are added and integrated into your partnership with your provider. If you’re looking to a 3PL for warehousing, consider also asking them to handle transportation management. This will give both you and your 3PL better visibility into your logistics as a whole, so decisions are made in the best interests of your business rather than the best interests of a specific service.
For example, a 10 percent increase in warehousing costs may be beneficial if it leads to a 30 percent decrease in transportation costs—but separating the two operations with two different providers might lead you to overlook the opportunity for cost savings or, worse, incur the increase without recognizing and leveraging the decrease. See the key benefits of outsourcing your transportation management and get the answers to common warehousing and transportation questions.
You might not think to lean into a 3PL in your manufacturing process, but doing so can be a gateway to reliable manufacturing support logistics. ODW Logistics can coordinate and physically receive your materials, then manage the inventory and distribute it with just-in-time (JIT) delivery synchronized to assembly. We then coordinate the line-side delivery of your final product and complete the necessary packaging, labeling, and preparation before managing the final shipment and delivery to your customers. See the full breakdown and explanation in our article, “Manufacturing Support Logistics Explained.”
While partnering with a 3PL focuses on building the most efficient processes for your business, those processes are rooted in delivering the best experience for your customers. In a world that has grown accustomed to receiving accurate, timely, and proactive updates on delivery and shipments, your business can’t afford to focus solely on cost savings. A 3PL is the best-positioned provider to implement a parcel program that connects to all the technology available today. This requires us to reverse engineer the parcel’s journey from your customers’ perspective while leveraging our relationships and volume to maintain optimal pricing with reliable providers.
That’s a lot to manage at once, but we don’t stop there. 3PLs also specialize in freight consolidation, or the process of combining freight from multiple shippers to build more efficient full truckloads. How does this help your business? It’s an important piece of the puzzle in shipping faster and smarter at scale.
The best 3PLs exist to add value in any and every way possible if they know they’ll be able to deliver on their promises. Driving value is how we solidify our role as your logistics provider and partner. ODW’s contract logistics include many 3PL value-added services such as pre-kitting, assembly, sequencing, custom labeling, inserts, mailers, customized gift boxes, and more.
Across the board, we’re constantly exploring and implementing the latest technology to continually expand on our proven capabilities. At the end of the day, it’s all about flexing our value to your unique needs and goals through a collaborative and consultative approach. Start the conversation today.