Riverside Logistics

by

Where does a Third-Party Logistics Company (3PL) enter your supply chain?

This is the question many shippers ask, and the answer is anywhere!  A 3PL facilitates movement from origin to storage to final distribution to returns so you can focus on your business and not the business of logistics.  

Let us start at the beginning.  Where are your goods manufactured?  If they are offshore, then your process starts at the port of entry and you will need transportation from the port to your facility or for storage prior to distribution.  If your goods are manufactured domestically, then will your goods be ready for shipment at time of manufacture or do you need pick, pack, and storage services?  Often, all the services outside of manufacturing can and should be outsourced for efficiency and cost savings. 

Moving on through the supply chain, the goods are now ready for distribution.  Most goods will have a short storage period prior to final shipping and space is a valuable commodity in a manufacturing plant.  A 3PL can provide the flexibility for warehouse space needed whether it is just cross docking or preparation for seasonal upswing. 

Finally, the goods are ready to be shipped!  Third Party-Logistics Ccompanies can customize solutions for your supply chain whether it’s kitting or specific packaging. Also, you will have a wide carrier selection to ensure you are utilizing the most effective method. A 3PL’s total volume will ensure competitive rates for full truckload, Less than Truckload (LTL) or small package shipments.

In addition, recommendations can be made for mode optimization and pooled distribution leveraging the volumes of other customers.  This provides the shipper options they cannot negotiate on their own.

All these steps can be managed by your 3PL and you can engage them for one service1 or all.  Regardless of where a 3PL enters the supply chain, they will add value, efficiency and cost savings. Lastly, a 3PL reduces your risk allowing you the flexibility to manage your supply chain without the additional capital needed for brick/mortar.  You can produce higher rates of return by investing in your core business!

by

How can a Richmond, Virginia based Third-Party Logistics company help reduce your local delivery cost while improving service?

2020 vision has been anything but clear! Especially when it comes to your freight cost and service levels. As companies evaluate different business options, working with a third-party logistics company (3PL) on a local level can be easily overlooked.  Because a Third-Party Logistics  company has numerous truck routes and lanes that are created by serving multiple customers there is a good chance that they have a local service that could save you money, and improve the flexibility and reliability of your shipments. Below are a few ways that a 3PL can help provide cost saving solutions for your local freight!

Local Routes                                                                                                                                      

Local deliveries range between 0-250 miles from origin.  A local 3PL with a  variety of customers and deliveries has many options for their  customers.

For example, loads shipping out of Richmond, VA for delivery down in the Tidewater area will match up with a local load coming back to the Richmond, VA area.  Also, we may have 2 or 3 other customers we can consolidate on the Richmond truck either on the head haul or backhaul.  Depending on the size of the load, it may fit on 24ft box truck vs a 53ft trailer which could offer savings.

Another advantage of local routes is accessibility.  This includes  last minute daily pickups and emergency pickups because drivers are delivering within the local area.  A 3PL can also drop trailers at a customer’s location for convenience for loading or unloading their product.  Some customers with limited warehouse space utilize drop trailers for storing product at their location or at the 3PL’s location. Matching resources is one of the many ways a 3PL provides value allowing companies to be very flexible in a dynamic market, providing just in time deliveries, and capturing opportunities that may not be able to with your current resources. 

Cross Dock

Another advantage of a 3PL with warehouse assets is the ability to cross dock product.  Example:  An inbound truckload shipment comes in and our customer doesn’t have time or space to unload it.  A 3PL can provide this service as well as coordinate transportation that will maximize savings.  Another opportunity to utilize cross dock services is receiving ocean containers to be unloaded and reloaded into a 53’ Dry Van for final delivery to the customer. This same scenario would apply with rail cars. Customers can take advantage of lower rail rates and have product deliver via rail for storage at a 3PL facility and then trucked for customer delivery.  Cross docking is a great short-term solution to reallocate your freight quickly, efficiently, without limiting your resources.

Drayage

A 3PL has the ability to flex up or down depending on the volume of containers arriving at the port.  Businesses may not always have an available driver and truck to retrieve containers from the port nor space to store the container for efficient processing.  3PL’s can often store your container at their facility to save on port demurrage fees then unload and handle for final delivery to the customer.  A 3PL can often provide this service for both IMPORT and EXPORT loads.

Riverside Logistics can provide all these services for you so your resources can be utilized to focus on your business not the business of moving freight!

by

How can a Third-Party Logistics company help solve your COVID-19 Supply Chain Problems?

Riverside Logistics Warehouse 3plThe disruption of supply chains due to Covid-19 is unprecedented. Businesses have been challenged to operate with a lack of mission critical raw materials, products or equipment. Economic realities of supply and demand will shift manufacturing from single source locations to decentralizing abroad or reshoring will occur back to the US to diversify supply chains.

Many challenges are ahead particularly for small businesses in terms of going back to work because of safety and security concerns. The cost structure will shift due to many factors and it will be critical to prepare for what the new normal entails.  Creating a regionally based supply chain will provide options for a market that is in flux.  Flexible solutions for storage and distribution are the advantages a third-party logistics (3PL) firm can provide and ensure that you can change with market demand.

Leveraging the Port system in Virginia is a good start to differentiate your supply chain for imports/exports.  Our Virginia Port system may offer cost advantages, less congestion and more vessel calls, than other ports on the East Coast.  Virginia continues to rank #1 as the best state for business which offers significant growth opportunities for companies needing a presence in this region.  A 3PL can provide this presence without the commitment of facilities and labor.

According to Keith Hamlett, President of Riverside Logistics, a Third-Party Logistics (3PL) company headquarted in Richmond, Virginia; a 3PL partner can provide expertise for clients facing these challenging issues in the supply chain.  A third-party Logistics company can offer a variety of ways to help with your supply chain diversification or expansion.  Listed are areas that a 3PL can assist.

  1. People- A third-party Logistics company (3PL) usually has experienced staff ready to provide solutions. Training can be a challenge in the current environment and a Third-Party Logistics company can provide the appropriate personnel customized for your environment. They often have training solutions in place to help speed this process. This ensures your supply chain will be in place quickly.
  1. Warehouse Space Available– Often 3PL’s have warehouse space available and under management, they can modify space for your specific needs. Some 3PL’s will have commodity specific warehouse space available like: food grade, pharma certified or hazmat for those markets. Not all warehouse space is created equal. Usually a 3PL will have multiple locations and can offer flexible solutions for you.  As an example, they may have a facility adjacent to the Port of Richmond for easy access for rail, import and export. They may have a rail side warehouse as well. A 3PL’s focus is to lower your total supply chain cost and flexible alternative solutions can be critical to your success.
  1. Transportation Solutions – Another advantage of working with a Third-Party Logistics company (3PL) is they have a broad array of freight services that include Truckload, Less than Truckload (LTL), Small Package and container drayage. Often, a 3PL will have owner operator’s and dedicated lanes, with routes throughout Virginia, the Mid-Atlantic and the Southeast. They may be able to offer pooled distribution and consolidated delivery services throughout the 48 states that can save you money. This can be a great advantage when you are constantly evaluating your supply chain cost.
  1. Technology – Technology and software can be expensive. Often a 3PL will utilize a Warehouse Management and Transportation Management system to optimize your freight costs and provide insight into mode optimization. Access to real time data such as:  order inventory status, and other tools to speed communication to your customers can be very powerful.  A 3PL can provide a team that works together to provide visibility to your supply chain for cost saving options as well as comprehensive reporting for planning purposes.
  1. Supply Chain Strategies – Partnering with a 3PL can provide guidance to secure your supply chain and focus on your goals – not just right now but for the future.

At the end of the day a Third-Party Logistics company offers you the ability to respond quickly and accurately to market conditions or unforeseen disruptions like Covid-19.  A 3PL can keep your supply chain running, so you can stay healthy – personally and professionally!

 

————–

Riverside Logistics is a third-party logistics and supply chain management company providing a full complement of third-party logistics, transportation and warehousing solutions.

Riverside Logistics serves the Medical, Food, Chemical, Paper and other mission critical industry sectors.  Riverside Logistics has owner operator’s and dedicated lanes, with routes throughout Virginia, the Mid-Atlantic and the Southeast. Riverside Logistics offers pooled distribution and consolidated delivery services throughout the 48 states that can save you money. They are headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. To contact Riverside Logistics call 1-804-474-7700 Option 4 or click here to fill out the form on our contact page.

 

by

Virginia is a Great Location for your Business to Export

by Rick Holden

There are many great things happening in the Commonwealth of Virginia.  Key among them is the ongoing effort to attract new businesses whose goals include exporting product.

Citing the ongoing trade war and saying states must take international trade into their own hands, Gov. Ralph Northam recently announced a plan to take Virginia from ranking 41st in the country for exports to ranking in the top 20.

The strategic plan sets significant goals, aiming to increase trade output by 50% in 15 years.  Essentially, this would double the amount of export business in the Commonwealth.

An executive summary of the plan outlines two main ways the state will assist businesses who engage in international trade: first, by investing in trade development services and second, by helping new business locate in the Commonwealth and helping existing businesses expand.

In order to execute this far reaching goal, the state of Virginia will be offering incentives for companies who want to export all or some of their products form the Commonwealth. As new and existing companies look to make this move, it will be to their advantage to engage with Third Party Logistics Providers (3PLs) who are strategically located in Virginia and have the resources and services to assist in this effort.

3PLs in the Commonwealth who have strategic warehouse footprints, transportation services, systems, processes, as well as supply chain knowledge can help many of these companies take advantage of what Virginia has to offer.  Companies can better focus their limited resources on their core business and outsource the supply chain function.  This would reduce the overall total investment as well as provide a more rapid ramp up period.

In this economic environment speed to service is key.  Companies who can start operations more expeditiously will be positioned to take advantage of the incentives the Commonwealth of Virginia will be offering.

by

TRENDS IN TRANSPORTATION-Growing use of DENSITY-BASED PRICING by LTL CARRIERS

by James Durfee

Within the last 3 years, less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers have shifted away from the traditional National Motor Freight Classification (NMFC) rate-setting formula.  In the past carriers assigned a distinct class rating to each different commodity.  Because of new scanning technology that allows carriers to weigh and inspect each shipment it has become easier to utilize more density-based pricing. Density-based pricing prices freight according to the weight per cubic foot of space (cubic feet) the shipment uses in the truck. This model has had a significant impact on shippers’ freight costs.  Due to this change, it’s important to understand the new pricing methods for LTL shipments, how it impacts rates and how to negotiate rate structures.

TRADITIONAL NMFC CLASS RATING

As background, the “class rating” assigned to LTL products, runs from a low of class 50 to a high of class 500. The higher the class the higher the cost. A rough rule-of-thumb is that using class 100 as the baseline, class 50 would essentially be 50% of the baseline cost and class 200 would approximate 200% of the baseline cost. This is a very rough approximation, but it illustrates how significantly costs can vary based on the CLASS RATING of a shipment. Class ratings are normally assigned using the following 4 characteristics:

  • Density – pounds per cubic foot
  • Handling – ease or difficulty handling product
  • Stow Ability – ability to effectively load product in the trailer
  • Liability – cost in dollars per pound to compensate pay for lost/damaged product.

PURE DENSITY BASED PRICING

Pure Density-Based pricing assigns a class to product just using the following formula:

  • Length x Wide x Height in inches= cubic inches / 1728 = cubic feet.
  • Divide weight of product (including pallet weight) by cubic feet = DENSITY

If the density = 6, the product would be classed at class 125

If the density < 4, the product would be classed at class 250

In this case the cost of the shipment could almost double if the density drops by 2 lbs./cubic ft. That’s a substantial difference and points out how important it is to understand the density of your product and how it is classified.  Remember, density-based pricing limits carrier liability.  The reduced insurance risk then falls back on the shipper to have additional insurance for high value items.

If you would like to discuss this topic further, contact one of our sales representatives at 804-729-8189.

By James Durfee

News & Events

Read Other News & Events

Case Studies

Read More Case Studies