Of the many services companies can purchase from a third-party logistics provider (3PL), freight management is one of the most frequently used – not to mention one of the most cost-effective.

      In light of this popularity, Twin Plant News sat down with Brett Harper of APL Logistics to answer some of the most pressing questions shippers tend to have about this growing phenomenon.

      Q: Define freight management services in plain English.

      A:  Freight management is a collection of systems-based services blended together for greater transportation efficiency. These services can include freight optimization, mode selection, carrier selection, freight consolidation, claims processing, carrier selection, freight payment and audit, shipment tracking, and carrier service evaluation.

      Q: Can manufacturers perform these services themselves?

      A: Yes, and many of them do. However the price of operating your own freight management system can be quite high, because there is a systems investment involved.

      Q: Why has outsourcing freight management services become so popular?

      A: Manufacturers who use a 3PL’s freight management service pay only for what they use of a third-party logistics provider’s freight management service system, not for the entire system.  As a result, they can take advantage of all of the benefits of freight management services for a fraction of the cost they’d ordinarily incur.

      This is especially important in these lean financial times, because even in the best economy, an in-house transportation department doesn’t tend to be high up on the list to receive systems dollars.  And even if these departments do succeed in getting the money for a freight management system, it could be years before the systems demonstrate a true return on investment, which can make it difficult for the professionals in the department to justify.

      Q: Speaking of benefits, what specifically are the advantages of a freight management service?

      A: The most significant on the transportation side is probably freight optimization.  This is the process whereby you analyze all of a company’s shipments in an effort to consolidate numerous small shipments into a handful of larger shipments.  

      Q: Why is this a benefit?

            A: As a general rule, bigger is better when it comes to shipments.  The larger the shipment is, the less expensive it will be...

...Continued in the pages of Twin Plant News, Subscribe Today!