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TOP 5 LOGISTICS NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS

In 1929, during the Great Depression Laney & Duke made a resolution to provide cost-saving solutions custom designed for our customer’s needs. Throughout the years the industry has changed enormously, and we’ve grown with it and continue to make new resolutions each year.

As with most New Year resolutions, they can only benefit you if you keep them. If you do, they will help you implement cost-saving logistics management strategies that will provide greater profits for your business. Most people make New Year’s resolutions, but the vast majority fail to uphold those pledges – either out of laziness or forgetfulness. While resolutions may be a bit overrated, the idea of establishing some sort of goal for the year, especially as a business owner or manager, is a noble effort. Although you’re bound to think of some of your own resolutions, here are some topics to consider for making a resolution for your logistic and supply chain management efforts.

1. Outsource Your Warehousing Needs

When it comes to the shipping industry, infrastructure plays a huge role in being successful. You need the facilities to house your goods between shipping destinations and without it, you’re going to pay more for transportation expenses. From building materials to food products, everything has to eventually be stored. Luckily, Laney & Duke has the knowledge and experience to help you get the job done with our product warehousing services.

2. Implement Cross-docking

Cross-docking is a flexible operations arrangement between firms that involves multiple suppliers arriving at a designated time at the handling facility where inventory receipts are sorted and consolidated into outbound trailers for direct delivery to the customer. Cross-docking is typically used to avoid storage and materials handling. Mass merchants in the retail industry using cross-docking receive store-specific assortments and are able to maintain continuous inventory replenishment without having to hold large stocks of inventory.

3. Start an Order Fulfillment Program

Order fulfillment services, in the broadest definition, involves all of the steps from receiving a customer’s order until completion of that order. This involves business-to-business (B2B) orders and direct-to-consumer (D2C) orders. Let Laney & Duke handle your Order Fulfillment needs in Jacksonville to truly see how this tool can help you maximize the efficiency of your operation.

4. Consider a Kitting Service

Kitting, or display assembly services as it might be called, involves the packing together of various items to supply the customer with a single unit. Instead of shipping three different packages from your warehouse, you’re now combining all separate items into one package for its final destination. By shipping fewer total parcels, you greatly reduce the risk of shipping errors you might face. One package is also easier to ship than three so you will save on transportation fees and any storage fees you might encounter.

5. Partner with a 3PL company

Do you have a unique 3PL logistical challenge? Are you frustrated with the results you’ve achieved in the past? Are you tired of having to piece together logistical services from a variety of vendors? Give us a call at (904) 798-3500 or contact us here. We love a challenge. We’ll eliminate those disappointments, and provide the right mix of services, managed by experienced personnel, to deliver cost-saving logistics management that will provide greater profits for your business.

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LOGISTICS: WHY CHOOSE NORTHEAST FLORIDA

Florida is now the nation’s third most populous state – and more than 60 million U.S. consumers live within a one-day truck drive of Northeast Florida’s ports and warehouses in Jacksonville, Florida. Much of Northeast Florida’s development has been driven by major retailers choosing to partner with 3PL provider like Laney & Duke in Northeast Florida to streamline their supply chains, eliminate unnecessary handling of shipments and reduce logistics costs.

Laney & Duke, a 3PL provider located in Jacksonivlle, Florida, has more than 1 million square feet of distribution center and warehousing space within close proximity to the Jacksonville ports. Our warehouse incorporates EDI compliant warehouse management software by Camelot to streamline warehouse inventory and billing operations. Laney & Duke has certified food grade warehouse solutions for your business, and everything you need for cross-docking services in Northeast Florida, including drayage to and from the Jacksonville port.

If you need a pick and pack service, Laney & Duke has the experience. We processes over 5,000,000 pick and packs per year in Northeast Florida, so without exaggeration we can say that one of our specialties is handling medium to large pick and pack operations for many companies.

Laney & Duke also provides kitting services by way of their superior labor and knowledgeable supervision. We create displays or kits based on your specifications while meeting your sensitive deadlines. With experienced quality control personnel, you can be sure that your product will reach the customer on time while exceeding their expectations.

Laney & Duke has the depth of logistical experience to give your supply chain optimal performance, and to give you peace-of-mind. We’re a third generation, third-party logistics company based in Northeast Florida and serving the state of Florida and South Georgia

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WHY OUTSOURCE INVENTORY AND PRODUCT FULFILLMENT OPERATIONS FOR AN ONLINE STORE

SHOULD YOU OUTSOURCE YOUR INVENTORY AND PRODUCT FULFILLMENT OPERATIONS?

“The answer is a resounding yes, and here are four reasons why making the decision to outsource selected supply chain functions and processes to a Third Party Logistics (3PL) company is a smart choice for a growing company.”

Why Outsource Shipping To a Fulfillment Center:

  • It makes your business inalienably adaptable. As your business develops, you don’t need to stress over including new systems, stock controls and hardware. As your shipments expand, it’s just a question of expanding the stock at your 3PL providers location.
  • Outsourcing decreases order fulfillment time. Generally, the companies that specialize in order fulfillment have warehouses located near major shipping hubs and ports. Subsequently, all shipments to clients regardless of where they live normally takes lest transit time.
  • When you outsource inventory and product fulfillment operations it allows time for you to focus on advertising and developing your business. Keeping up and sorting out your own stock can be a major pain and take up a critical bit of your time. By permitting a 3PL company to assume control, you can center your endeavors on enhancing your business.
  • You can also expand your business to other nations. Making international shipments can be a hassle with the costs and paperwork involved. A company that provides third party logistic services will have the experience to handle your international shipping. By outsourcing your order fulfillment to a 3PL company, you no longer have to worry about anything other than sourcing your items from a supplier.

 

Warehouse Outsourcing Benefits:

Here are a few compelling and financially-wise reasons why sub-contracting staffing and using your company’s expertise in auxiliary functions might be your best move this year.

  • Hosting services on location versus at a third-party facility allows a plant manager to monitor performance hour-to-hour, day-to-day.
  • Your expertise and resources are not optimal in-house to manage a manufacturing or distribution center.
  • Reduction of in-house employees means a decrease in payroll costs and related expenses.
  • Capability to ramp up or down allows you to keep up with business cycle fluctuations.
  • Access to supply chain professionals with years of experience provides a competitive advantage over your competitors.
  • Improve the efficiency of your business’s fulfillment and supply chain processes.
  • Benefit from advanced technologies and warehousing software without the upfront investment.
  • Maintain higher safety, quality, and efficiency standards.
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WHY WORK WITH A 3PL COMPANY?

Are you considering working with a 3PL company? We would ask that you consider Laney & Duke as a service partner. We would certainly appreciate the opportunity and are committed to implementing a solution that would be tailored to your specific needs.

Our goal at Laney & Duke is to work closely with businesses to understand their logistic objectives and collectively engage in increasing a company’s bottom line. Having been in business for over 80 years, our continued improvement in operational excellence has allowed us to reduce logistic costs, while at the same time providing exceptional customer service. We have also realized that one of the key factors in our success is the ability to integrate and customize our solutions into a coherent seamless solution that benefits our customer’s clients.

Laney & Duke operates nearly 2,000,000 square feet of distribution facilities and employs over 200 people in the state of Florida. We offer a wide range of value-added services including transportation, certified food grade warehousing and contract packaging. We also have a trucking subsidiary, Land Trucking Company, which provides port zone trucking serviceswithin the metropolitan areas of Jacksonville and Tampa.

We look forward to the opportunity to serve your needs and exceed your expectations. Here are just a few compelling and financially-wise reasons why working with a 3PL company might be your best move this year.

  • Hosting services on location versus at a third-party facility allows a plant manager to monitor performance hour-to-hour, day-to-day.
  • Your expertise and resources are not optimal in-house to manage a manufacturing or distribution center.
  • Reduction of in-house employees means a decrease in payroll costs and related expenses.
  • Capability to ramp up or down allows you to keep up with business cycle fluctuations.
  • Access to supply chain professionals with years of experience provides a competitive advantage over your competitors.
  • Working with a 3PL improves the efficiency of your business’s fulfillment and supply chain processes.
  • Your business benefits from advanced technologies and warehousing software without the upfront investment.
  • You maintain higher safety, quality, and efficiency standards.
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EXPEDITE ORDER FULFILLMENT WITH PICK & PACK

Pick and pack is a straightforward logical approach to fill your customers orders utilizing a minimum number of steps in order to expedite the shipment. Essentially, this strategy calls for receiving a customer order at the warehouse level, picking & packing the items required to fill the order, and immediately processing & scheduling shipping. In order to make the process as cost efficient as possible, many companies partner with a 3PL company that uses replenishment logic software that can readily identify and locate specific products within the warehouse allowing warehouse employees to quickly pick & pack the items needed to complete an order.

Much like other features and services within the shipping industry, pick and pack services is exactly what it sounds like: processing packages, disassembling their contents and reassembling them with correct shipping labels.

Also See: Why use a Pick & Pack Service

The success of the pick and pack approach depends heavily on the organization of the warehouse space and observance of specific procedures that are designed to expedite the order fulfillment process. Most 3PL companies make use of technology to manage the process. This includes the use of software programs to track inventory, prepare shipping lists, and create invoices for the filled orders. In some cases, automated systems also handle the process of interacting with shippers to schedule pickups as soon as the order is ready, a feature that can often help to reduce the lag time between the preparation of the package and getting the order on the way to the customer.

Laney & Duke processes over 5,000,000 pick and packs per year in Florida, so without exaggeration we can say that one of our specialties is handling medium to large pick and pack operations for many companies.

With this many packages going through our distribution and warehouse facilities annually, we have the required knowledge and experience needed to run a smooth operation with highly efficient practices and consistent results. Each pack that comes to our distribution facilities goes through two checks for accuracy. This “double check” policy helps guarantee that our pick and pack services are second to none.

We can also help create pick paths that minimize the travel distance for your order, which in turn helps reduce your costs.

For more information about our pick and pack logistic services please call today and put your company on the path to reduce costs and increased profits.

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WARNING: YOU’RE LOSING MONEY BY NOT USING A 3PL COMPANY

Making the decision to outsource supply chain functions and processes to a Third Party Logistics (3PL) company can be challenging yet rewarding to the company looking to save money. Supply chain functions have grown increasingly complex with globalization, technology, and competition advancing at a rapid pace. With the services they provide, outsourcing to 3PL company may be the best choice. Also if you operate a growing e-commerce or catalog store that sells physical items, then you should consider hiring a third party fulfillment center.

Sometimes referred to as 3rd Party Logistics Providers (3PL), the core services offered by these types of companies are inventory management and pick-pack-ship services. But in many cases 3PLs also provide additional services like shopping cart integration, outsourced customer service, returns management and EDI services. The bottom line is that you’re losing money by not using a 3PL company like Laney & Duke and here’s why:

With a 3PL Comany You Get More Services From One Location

  • Your expertise and resources are not optimal in-house to manage a manufacturing or distribution center. A 3PL Company has the experience to do so.
  • Reduction of in-house employees means a decrease in payroll costs and related expenses.
  • Capability to ramp up or down allows you to keep up with business cycle fluctuations.
  • Access to supply chain professionals with years of experience provides a competitive advantage over your competitors.
  • Working with a 3PL improves the efficiency of your business’s fulfillment and supply chain processes.
  • Your business benefits from advanced technologies and warehousing software without the upfront investment.
  • You maintain higher safety, quality, and efficiency standards.

Laney & Duke offers over 1,000,000 sq. ft. of outstanding product warehousing in Jacksonville, FL for distribution services, coupled with our amazing warehouse management. Why spend your capital and invest in unwanted assets to create your own distribution center? Laney & Duke offer those distribution services for you complete with qualified employees and management to make sure your company runs smoothly.

Flexible Pick and Pack Services

  • Pick and Pack services allows you to ship a larger volume of products at lower prices
  • Gives you better shipping accuracy
  • Has greater flexibility
  • Maintans a high level of security
  • Pick and Pack services are an ideal option for smaller companies

Laney & Duke processes over 5,000,000 pick and packs per year in Florida, so without exaggeration we can say that one of our specialties is handling medium to large pick and pack operations for many companies.

Increased Efficiency Using Cross-Docking

  • Cross-Docking allows the efficient consolidation of products.
  • Decreases inventory levels due to elimination of storage.
  • Enables faster product flow by eliminating “dwell”.
  • Enables more frequent deliveries.
  • Decreases inventory obsolescence due to reduced inventory and faster product flow.
  • Decreases labor requirements and costs due to decreased material handling through elimination of put-away to storage and order picking.
  • Decreases inventory damage costs due to less material handling.
  • Supports businesses Just in Time strategy.
  • Accelerates payments to suppliers.
  • Improves the relations with the supply chain partners.

 

Laney & Duke offers everything you need for cross-docking services in Jacksonville, FL including drayage to and from the Jacksonville ports. Whether it’s stripping full trailer loads or trans-loading onto overseas containers or stripping full container loads for domestic delivery, Laney & Duke has you covered. No matter your shipment or needs, Laney & Duke can meet your unique supply chain requirements.

Availability of Kitting Services

  • Kitting provides total supply chain management
  • Operational flexibility
  • Freight Management
  • Customizable service to handle kits from 10 components to 1,000′s
  • Total technology integration

 

Laney & Duke provides kitting services in Jacksonville, FL by way of their superior labor and knowledgeable supervision. We create displays or kits based on your specifications while meeting your sensitive deadlines. With experienced quality control personnel, you can be sure that your product will reach the customer on time while exceeding their expectations.

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SMOOTHING OUT THE GAPS IN YOUR SUPPLY CHAIN

Utilizing a full-service 3PL solution provider can steady your business to meet daily challenges and smooth out the gaps in your supply chain. Every business deals with countless moving parts that are both within and outside of its control. Anything that can help you predict what’s coming, or even just a piece of the business you can count on from day-to-day, feels like a break from the storm. With weather, labor shortages, equipment failures, production lags and everything else that can go wrong, the only real question to answer is “Can our logistics function withstand a crisis?”

There are some nasty gaps in the supply chain that retailers need to overcome if they are looking to make a strong product push or simply supply the popular items that customers were looking to buy. For instance anyone with an eCommerce store can tell you 24 hours is a huge delay, it messes up entire order lifecycle and committed timelines go out the window.

CAREFUL PLANNING AND A LONG-TERM VIEW

The time to seek the assistance of a third-party logistics provider (3PL) is not after a problem arises. While that provider can probably do something to ease the pain, it’s still just a short-term fix, and it will likely rear its ugly head again.

The time to begin a partnership and solidify your logistics function is right now so you can build a cushion for your business, giving it the ability to withstand the unforeseen. (And the unforeseen always comes.) Most businesses know what pains them or what could potentially cause discomfort. You will not stop the problem from happening, but a business can at least lay the foundation for a great partnership while putting tools in place to respond to a bad situation. This changes the conversation from one business trying to take advantage of another in a tough situation. Both sides will benefit from this type of preparation.

SO WHAT CAN A 3PL DO TO HELP CLOSE GAPS IN THE SUPPLY CHAIN?

Whether it’s a shortage of shipping capacity, production lags or rising costs that limit your ability to deliver product where it is needed, a full-service 3PL company that is ERP and EDI compliant and  also utilizes replenishment logic, has the resources to help whether the storm. Solutions could include a simple addition of capacity; streamlining processes; improved buying power; more efficient transactions or improved software that connects the entire company. You will notice most of those solutions can be put in place well before anything nasty happens.

When times get tough or you have a serious issue that needs to be addressed, you will more than likely turn to a friend. That’s what you need from a 3PL provider — a good relationship with someone you can count on to help with any situation. You don’t need a business that immediately wants to start cranking up the extra charges.

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OPTIMIZE INVENTORY MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE WITH KITTING

Kitting, or display assembly services as it might be called, involves the packing together of various items to supply the customer with a single unit.

For example, imagine you’re a video retailer and you’re shipping a popular movie trilogy. Most of the time you sell movie “A” separate from movie “B” and “C,” but you offer a special deal for customers so that when you buy movie “A” and “B,” you get movie “C” for free. Kitting services allows your storage facility to combine those separate movies into one great set.

Instead of shipping three different packages from your warehouse, you’re now combining all separate items into one package for its final destination. By shipping fewer total parcels, you greatly reduce the risk of shipping errors you might face. One package is also easier to ship than three so you will save on transportation fees and any storage fees you might encounter.

REDUCE COSTS,  IMPROVE PRODUCT AVAILABILITY AND INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY

Kitting provides the following benefits:

  • More efficient inventory management
  • Fewer purchase orders
  • Less stocked items
  • Lower inventory carrying costs
  • Reduced space costs (maintenance, utilities, taxes, insurance)
  • Custom kits for high-usage components
  • Critical parts availability

 

Ordering, handling, packaging and storing service parts can be very time consuming and expensive. Laney and Duke’s comprehensive kitting services reduce your handling costs at the point of use, minimize storage space and inventory carrying costs, while providing a cost-effective solution that ensures all needed parts are available in stock.

Laney and Duke has been providing value-added services in the supply chain since 1929 and has continuously reviewed customers needs to help make them more profitable. We are committed to continuous improvement throughout the enterprise and will deliver industry best practices, such as kitting, to streamline operations and reduce costs with measurable results.

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3 Tips to Help You Choose an Order Fulfillment Services Company

Working with an order fulfillment service company is a key step to growing your business. The fulfillment provider you choose to represent your company is going to reflect on your business’s image.

Unfortunately, that reflection isn’t always positive. The product ships late? Your company takes a hit. The wrong order was sent out? Your company takes a hit. These simple mistakes grow and feed the image that your company has a poor reputation with order fulfillment and hurts your company in the long run. At the other end of the spectrum, a good fulfillment provider will improve your business’s image through quality customer care, reliable service, and product accountability.

Working with a good order fulfillment service company allows you to focus on sales and marketing instead of doing everyday tedious job of packing and shipping orders; but choose wisely.

  • Choose an order fulfillment service company that cares. For a logistics provider, this requires near-flawless integration with a retailer to pull off effectively. Your company is to make the retailer look good in the eyes of the customer, and be quicker than their major competitor. This process goes beyond assimilating with a retailer’s eCommerce page or shopping cart and becoming more of an extension of that larger business.
  • EDI Compliance. Does you require an order fulfillment services company that is EDI compliant? One of the most important services a 3PL provider can provide is a seamlessly exchange information via EDI (Electronic Data Interchange). The 3PL provider also must be ERP & eCommerce EDI compliant.
  • Plan ahead. Utilizing a full-service 3PL solution provider can steady your business to meet daily challenges and smooth out the gaps in your supply chain. Every business deals with countless moving parts that are both within and outside of its control in the supply chain. Anything that can help you predict what’s coming, or even just a piece of the business you can count on from day-to-day, feels like a break from the storm. With weather, labor shortages, equipment failures, production lags and everything else that can go wrong, the only real question to answer is “Can our logistics function withstand a crisis?”

 

For eighty years Laney & Duke has warehousing distribution services; We have been fulfilling the warehousing, distribution, order fulfillment and transportation needs of some the world’s most successful companies. In 1929 the logistics business was much less complicated. We started with a handful of people in one building with simple tools, before the invention of forklifts and pallets. It was during the Great Depression which made for a rocky start, but we were committed and we prevailed. Throughout the years the industry has changed enormously, and we’ve grown with it.

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WARNING: YOU’RE LOSING MONEY BY NOT USING A FULFILLMENT CENTER

As e-commerce continues to grow at its rapid clip, supply chain and logistics changes and developments will continue. Customer expectations and competition from e-commerce are driving widespread changes to warehousing and distribution operations. Direct-to-consumer growth is not only affecting retailers, but also manufacturers, wholesalers, and 3PLs. Warehouses and warehouse fulfillment operations are increasingly playing a greater role in commerce due to disintermediation and a reduction in retail sales through stores.

On top of that, the relationship between retailers and upstream partners is changing, as wholesalers have increased their presence in retail and retailers have pushed direct-to-consumer responsibilities back onto their suppliers. As a result, warehouse footprints are expanding, responsiveness and adaptability have become more important, parcel shipping has grown, and labor efficiency remains as important as ever.

WHY OUTSOURCE SHIPPING TO A FULFILLMENT CENTER?

  • It makes your business inalienably adaptable. As your business develops, you don’t need to stress over including new systems, stock controls and hardware. As your shipments expand, it’s just a question of expanding the stock at your 3PL providers location.
  • Outsourcing decreases order fulfillment time. Generally, the companies that specialize in order fulfillment have warehouses located near major shipping hubs and ports. Subsequently, all shipments to clients regardless of where they live normally takes lest transit time.
  • When you outsource inventory and product fulfillment operations it allows time for you to focus on advertising and developing your business. Keeping up and sorting out your own stock can be a major pain and take up a critical bit of your time. By permitting a 3PL company to assume control, you can center your endeavors on enhancing your business.product fulfillment
  • You can also expand your business to other nations. Making international shipments can be a hassle with the costs and paperwork involved. A company that provides third party logistic services will have the experience to handle your international shipping. By outsourcing your order fulfillment to a 3PL company, you no longer have to worry about anything other than sourcing your items from a supplier.

 

Laney & Duke can provide an E-Commerce distribution solution for your business in Jacksonville, Florida. Give us a call to learn how we can help you maximize the efficiency of your operation.

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