The basics of supply chain management are making sure you have your product so you can get it to your customers when they need it.
This sounds very easy but as a business owner you have many factors to consider when adjusting your supply chain.
Probably the most difficult is not over purchasing or under purchasing.
Once you figured out how to predict your need with perfection share it with the rest of the world because nobody else does.
Without being able to predict the future there are some logistics tools that you can use to help make your supply chain run more smoothly and lessen the need to make exact predictions.
The first thing to look at is where your product is coming from.
For example the time frame to import an ocean container from China can take 21-30 days.
It could be delayed at the port waiting for a "random" examination.
This can take as long as the examiner wants.
You can ship it much more quickly using air freight but the cost will naturally be more expensive.
Is your supplier in the US? If you receive your supplies from somewhere in the US you will have multiple options on ground and in the air to improve the speed of you supply chain.
Simply switching from one carrier to another can get your goods to market a few days sooner.
LTL shipping, full truck loads, Expedited trucks, couriers, and air options are all available to you.
Once you have your product you will need to ask yourself what the choke point of your production line is.
You may have a machine that can load 50 bottles a minute with your product but the next machine can only seal the products at a rate of 25 bottles a minute.
Do you have a team of people who hand craft your goods? Maybe it is time to automate? The point is that you need to locate the choke point and take the necessary steps to fix it.
How do you transport your goods to market? Do you rely mostly on your own trucks or are you a retail store that relies exclusively on customers walking in the door? If you set your sites a little higher you can use the internet or other methods to find customers any where in the country or anywhere in the world.
What is the best way to ship your product to your customers? It goes without saying that every supply chain solution needs to be individualized to your specific company needs.
Cubic postage rates are great if you can get USPS discounts and you are shipping items less than a cubic foot.
UPS ground is a great product for ground shipments.
If your products are larger than 100 lbs or need to be moved on a pallet your best bet is using online freight quotes.
Whatever solution you need a good logistics company will be able to help you minimize your transit times and maximize your profits.
It is worth the time upfront to analyze your supply chain and make it more efficient.
This sounds very easy but as a business owner you have many factors to consider when adjusting your supply chain.
Probably the most difficult is not over purchasing or under purchasing.
Once you figured out how to predict your need with perfection share it with the rest of the world because nobody else does.
Without being able to predict the future there are some logistics tools that you can use to help make your supply chain run more smoothly and lessen the need to make exact predictions.
The first thing to look at is where your product is coming from.
For example the time frame to import an ocean container from China can take 21-30 days.
It could be delayed at the port waiting for a "random" examination.
This can take as long as the examiner wants.
You can ship it much more quickly using air freight but the cost will naturally be more expensive.
Is your supplier in the US? If you receive your supplies from somewhere in the US you will have multiple options on ground and in the air to improve the speed of you supply chain.
Simply switching from one carrier to another can get your goods to market a few days sooner.
LTL shipping, full truck loads, Expedited trucks, couriers, and air options are all available to you.
Once you have your product you will need to ask yourself what the choke point of your production line is.
You may have a machine that can load 50 bottles a minute with your product but the next machine can only seal the products at a rate of 25 bottles a minute.
Do you have a team of people who hand craft your goods? Maybe it is time to automate? The point is that you need to locate the choke point and take the necessary steps to fix it.
How do you transport your goods to market? Do you rely mostly on your own trucks or are you a retail store that relies exclusively on customers walking in the door? If you set your sites a little higher you can use the internet or other methods to find customers any where in the country or anywhere in the world.
What is the best way to ship your product to your customers? It goes without saying that every supply chain solution needs to be individualized to your specific company needs.
Cubic postage rates are great if you can get USPS discounts and you are shipping items less than a cubic foot.
UPS ground is a great product for ground shipments.
If your products are larger than 100 lbs or need to be moved on a pallet your best bet is using online freight quotes.
Whatever solution you need a good logistics company will be able to help you minimize your transit times and maximize your profits.
It is worth the time upfront to analyze your supply chain and make it more efficient.