Inbound freight management and logistics are receiving a lot of attention as shippers continue to look for ways to manage and mitigate freight costs. Traditional transportation management system (or TMS) vendors help with logistics planning but do little to address what happens in the day-to-day execution. The problem is complex and logistics expertise, as well as software systems, are important to reign in the escalating costs and inefficiencies. It’s important if currently utilizing or looking to hire an outsourced logistics company, that the company offers integrated services, alongside their technology systems, to help you set up a robust inbound logistics program.
Inbound freight accounts for between 40-80% of total freight spend and 75% of companies surveyed by the Aberdeen Group report that inbound freight management is a key focus point. Total freight spend is between 3.6% and 5.2% of surveyed companies’ total sales, according to Aberdeen’s results.
To get a handle on costs, businesses say they need increased visibility into shipments and orders, more control of inbound shipping processes, and increased collaboration with carriers and suppliers. Existing processes are inconsistent at best – real-time freight tracking and tracing are unavailable, plan optimization and routing rules are often not followed by suppliers; cost information is difficult to obtain, and current manual systems don’t scale well with growth. Unfortunately, 90% of shipping executives surveyed said that their current systems, including their Transportation Management Systems (TMS), are inadequate for addressing their inbound shipping needs.
A combination of inbound freight management software and expert integrated managed services provides an ideal solution to the complexities of inbound freight shipments where suppliers are a big factor in the cost-reduction effort. Partnering with a proven, reliable third party logistics company, who also has the ability to deliver both the system and the services is an ideal way to ensure the entire shipping process is effectively managed.
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