Distribution

A business page story in USA Today depicting the bottlenecks in the shipping lanes has left many retailers shelves empty. Lost sales in this economy really have got to hurt. Distribution centers play a vital role in the supply chain when they are used effectively and efficiently. The days of high inventories and low turnover are long gone.

The distribution centers of today are rapid response flow-through operations that hold the right amount of inventory and expedited delivery in shorter supply chain cycles, many times performing value-applied services on products on the way out the door. Distribution centers are allowing manufacturers to manufacture in a low cost generic format and have the DC’s perform customization services to add to various retail channels from small dollar channels to large club stores and everything in between.

It is nice to see the activity return to the supply chain and I am sure the tightening of belts made us all better and drive additional costs out with efficiency.

The Christmas retail season is fast approaching and the bottlenecks and out of stocks need to be corrected for everyone to make numbers and satisfy the consumers.

I believe the distribution centers are up for the challenge.