Supply Chain Visibility Best Practices » Import supply chain

Supply Chain Management for Retailers

Emily — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 22:48:20 +0000

The retail industry is challenged with fluctuating customer demand, ever-changing styles and seasonality, and the need to boost top-line growth through store expansion. A streamlined and efficiently run supply chain is a crucial piece of the puzzle when it comes to keeping overall costs down. As pointed out in World Trade Magazine’s article, Timely Ocean Transit for Retailers, inconsistent transit times can drive up total supply chain costs.

[Supply chain inconsistencies can force retailers to] either retain higher safety stock levels, which increases their inventory carrying costs; resort to airfreight to recover from delays, which balloons transportation costs; or use a combination of the two.

While the article references careful carrier selection as a way to ensure timely deliveries, there are GTM solutions out there that can help retailers with all aspects of supply chain and transportation management. By automating the following elements of the global supply supply chain operations, retailers will be able to reduce cash-cash cycles and lower total delivered costs.

Trade Planning
Develop optimal sourcing and distribution strategies by assessing the total landed cost of alternative decisions including product invoice, transportation, duties, VAT, excise as well as evaluating applicable import and export regulatory controls. With a complete picture of cost and risk, shared decisions can be made across sourcing, compliance and logistics functions.

Import Automation
Establish a global import compliance function that integrates all procurement activities. Manage product classification and admissibility reviews to ensure compliant purchase orders are issued. Streamline the entry process to reduce brokerage costs and reconcile entries to resolve issues before they become a costly Customs audit.

Supplier PO Management
Deliver compliant purchase orders to suppliers in a portal that confirms orders, creates invoices, and manages a buyer workflow to build shipments and generate key documents like the commercial invoice and packing list. Efficiently manage supplier compliance and integrate with origin logistics partners.

Origin Management
Manage origin logistics with a portal that coordinates full container load shipments from a supplier and less than container or air shipments. Use a collaborative workflow process to confirm and book shipments as well as collect bill of lading details to facilitate inbound visibility. Enhance compliance with new advanced notification regulations like Customs 10+2 by collecting relevant information at origin.

Global Freight Management
Negotiate seafreight and airfreight rates and implement a process for logistics providers and suppliers to book against your favorable rates. Use sophisticated rating tools to optimize carrier selection, pre-rate the booking and automate freight audit.

Supply Chain Visibility
Monitor global orders, shipments and in-transit inventory with a complete event management solution. Use milestone alerting to proactively resolve delivery issues and to trigger supply execution activities such as pickups or warehouse receipts. Use in-transit inventory information to enable postponement strategies and new, direct-to-store delivery strategies. Aggregate all operational data to establish scorecards and manage trade parties with a comprehensive set of key performance indicators.

For more information on the benefits automation can bring retailers, I recommend this new eBook: Direct Import Strategies for Retailers.

New Expert eBook: Direct Import Strategies for Retailers

Emily — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 19:04:16 +0000

Check out this brand-new eBook from Management Dynamics - Direct Import Strategies for Retailers: How to Take Control Over Your Supply Chain.

The retail industry is challenged with fluctuating customer demand, ever-changing styles and seasonality and the need to boost top-line growth through store expansion. Margin pressure has led many retailers to source goods from low cost countries – initially through distributors or international procurement operations and increasingly through direct import strategies.

This new eBook can help get you started and soon realize the advantages of a direct import program including:

A centralized procurement function to ensure higher levels of import compliance
Improved coordination and reduced order cycles with overseas suppliers
Enhanced compliance with advanced security programs like Customs 10+2
Reduced inbound transportation costs
Lower product invoice by eliminating purchases through intermediaries/distributors
More flexibility to implement postponement and direct-to-store distribution strategies
Higher levels of automation to reduce brokerage costs upon entry

Download this eBook and get started on building a Direct Import Program today to reduce costs and take control over your supply chain.

Free Webinar: Capitalizing on the Direct Import Opportunity

Emily — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 19:29:00 +0000

Earlier this year Walmart announced projected cost savings of 5 – 15% by product category with an expanded direct import program. While retailers, consumer goods companies and most global manufacturers have been importing for years, there is renewed interest in understanding all of the elements of a direct import program and the opportunity areas that can drive new supply chain efficiencies and boost product profitability.

This webinar, presented by Management Dynamics and World Trade Magazine, will take a look at the foundation technologies for a direct import program, explore the implementation options by working with a global logistics provider, and discuss a number of successful case studies.

The webinar will be Tuesday, May 25 at 2pm EST. Please register today by following this link.

Trade Professionals Turn to GTM Technologies to Reduce Supply Chain Risk

Emily — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:31:01 +0000

In a recent AMR Research study, 53% of 160 global trade professionals surveyed claimed that they would be increasing their investment on global trade management (GTM) software in 2010. Some of the main reasons cited in the study for the increase include: to improve coordination of GTM functions internally; to meet government mandates; to meet security requirements; to protect the brand; and to control various costs.

As companies become more global, increasing and expanding operations all over the world, it becomes very difficult to manually manage supply chain processes. Especially when employees are spread out across multiple locations. GTM technologies allow users to seamlessly communicate with trading partners, manage suppliers, optimize global transportation, ensure trade compliance, automate key aspects of trade finance, and develop timely resolutions of operational issues.

To be more specific, a supply chain visibility solution can provide shippers with near-real time visibility to the status of orders, shipments and in-transit inventory to optimize their network. Without a system in place, companies may be handcuffed with longer lead times, higher inventory levels, budget overruns, and continued supply-demand imbalances. Furthermore, with regulations such as the Importer Security Filing (aka 10+2), it is more important than ever to have more visibility and control over what happens at origin. (And speaking of ISF, check out how Bunzl Distribution integrated a supply chain visibility solution with a trade import solution to establish a transparent and compliant import supply chain.)

The bottom line is that we are moving into an era where manual supply chain processes are becoming inept for companies who import or export. To learn more about how different types of GTM technologies can benefit your organization, please download one of Management Dynamics’ GTM Success eKits.

The Importer Security Filing is Just Around the Corner..

Emily — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 17:11:18 +0000

Here’s a great article I found in Logistics Management that gives a basic overview of the Importer Security Filing (“10+2″) rule: Complying with the Importer Security Filing. The rule, which goes into full effect very soon – Jan. 26, 2010, will require importers of ocean freight to complete a properly executed Importer Security Filing (ISF). To comply with this rule, the importer must submit 10 pieces of data related to the container’s contents 24 hours prior to loading, and the carrier must submit an additional 2 items no later than 48 hours after departure.

In order to comply with this rule (noncompliance could result in fines and costly supply chain disruptions), importers need to have processes in place that will allow them to classify and store compliance-related product details; screen suppliers against government-maintained restricted party lists; communicate effectively both internally and with partners so that they will have the information needed to complete the requirements; and measure the process with performance metrics.

Implementing Global Trade Management (GTM) technology can mitigate the risk of non-compliance, fines and product delays resulting from Customs 10+2. The hidden benefit, however, is in deploying a level of automation that will allow importers to effectively shift to a Direct Procurement model. Ultimately, the price of complying with heightened security regulations will cost more, but this new business model promises to generate a new stream of benefits for the importer. For further information on complying with the ISF, and tips on how GTM technologies can help you, please check out our 10+2 Practical Guide.

Automating the Import Supply Chain at Leggett & Platt

Emily — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:02:04 +0000

Automating the import supply chain today is complicated by new compliance regulations like Customs 10+2 and C-TPAT. In this interview with Global Logistics & Supply Chain Strategies magazine, VP Customs Compliance at Leggett & Platt discusses best practices for import compliance and for transforming a fragmented global procurement approach into a centralized global import process:

GTM in a Flash: Automating the Import Supply Chain

Emily — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 22:02:44 +0000

Today, importers must deal with end-to-end supply chain accountability and are increasingly challenged to have visibility and control over their supply base and origin operations. Here is a short video gives a good overview of how GTM technology can help companies manage these complexities of going global by automating their inbound processes, improving regulatory compliance and attaining landed cost objectives:

Strategic Opportunities that 10+2 Presents

Emily — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:52:05 +0000

Recent research shows that the average cost per Importer Security Filing is $30.* With large importers filing 5,000 ISFs or more per year, the cost of compliance totals to upwards of $150,000 and provides no ROI other than penalty avoidance.

In this short video, Ty Bordner, VP of Solutions Consulting at Management Dynamics discusses some of the strategic opportunities that ISF Compliance can present to an organization, including:

Reducing the effort of complying with Customs 10+2
Minimizing errors upon entry by linking to ISFs
Eliminating manually re-keying data
Preventing potential penalties of $5,000 per ISF
Reducing broker fees (on average, $30 per ISF)
Managing the import process with complete visibility from origin, through customs, to the final destination

*Source: American Shipper ISF Benchmark Study

Have You Registered for SCOPE West?

Emily — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 15:10:57 +0000

Come join Management Dynamics at SCOPE West August 19 – 21 in Las Vegas. SCOPE West is one of the industry’s leading Supply Chain executive conferences. John Wainwright, VP Customs Compliance at Leggett & Platt, will be presenting on ‘Automating the Import Supply Chain.’ Please follow this link for details on conference registration.

For more on Leggett & Platt, check out this webinar on import supply chain automation, featuring John Wainwright: Automating the Import Supply Chain at Leggett & Platt.