Want to know how you can keep customers happy without spending more?

Listen up:

A recent Supply Chain Consortium report reveals that cutting-edge distribution centers are relying on three trends to keep up with the challenges that 2008 brings.

According to the the Consortium’s “2008 Core Benchmarks Report”:

* Less packaging: Whether the motivation is going green or simply saving a buck or two, distribution centers are finding more economical ways to package goods, without sacrificing safety.  More companies are realizing that packaging is an area where costs can be reduced, and relying on distribution centers to pack more carefully, use less expensive material and more plastic airbags.

* More value-added services: Many distribution centers are offering to take over certain responsibilities from customers. In some cases, this means more labeling of products. It also can mean adding RFID tags or taking other steps to make the items being shipped ready to use upon arrival. This can tax your resources, since it generally takes more space to give customers value-added services. That’s why many Inventory operations are re-assessing inventory efficiency and how it impacts storage space, and keeping distribution center layouts flexible, to adapt on the run.

* Less picking: The cross-docking movement is picking up more followers and gaining momentum. Any time that Inventory can reduce the amount of goods being shelved before going out the door, it’s saving time and money. The challenge, of course, is fashioning a distribution center that allows you to cross-dock goods and get them back on another truck as quickly as possible. It saves labor, increases efficiency and gets goods into customers’ hands more quickly. But it’s not easily done. Cross-docking takes some time and research on your end to implement, even just a bit at a time.

Tags: distribution centers, supply chain