made solutions, even those not directly related to logistics. “It’s hard for 3PLs to make money on basic services,” says C. John Langley Jr., a supply chain management professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. “That’s why more 3PLs are emphasizing value-added services.” Value-added services encompass a variety of offerings. Packaging, pick- ing and packing, labeling and kitting, inventory and control, and assembly and customization are the service areas providing the strongest opportunities for 3PLs, according to the IWLA study. Keeping Customers Satisfied Toronto-based Siamons, which spe- cializes in mold control products, views its 3PL relationship as vital to its busi- ness success. “The relationship is an
extension of our business,” Klingel says. “It’s critical to customer satisfaction.” CaseStack helps Siamons accom- plish tasks faster and more efficiently than if they were handled in-house, Klingel notes. The 3PL provides a range of order-processing services, “handling everything from individual bottles and samples all the way up to full skids, LTL, and full truckload for our larger custom- ers,” he explains. CaseStack also occasionally pro- vides repacking services for Siamons, and builds and ships store displays. CaseStack assemblers take the display parts out of a corrugated box, build the unit, then ship the three-shelf display to the retailer. “When it arrives at the store, the cus- tomer just has to take off the top and put up the sign,” Klingel says.
CaseStack doesn’t focus exclusively on value-added services, but under- stands the need to be flexible enough to provide any service a customer requests. “We can handle most value-added ser- vices,” says Dan Sanker, CaseStack’s president and CEO. “It’s not always feasible for companies to handle tasks in-house that may come up only once a year, or that require some form of spe- cialized expertise, such as RFID.” Full-Spectrum Service Value-added services mark the dif- ference between a 3PL that’s simply a transportation/warehousing company and one that’s a full-spectrum service provider, Sanker notes. For Klingel, working closely with CaseStack on all logistics issues is key. “CaseStack gets to know our product,
To please demanding customers, 3PLs offer value-added services that go beyond basic logistics management. CaseStack, for instance, provides repackaging services and builds and ships store displays for Siamons, a Toronto-based mold control product manufacturer.
76 Inbound Logistics • July 2007
Powered by FlippingBook