17/05/2017

Top 3 Reasons Why You Should Outsource Your Logistics Requirements

# Logistics Knowledge

Peace of mind and efficient logistics management
Save on time, money and effort
Network growth and opportunities

Whether you are a small business or a major conglomerate, you have your own scope of business activities to do. Businesses that you are an expert in, businesses that you are specialised in and activities that are core to your business.

For most people involved in manufacturing and trading, shipping and freight may not be a core activity, but it is something that has to be done as part of the business.

Shipping, freight and logistics activities can be quite complex and complicated if not handled properly as it involves several stages of monitoring, documentation, dealing with government and regulatory bodies.

There are specialists to handle these particular activities and here are 3 good reasons why you should outsource your logistics requirements to these specialists rather than handle it yourself.

1) Peace of Mind and an Efficient Logistics Movement

a) A reliable logistics service provider experienced in all modes of transportation – road, rail, air and sea is able to provide cost effective and efficient cargo transport solutions whether unimodal or multimodal based on your requirement.

b) They can control and monitor your order fulfilment process and arrange crucial elements of the business such as storage of cargo, distribution and delivery as per your orders without you having to micro-manage the process or having to invest in these assets.

c) They will also have a good relationship with the carriers to ensure that you get the space required and negotiate freight rates using their buying power which is usually supplemented by their volumes.

d) They will also advise you on the relevant documentary requirements, licences, permits etc not just in your country but also the destination or origin country depending on whether export or import and also any peculiarities at the transhipment ports enroute to your destination.

e) Advances in technology have created a new breed of freight forwarder, digital freight forwarder who uses leading technologies such as IoT (Internet of Things), Big Data, Analytics, Apps to create digital freight platforms which creates efficiency through new solutions.

f) These digital platforms allow the forwarder to implement technology based changes in essential logistics functions across various internal processes covering supply chain procurement, sales & operational planning and customer services.

2) Saving on Time, Money and Effort

Outsourcing your shipping and freight requirement to the right partners not only allows you complete peace of mind, it also saves you a lot of time and money which you would otherwise need to invest in asset and staff overheads, administration, monitoring, possible penalties etc etc.

The service provider will also take the trouble out of you having to handle risk assessment, risk management related to shipping and freight activities.

The money thus saved can be channelled back into your core business.

3) Grow Your Network and Opportunities

Using a specialist logistics company, especially one with a global footprint or network, gives you credible access to agents and a reliable network across the globe.

Having a reliable agent not only enables you to do your business in a cost-effective manner, it also provides you the opportunity to increase your global business which otherwise may not be possible due to lack of credible partners.

By choosing a reliable logistics partner and having an open negotiation with them in terms of your business, you can have the flexibility to grow in the area in which you need to grow.

For example, you don’t have to worry about space for storage of your cargo whether it increases or decreases depending on the market. Your logistics partner can always understand the scale of your business and scale their offerings up or down as per your requirement.

Remember they can do this as they may not only be dependent on your business, but your business is only dependent on you.

Conclusion

When dealing with an area which you are not familiar with like shipping, freight and logistics can turn out to be pretty expensive if not handled properly. It always pays to be safe than sorry and leave the business to experts who have been handling these activities for years and know the workings of the business.