Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Expect Shipment Delays Due to Unprecedented Weather Conditions
Friday, November 28th, 2014CLX Logistics Announces New Technology Partnership As Kewill Acquires the IBM Sterling Transportation Management Software
Friday, October 3rd, 2014CLX Logistics LLC, announces its technology partnership with Kewill, a global leader in multimodal transportation management software, as Kewill acquires the IBM® Sterling TMS and its associated development and support teams. Rebranded as Kewill Transport, the top-rated SaaS TMS will be incorporated within Kewill’s Kewill MOVE® transportation and trade management platform.
World-class transportation technology is core to CLX’s broad set of logistics service offerings: driving efficiencies in managed services operations; funneling data into analytical and consulting activities; and delivering sustained cost and service value to customers of the CLX Technologies business unit.
“We are excited to welcome Kewill as a new strategic partner,” notes Steve Hamilton, CEO and President of CLX Logistics – which announced the Kewill partnership at the CLX User Conference and Leadership Forum in Philadelphia on October 1st. “We have been selling and delivering the IBM Sterling TMS for 10+ years and believe it to already be the leading product in the on-demand global-TMS market. With expanded investment from Kewill, we see this market leadership gaining significant momentum.”
From Bob Farrell, President and CEO at Kewill, “The acquisition of the IBM Sterling TMS enhances Kewill’s position in the multimodal transportation management space, and, in particular, in the North American marketplace, enabling us to extend the range of solutions we offer to shippers and retailers. We see the logistics domain expertise and the value adding services of CLX Logistics as a significant advantage in helping us take this expanded suite of capabilities to market.”
Per Mike Skinner, Senior Vice President, CLX Technologies, “Combining Kewill’s market leading trade/customs management and parcel/package/air freight capabilities with the ground and ocean transportation execution strengths of the IBM TMS creates a truly market leading global TMS for all modes. We are looking forward to working with Kewill in North America and all global markets, particularly in Europe and Asia where Kewill has a strong leadership presence with a broad set of transportation capabilities.”
For more information about the Kewill acquisition of TMS, please read the press release posted from Kewill here or visit their website at http://www.kewill.com/.
LLamasoft and CLX Logistics Announce Agreement to Offer European Truckload and Global Ocean and Parcel Data to LLamasoft Customers
Thursday, October 2nd, 2014LLamasoft, the global leader in supply chain design software solutions, and CLX Logistics, a global provider of comprehensive logistics management, technology, and supply chain consulting services, announced an agreement to offer European truckload, global ocean and global parcel data to LLamasoft customers for use in strategic supply chain design.
CLX Logistics has offered a dedicated transportation benchmark service for more than 10 years. During this time, the number of companies using the service has grown substantially. Today, the CLX Logistics Benchmark database contains in excess of EUR 4.1 billion contracted transportation expenditures (no spot market) with detailed data on a full range of global, pan-European and domestic routes and a variety of transport modes. CLX Logistics rate benchmarking service will now be available to LLamasoft customers through a referral agreement.
The partnership will provide LLamasoft customers with an additional resource from which to draw valuable global reference data for use in supply chain modeling. “The growing number of companies participating in our benchmarking proves the added value that our accurate and reliable apple-to-apple comparison brings,” said Marc Huijgen, CLX Logistics European VP. “We have seen companies that considered their processes to be best-of-breed, saving double-digit percentages after deploying our benchmark data in their procurement strategy. Hence we are excited to team up with the leading supply chain design software company LLamasoft to jointly help both our clients make better supply chain decisions.”
“Making CLX rate benchmarking service available to our customers is part of our continuing effort to help fill in missing model data—thus removing one of the biggest obstacles to successful supply chain design initiatives,” said LLamasoft president and CEO Donald Hicks. “Highly sought-after European truckload data will enable a higher level of data accuracy in modeling to help support critical supply chain decision-making.”
For more information, contact Andrew Hamilton at ahamilton@clxlogistics.com
CLX Logistics Selected Top 100 3PL Provider For Five Consecutive Years by Inbound Logistics
Wednesday, September 3rd, 2014CLX Logistics LLC was chosen as a Top 100 3PL Provider for 2014 by Inbound Logistics magazine for its fifth consecutive year. IL editors selected CLX Logistics from a pool of more than 300 companies based on the company’s diverse operational capabilities and experience to meet readers’ unique supply chain and logistics needs.
Inbound Logistics’ Top 100 3PL Provider’s list serves as a qualitative assessment of service providers that are best equipped to meet and surpass readers’ evolving outsourcing needs. Each year, Inbound Logistics editors select the best logistics solutions providers by carefully evaluating submitted information, conducting personal interviews and online research, and comparing that data to readers’ burgeoning global supply chain and logistics challenges. The selected service providers, in the opinion of Inbound Logistics editors, offer the diverse operational capabilities and experience to meet readers’ unique supply chain and logistics needs.
“World-class logistics performance is crucial for companies of all sizes – from Fortune 500 to SMBs. Given the scope and scale of that challenge, IL editors recognize that CLX Logistics provides the kinds of solutions that companies large and small rely on to solve the tactical logistics issues of serving customers better, faster, and more efficiently,” explains Felecia Stratton, Editor, Inbound Logistics. “CLX Logistics is responsive and continues to anticipate evolving needs by also offering the strategic solutions required to drive business process improvement and change for customers. For those reasons, Inbound Logistics editors are proud to recognize CLX Logistics as one of our 2014 Top 100 3PLs.”
“This has been an exciting year for CLX Logistics as we united our subsidiaries under one parent company and expanded our mission to serve the transportation needs of clients in different vertical markets on a global basis,” notes Steve Hamilton, President & CEO of CLX Logistics. “We are proud to be recognized by Inbound Logistics as a Top 100 3PL Service Provider for the fifth consecutive year as it serves as an affirmation to our ongoing dedication and support in addressing the supply chain needs of our growing customer base.”
CLX Logistics Schedules 3rd Annual On-Demand Global TMS User Conference
Thursday, August 21st, 2014CLX Logistics LLC will hold its third annual On-Demand Global TMS User Conference in Philadelphia from September 30 – October 1, 2014.
This invite-only event will feature workshops on transportation management systems including hands-on training on IBM’s global on-demand, web-based TMS (transportation management system) software as well as panel discussions focusing on industry trends like increasing transportation costs and tightening capacity.
The conference will feature noted industry experts Steve Menzies with Trinity Industries, Taylor Robinson of PLG Rail Consulting, Glenn Sokoloski of Ashland Incorporated and Randy Strutz of Quality Distribution, a major bulk trucking company.
Dr. Christopher Norek, supply chain veteran and senior educator from PennState’s Executive Programs and World Campus, will serve as keynote speaker for the conference. In addition to being an accomplished speaker, Dr. Norek has published numerous articles for industry publications including Supply Chain Management Review, Supply & Demand Chain Executive and the International Journal of Logistics Management.
“CLX Logistics continues to host this event to further educate our customers on maximizing the delivered benefits of TMS technology in the areas of real-time shipment tracking; visibility and control over transportation costs and business processes as well as automation of freight bill processing and interactions with a global carrier network,” notes Mike Skinner, Vice President, CLX Logistics Technologies. “Our On-Demand Global TMS User Conference also brings together the best in the transportation logistics industry, providing opportunities for networking among our customers and associates.”
For more information on CLX Logistics On-Demand Global TMS User Conference, email Corinne Bertino at cbertino@clxlogistics.com or call at (215) 461-6201.
Five Biggest Pitfalls in Transport Procurement
Sunday, December 15th, 2013Insights from European Market Study Can Benefit Shippers Globally
By Stan La Haye
Senior Consultant
ChemLogix Logistics
European market trends indicate that while transport volumes and rates continued to fall during the first half of 2013, market indicators suggest that rates will start rising again. Industry figures showed that as of Q3, road transport supply and demand was more balanced, with rates slightly rising. While a slight decrease in transport volumes is expected in 2013 as compared to 2012, a slight increase in transport volumes is anticipated in 2014 when transport rates are expected to simultaneously increase.
This data is supported by a CLX Logistics Transportation Benchmark Study conducted with the European logistics market. A majority of participants indicated that rates have fallen or will continue to fall further during 2013, although they expect an increase for 2014.
To fully benefit from the current low transport rates, the time is now to tender and contract your freight rates again. While simple in theory, many things can go wrong when executing a transport tender such as delays (delayed implementation of rates = less cost saving and a lower return on investment), high internal workloads (up to 400 man-hours for completing a tender process) and an intermittent relationship between shipper and carrier.
Research conducted among CLX Logistics customers revealed five major pitfalls when procuring transport that is indicative of any negotiation, whether domestic or global. These include:
1. Tender executed without establishing savings potential
2. No reliable baseline on which to determine ROI
3. Too little time, no expertise and not the right tools
4. No equal opportunities for all participants
5. Insufficient priority and long response times
Tender Execution Without Establishing Savings Potential
How do you know if there is a savings potential within your current transport spend? Do you use available industry benchmarks to determine where you stand compared to the market? Or is it a “gut feeling” that says it is time to tender?
If cost reduction is the primary goal of the tender, insight into potential savings prior to executing a full tender is of great added value. Think about all the lost time and resources if there is no cost reduction achieved after finalizing a tender.
Through a benchmark study, transport rates can be compared against similar companies and savings potential identified down to the lane level. Using this insight, a well-founded decision can be made whether to only renegotiate a limited number of transport lanes or to execute a full tender when there is sufficient savings potential.
No Reliable Baseline
A reliable baseline is a realistic reflection of a company’s actual shipping profile and forms the basis of a tender. In addition to providing an in-depth understanding of current transportation costs, a good baseline identifies transport lanes and criteria for setting rates. When determining whether to execute a full tender, the baseline is used to calculate the savings and the success of the tender based on new rates. An unreliable baseline leads to wrong tender focus and the lack of a savings indication. Shippers must remember to use historical data over a representative period and adjust as necessary for future changes in the shipping profile.
Too Little Time, No Expertise and Not the Right Tools
Often, a tender is executed along with the daily activities of one of the logistics planners or managers. Executing a full transportation tender generates an extreme peak workload; 400 man hours (almost a full FTE!) over a period of 3 months is often required. As a result, performing a tender is difficult to combine with daily work. In addition, sufficient in-house expertise is often not available to create good tender documentation and calculate transport scenarios based on new offers.
Lack of resources always results in a delay of the process and a lower return on investment. By partly outsourcing the procurement process, the logistics department is relieved of excessive burden and maximum financial results can be achieved in a short timeframe. Prompt implementation of low transport rates results in more immediate savings!
No Equal Opportunities for all Participants
Objectivity in a transport tender is of great importance to find the best fit between the shipper and carriers. The best fit is a combination of compatible factors including price, corporate culture, quality and service. Through an independent review and evaluation of all offers using an established correct assessment criteria (quantitative and qualitative), negotiations can be limited to a select number of carriers.
Insufficient Priority and Long Response Times
Balance the number of carriers, location and geographical coverage when selecting your transportation team. While contracting many different carriers may provide higher savings, internal management may increase the pressure on organizational departments (think of number of audits, business reviews, invoices, contact points, etc.). But don’t limit your carriers to just one or two. A limited carrier base increases risk should no capacity be available within a required response time and a solution must be found on the spot market.
Often, one primary carrier is assigned per transport lane, but with a designated backup carrier. The backup carrier can be selected from the total pool of “primary carriers” to limit the number of contracted carriers, while still guaranteeing sufficient coverage and availability.
Summary
By estimating the potential savings prior to a tender, valuable time and resources are not wasted unnecessarily on a failed expedition. Ensure that a reliable baseline is set to calculate the savings of the tender (and the success of the tender) and do not start a tender if insufficient resources and knowledge cannot sufficient support the endeavor.
Ensure current market data is available that can be used during project planning. Supplement resources, if needed, with external specialists that can offer the process and market knowledge, as well as analysis tools, to maximize tender execution and secure optimum cost savings results.
Need help with executing a tender process? Using CLX Logistics Benchmark services, we can identify savings potential prior to a transport tender, after which we are able to execute the tender quickly but thoroughly with our structured tender approach and analysis tools.
To learn more, contact Marc Huijgen, Vice President, CLX Logistics Europe, at huijgen@lhc.nl or +31(0)40 293 86 16 or Mike Challman, Vice President, North American Operations, at mchallman@chemlogix.com or (215) 461-3842.
Lasting Values: What Every Professional Should Bring on the Job
Tuesday, April 23rd, 2013By Mike Challman, Vice President, North American Operations, CLX Logistics, LLC
When I was a younger man, I developed and, then, refined over the years a simple list of tenets to guide my personal and professional life. As I’ve grown as a leader, I’ve seen clearly how these principles yield a very high level of performance when embraced by a work team. Applying these values, which include both things to do and things to avoid, will inevitably lead to success for both the team and its individual members.
BE COOPERATIVE – Recognize the importance of working together. Don’t worry about who gets the credit.
A high-performing team links individual effort to group results. Individuals can still have specific goals and should certainly be acknowledged for their contributions. It is essential to recognize and reward behavior that contributes to overall team success. Do it consistently and members will become confident that they will be properly recognized for supporting team goals. There is room enough for everyone to succeed, if they work together.
BE CREATIVE – Find new and better ways to do things. Trust that your ideas are worthwhile.
“It’s the way we’ve always done it” is a toxic attitude to a vibrant team environment. If a team won’t adapt and improve, first-rate solutions can quickly become cut-rate. And some of the best ideas can come from newer team members. A fresh set of eyes may recognize an opportunity that is camouflaged to veterans. The creative spirit thrives when team members think aloud, offer suggestions, ask questions and challenge the status quo.
BE COMPASSIONATE – Encourage one another. Help others.
Many of us spend more waking hours during the week with our work team than our families. We need to treat team members with the level of respect and support that we want for ourselves or the people for which we care. That includes taking time to recognize a teammate who does something good. A sincere ‘thank you’ from a colleague might mean more than a comment from a leader. People want to be appreciated. A sincere word of encouragement costs you nothing.
BE COURAGEOUS – Take a strong stand in support of your values and ideas. Take a risk.
It can be scary to advocate for something that challenges prevailing sentiment or the team leader’s opinion. It’s scarier still if you stand alone. But if you’ve done your homework and strongly believe that your proposal is right for the team, take a deep breath and push ahead. The most capable teams foster an environment that encourages open interactions and objective discussion. If we’re not risking, then we’re not moving forward.
AVOID COMPLAINING – Focus on what you can do to make things better. Control your own destiny.
It’s natural to need to vent sometimes. But there is a fine line between blowing off steam and becoming a victim. When team members are encouraged to focus more on resolution and less on the problem, the level of empowerment rises dramatically. Recognizing a problem is usually relatively easy; expressing unhappiness about it is even easier. Moving past that emotion and seeking answers is where real strength lies, and that is where a strong team will focus its collective power.
AVOID COMPLACENCY – ‘Good enough’ is almost never good enough. Raise the bar.
An old colleague used to say, “Perfect is the Enemy of Good”. More often it seems that “good enough” can become the enemy of “great”. A high-performing team will have progressive goals. When a set of clear, specific objectives are achieved, newer and higher targets must be set. The achievement of goals should still be celebrated. Every win, both big and small, is important. The team can celebrate that success before getting down to the business of reaching the next level.
AVOID CRITICIZING – Believe that everyone is trying to do their best. Help them to do better.
Constructive criticism and critical analysis are good things. The negative, judgmental variety is destructive to the culture of a team. We work with people from all sorts of backgrounds and many different life experiences. One constant is true of virtually everyone; we want to do our best and we want to be successful. Before you declare a struggling teammate to be a lost cause, ask yourself – would I want help if that was me? If so, be that support.
AVOID CAPITULATING – Persevere in the face of challenges. “Never, never, never give up.” – Churchill
High-performing teams demonstrate endurance, commitment and tenacity. Sometimes it is easy and fun; other times, grim and demanding. It is important to keep the long view, to expect some bumps in the road, to communicate openly and to focus on improvement. The best teams foster an environment where members trust, challenge, encourage and support one another. A high-performing, results-oriented team will foster the individual achievement of each of its members. It won’t always be easy, but the rewards are worth it, guaranteed.
Seven Questions to Determine If Your Logistics Provider is a “True Professional”
Tuesday, February 12th, 2013By Mike Challman
Vice President, North American Operations, ChemLogix, LLC
Lately, I’ve been chuckling at the TV commercials featuring tax software providers in which consumers learn that their “professional” tax preparer is actually a retail store clerk or a master plumber. Whether that is a fair assessment of tax preparation companies or not, it got me thinking about third-party logistics. The implication of the commercial is obvious: some jobs are better left to “true” professionals. The question that it raises in my mind is:
What are the risks of assuming that any third-party logistics company can efficiently and safely manage your freight activity?
Many people might just assume that all transportation modes and services are basically the same thing. The equipment looks similar, doesn’t it? Trucks travel on the same roads, don’t they? A load is a load, right? Most of all, many third-party logistics providers claim that they can do it all. Accept that assurance at your own peril.
When assessing 3PLs as potential transportation outsource providers, ask these seven fundamental questions, especially if you are a shipper of bulk chemicals and/or hazardous products:
1) Is the provider’s core expertise primarily in transportation or in another logistics discipline?
2) Does the provider have specific expertise in the transportation of your specific type of product? In the chemical industry, the 3PL must understand the intricacies of bulk shipments and hazmat requirements.
3) Is the provider offering the latest technological capabilities and are they ideally suited to your market?
4) Does the provider’s operational staff possess significant experience and training in the proper and safe management of your type of product? For chemical transportation, the staff should have knowledge of bulk and/or hazardous shipping.
5) Can the provider offer insights into market conditions, rates, carriers and other critical aspects of transportation, both for your market segment and for the broader transportation marketplace?
6) Is the provider’s proposed solution flexible and adaptable to your specific requirements?
7) Does the provider demonstrate an appetite for continuous improvement, for challenging the status quo, and for finding new and better ways to address your evolving needs?
While there many good 3PLs, not all are primarily transportation experts; offer state-of-the-art technology; and/or hire, train and retain operations staff with significant industry experience. Virtually no 3PL is an expert in every single industry. And only the very best are ready or willing to adjust and adapt their solution to best fit customers’ needs, with an eye toward doing it even better tomorrow.
If the 3PL with whom you are working, or thinking about engaging, can’t answer at least five to six of those questions appropriately, you may be asking a “retail store clerk” or “plumber” to do your taxes. The very best of the 3PL breed can effectively address all seven issues. Just as tax-paying consumers need a professional tax consultant, you need a 3PL partner who is a truly experienced and verifiable professional.
Elements of An Effective Continuous Improvement Program For Long-Term Successful Supply Chain Operations
Tuesday, February 5th, 2013test