LOGISTICS LEADS THE WAY

Leanway

文章来自APICS e-NEWS Vol. 5, No. 16

专业化分工重新塑造着企业的存在形式，这股潮流或许无法抵抗，因为这是规律使然。正如文中所述，企业与3PL应该是战略层次上的合作而不应只是简单的业务关系。

对中国来说，或许当下更重要的是市场信用体系的建立，君不闻成都火车站运输业者携款逃跑之事乎？

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As you just read in "A New Era for Supply Chain Managers: Part II," more and more businesses today are using their 3PL company as a strategic integrator of systems and processes, rather than as just a vendor. It's clear that working in a strategic partnership—and giving 3PL companies the visibility necessary to create seamless communication between both systems and processes—delivers noteworthy results for both parties. Many real-world results illustrate this fact and reveal real benefits from total integration.

Shaun Hodges, senior director of sales for DHL Solutions, explains how his company recently was hired to manage an international spare parts distribution center. DHL and the client company looked beyond distribution to more integrated service possibilities. "We expanded and took it to not only shipping out the good parts, but also providing visibility to the bad parts that were coming back in," says Hodges. "We also had a relationship with the company doing repairs."

DHL offered this client a collocation strategy, which involved bringing the repair provider back into the hub (which most products traveled through at some point). Hodges reports that this streamlined the existing model, reduced transportation costs, and sped up the overall cycle time of the advanced exchange order. As a result, the client has had very high levels of success and saved a few million dollars a year in inventory carrying costs.

Many 3PL companies have a similar story to share. Sandeep Duggal, CEO of Extron Logistics, describes a client that recently signed on with his company. "This customer had been packaging all its products in Asia and flying them into the [United States]. So when they came to us to do just one odd job, we looked at their product and asked, ‘Why on God’s green Earth are you flying this in from Asia?’ They thought that, because they were paying less money in Asia to package the product, it was cheaper. But the reality is, they were paying a lot of money to fly on a lot of very expensive Asian air, and they were completely ignoring those costs."

About two months later, the client completed its own analysis and told Duggal his advice was spot on. Today, that client is moving all its Asian packaging operations for U.S. products to Extron Logistics. "You can hire best-of-breed people, but, frankly, it's very hard to find one person who knows all the answers," says Duggal. "By looking at your 3PL as a consultant as well as a service provider, you can leverage the 3PL's tremendous expertise."

Terry Gavin, vice president and general manager of America's East District with UPS Supply Chain Solutions, has her own anecdote. "A lot of customers already have a determination of what they want their network to look like," she says. "We have a customer right now that came to us and said they needed five [distribution centers]. And we went back to them and said, ‘You know, you don't need five; you need two. And here's where you need them to be, and here's why you need them to be there.’"

Today's innovative businesses are acknowledging that logistics requires its own infrastructure — and to invest in that is a very big endeavor. 3PL companies have invested, have the expertise, and have the infrastructure, all of which provides the client with savings, whether it's in the form of facilities, personnel, or systems. "The point is," DHL's Hodges says, "when you get to that level and really provide the value the company is looking for, you'e not just attacking costs; you're saving money by improving overall supply chain performance."

Elizabeth Rennie, senior editor, APICS magazine

Additional Resource For an in-depth look at the advantages of total 3PL integration, check out "Integration City," in the September 2005 issue of APICS magazine.