warehousing and distribution

  • Google +
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Request a quote
01279 452468
  • HOME
  • SERVICES
    • Freight Forwarding
    • Fulfilment Sevices
    • Pallet Storage
    • Pick and Pack
    • Warehousing
  • ABOUT US
  • OUR PEOPLE
  • Location
  • REQUEST QUOTE
  • BLOG
  • CONTACT US

How can a third party warehousing partner save you money?

March 13, 2014 By Darren Woollard Leave a Comment

6 Shares
Share
Tweet
Pin
Share

More and more product oriented enterprises are making the shift from using their own lean logisticswarehousing facilities and instead using a third party warehousing and distribution partner to handle all aspects of their product-side logistics. Recent advances in the industry are bringing this kind of dedicated, professional warehouse storage service within the reach of smaller and smaller businesses, and allowing them to participate in ways once reserved for the big players alone.

The big question is “would a warehousing partner make or cost me money?”

All to many are put off by fulfilment and storage fees, and failing to compare these to the real costs of in-house warehousing and distribution.

So, how do we compare apples to oranges? In pounds, just like we always have. The first thing you need to do is develop a realistic picture of the costs of your logistics department. Getting all these scattered costs together can be a nightmare, it’s true, but the harder it is to get a clear picture, the more it is probably costing you already.

Specifically, see if you can get good data on the following costs, and see if you don’t get a bit of ‘sticker shock’ from these results too.

  • The benefits, salaries, insurance, HR costs, and other expenses relating to your Warehousing and Distribution staff
  • The cost of managing these people, and of supporting the managers
  • The lease, rent, or building costs of your warehousing facility, including any insurance
  • Your materials costs, especially packing materials, etc…
  • Your equipment cost, especially the costs for support and maintenance, not just devaluations and leasing. Remember especially to include your logistics department’s IT needs, scanners, scales, etc…
  •  Your customer service based expenses, including customer support, especially the salary, benefits, insurance and other expenses of your CS staff
  •  The expenses of your inventory management and other software systems

Most estimates overlook management support expanses and equipment purchases, but I imagine there were a few things on that list that you missed out. If you don’t put a detailed logistics expense list together, you can’t really judge the value of a third party provider.

Another easy mistake is leaving out the value of the benefits that a Warehousing & Distribution partner can bring to the table. Keep in mind that third party warehouse space is very flexible. You can use more without building, and then use less without paying for the empty space. Your senior management will also have more time for growing your end of the business when they have all of the logistics headaches taken away.

So keep these things in mind before making your decision. Make that expense calculation for your in-house warehouse storage department, too. Even if you don’t switch over, it can help you spot troubles you never knew you had

6 Shares
Share
Tweet
Pin
Share

Filed Under: blog Tagged With: third party logistics, warehousing, warehousing and distribution

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Our Services

  • Freight Forwarding
  • Fulfilment Sevices
  • Pick and Pack
  • Pallet Storage
  • Warehousing
  • Quotation Request

Recent Posts

  • Elastic logistics – the future of supply chain?
  • Improving warehouse and distribution through learning from COVID-19
  • The evolution of logistics services
  • Connecting with Your Customers to Prepare for Brexit
  • Overcoming growing pains in your warehousing and distribution

Contact Us

Registered Office
DMG Freight Services Ltd
Unit A & B Mead Park
Ind. Estate
River Way, Harlow
Essex, CM20 2SE.
Telephone
+44 (0) 1279 452468
Fax
+44 (0) 1279 415810
E-mail
info@dmg-freight.com

Copyright © 2021 DMG Freight Services · Log in