Strengthening your supply chain one link at a time.
At one point in time, we’ve all completed a dot-to-dot. The end result is a rough outline of an image or shape that you most likely colored in to make more realistic. A Network Optimization connects the dots between your facilities with a goal of optimizing total cost and to maintain or improve delivery service levels.
Some information to be considered when creating the dots for your overall network picture:
When was the last time you took a look at your entire network? Have you added new products or recently acquired or merged? The information about your dots or answers about your business are ever changing and should be reviewed on a regular basis. Your overall picture will most likely be a shape shifter but still a snapshot of, hopefully, an optimized network.
Just like the dot-to-dot activity books we filled out as children, the transportation costs are the lines connecting the dots, but there is so much more to understand to color in the rest of your network and allow you the vision to see your fully optimized logistics network.
—Kim King, St. Onge Company