As globalization creates increased demand for strategic transportation of products, businesses in the food and beverage industry are facing greater challenges in delivering fast and efficient service to growing markets. In dealing with the shipment of perishable products, strategically managing your logistics services becomes of the utmost importance. How do businesses meet demand and maintain quality, while still trying to mitigate costs?
At Radius Logistics, our Customer Service Representatives are dedicated to ensuring our food and beverage partners are provided with efficient and cost effective transportation for their delicate cargo. Here are our top tips for strategic management of food and beverage products:
1. Ensure Seasonal Capacity
More so than any other product shipped, seasonality can have big impacts on the food and beverage supply chain. In selecting your supply chain carriers, it is important to inquire as to whether they have the capacity to meet monthly demand and increased capacity. Are they able to adapt flexibly to increased production? 3PLs allow their clients to coordinate space, labour and transportation according to seasonal needs. Outsourcing your transportation management gives you the ability to scale space and staff, and meet inventory needs on the go, while also providing the cushion to scale back during slower months of the year.
2. Optimize your Transportation Routes
When contracting businesses for shipping and transportation, it is important to factor in which routes are used to best transport product. Radius Logistics uses TMW Systems’ TruckMate software to consolidate and optimize shipment routing, this helps us identify alternate supply chain network configurations and define the precise transportation costs of all options. This helps our clients analyze the most efficient route for their needs, which can help save significant supply chain costs.
3. Think Strategically about Packaging
It’s important to properly package your goods to maximize safety during transport. A good logistics provider can offer solutions for your packaging needs, and help you source cost effective packaging and warehousing with their valuable network of partners. By determining the most appropriate packaging for your transportation needs, you can reduce damage and loss, while ensuring your products get to their final destination in the best possible condition and ready to sell.
4. Manage Transportation Around the Clock
When you are working with food and beverage products, supply chains must be properly executed around the clock. The added challenge of maintaining temperatures and complying with food safety regulations require each link in the supply chains to be managed with an extremely watchful eye. With the added paperwork, billing, audits, timelines, and management of food transportation, this can become an increasingly time consuming task. 3PLs save you the time needed to carry out the supply chain. Our dedicated customer service representatives monitor the status of your shipments and ensure shipment accuracy, ensuring your products arrive on time. This can save you from costly mistakes, and allow your business to build a global logistical network with lower risk and higher return.
Could your food and beverage business benefit from offloading your supply chain management to a 3PL provider? Call Radius Logistics today and see how we can help you streamline your supply chain and maximize the transportation of goods.
