Supply chain is a complex function and businesses frequently encounter challenges at operational, tactical and strategic levels. Demand-supply gap, demand fluctuation, change in either government or market policies, incomplete processes and deficient management are the key factors driving this complexity. The consequences of a complex supply chain can vary from time-consuming processes, unnecessary costs, lower productivity and low delivery rates. Consequences that are more significant include unfulfilled orders, dissatisfied customers and lost market share.

Complexity in a supply chain is unavoidable and this complexity should me managed in a professional manner. At operational and tactical levels, business in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth or any other location in Australia need skilled labour, up to date technology and efficient management. At the strategic level, appropriate infrastructure, effective strategies and experience are mandatory. Tailor-made solutions provided by efficient third party logistics (3PL) providers in Australia assist in managing the complexities of supply chain at all levels.

Read on to learn how third party logistics (3PL) providers assist you to eliminate supply chain complexities that can improve customer satisfaction levels and assist with business growth.

Strategic locations and well-designed warehouses

When selecting warehouse locations, the distance from market/customers is an important factor. Additionally, products types, throughput, inventory norms, safety stock, demand fluctuations, seasonality and technology play an important role. Improper, insufficient and inappropriate warehouse locations or types create complexities in supply chain by blocking product and information flow. Ideal warehouse location, appropriate warehouse layout and experienced management are important for smooth product and information flow. Successful Supply Chain and Logistics solutions managers in Australia understand that experience and skills are the keys to building and managing a warehouse, and this experience and skill is available with third party logistics (3PL) providers. Third party logistics (3PL) providers in Australia, such as BCR, have many warehouses available in Australia including locations in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. These shared 3PL facilities are ready to go to fulfil all your warehousing requirements.

Appropriate processes

Supply chain management is the management of a combination of different types of processes. From receiving to dispatch and transportation to shipping, there are various types of processes, which assist in delivering product to the end customer. Each process is different and requires special treatment as per the product type and customer requirements. Skipping a step in a process or not following processes flawlessly makes supply chain more complex and leads to unfilled order. Third party logistics providers in Australia define standard processes for each requirement and ensure a perfect fit between processes and requirements. Further, they are also ready to customise a process to cater to any special requirements.

Well-defined IT infrastructure

Supply chain management includes receiving, transferring and storing a large amount of information. Information could be related to products, SKUs, orders, returns, payments and processes. The vastness of operations makes it very complex to manage the operations and capture information. Mismanagement of information can lead to incorrect shipping, inappropriate storage, inventory mismatch, complex processes and many more problems. A well-defined IT infrastructure including tools like WMS, barcoding, EDI, and track and trace capabilities are necessary to manage the complexity. Third party logistics providers in Australia provide the required IT technologies along with the services to support the technology and these assist in keeping complexity under control.

Professional supply chain experience

Supply chain tends to become more and more complex with growth. As you supply chain grows, it becomes important to regularly re-examine your supply chain processes to make them less complex by re-engineering and re-aligning them. To be effective, these efforts need experienced and knowledgeable professionals. Third party logistics (3PL) companies employ professionals with vast experience and knowledge. They will bring this expertise to the table to assist in the simplification of processes for their parts of supply chain. Leading Supply Chain Managers, Logistics Managers and business owners know this and continuously work with their third party logistics partners in these review exercises to eliminate complexities out of their supply chains.

Competent management

Competent management of supply chain functions is as mandatory as any other function of a business. Management could be of inventory, shipping process, assets, labour, vendors and finance. Using the best processes and infrastructure can deliver outcomes; however, to get the most out of the supply chain, efficient management of your processes is mandatory. Outsourcing parts of your supply chain to third party logistics providers will assist you to manage key functions such as transportation, freight forwarding, warehousing and vendors through a single window. This increases your control, defines responsibility and can assist to achieve your business objectives.

Every supply chain has its own complexities and will encounter with new ones with time. Timely and efficient elimination or management of these supply chain complexities is mandatory to increase order fulfilment rate, increase efficiency, avoid unnecessary costs, increase the number of satisfied customers and assist you in growing your business smoothly. However, the management and elimination of these complexities requires experience, infrastructure, skills and the latest technology. A smart and effective way to eliminate supply chain complexity is by collaborating with efficient third party logistics (3PL) providers such as BCR. Third party logistics providers have the necessary resources and skills to assist you in eliminating complexities and keep your supply chain robust and efficient.

For more than a century, BCR has continued to help small, medium and large businesses achieve an optimum logistics solution with warehousing and transportation, including air freight and sea freight services to and from the major ports including BrisbaneSydneyMelbourne, Adelaide and Fremantle (Perth).

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