Logistics Management

Definition - What does Logistics

Management mean?
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Logistics management is a supply chain management
component that is used to meet customer demands through
the planning, control and implementation of the effective
movement and storage of related information, goods and
services from origin to destination.
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Logistic management helps companies reduce expenses and
enhance customer service.
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The logistics management process begins with raw material
accumulation to the final stage of delivering goods to the
destination.
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By adhering to customer needs and industry standards,
logistics management facilitates process strategy,
planning and implementation.
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Logistics management involves numerous elements,
including:
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Selecting appropriate vendors with the ability to provide
transportation facilities,
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Choosing the most effective routes for transportation;

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Discovering the most competent delivery method
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Using software and IT resources to proficiently handle
related processes.
In logistics management, unwise decisions create
multiple issues. For example, deliveries that fail or are
delayed lead to buyer dissatisfaction. Damage of goods
due to careless transportation is another potential issue.
Poor logistics planning gradually increases expenses, and
issues may arise from the implementation of ineffective
logistics software. Most of these problems occur due to
improper decisions related to outsourcing, such as
selecting the wrong vendor or carrying out delivery tasks
without sufficient resources.
To resolve these issues, organizations should implement
best logistic management practices. Companies should
focus on collaboration rather than competition. Good
collaboration among transportation providers, buyers and
vendors helps reduce expenses. An efficient and safe
transportation provider is also vital to business success.
Logistics management may be defined as follows:
Logistics management consists of the process of planning,
implementing and controlling the efficient flow of raw-materials, work-
in-progress and finished goods and related information-from point of
origin to point of consumption; with a view to providing satisfaction to
the customer.
According to Phillip Kotler, “Market logistics involve
planning, implementing and controlling physical flow of
material and final (finished) goods from the point of origin
to the point of use to meet customer requirements, at a
profit.”
Classification of Logistical Activities:
Logistics (or Logistical Activities) may be Broadly Classified into Two
Categories:

I. Inbound logistics; which is concerned with the smooth and cost

effective inflow of materials and other inputs (that are needed in
the manufacturing process) from suppliers to the plant. For proper
management of inbound logistics, the management has to
maintain a continuous interface with suppliers (vendors).
II. Outbound logistics (also called physical distribution
management or supply chain management); is concerned with the
flow of finished goods and other related information from the firm
to the customer. For proper management of outbound logistics, the
management has to maintain a continuous interface with transport
operators and channels of distribution.
 Significance (or Objectives) of
Logistics Management:
)Cost Reduction and Profit Maximization:
(i

Logistics management results in cost reduction and profit

maximization, primarily due to:
1. Improved material handling
2. Safe, speedy and economical transportation
3. Optimum number and convenient location of warehouses etc.
(ii) Efficient Flow of Manufacturing Operations:

Inbound logistics helps in the efficient flow of manufacturing

operations, due to on-time delivery of materials, proper utilisation of
materials and semi-finished goods in the production process and so
on.
iii) Competitive Edge:
(

Logistics provide, maintain and sharpen the competitive edge of

an enterprise by:
1. Increasing sales through providing better customer service
2. Arranging for rapid and reliable delivery
3. Avoiding errors in order processing; and so on.

(iv) Effective Communication System:

An efficient information system is a must for sound logistics
management. As such, logistics management helps in
developing effective communication system for continuous
interface with suppliers and rapid response to customer
enquiries.
(v) Sound Inventory Management:
Sound inventory management is a by-product of logistics management. A
major headache of production management, financial management etc. is
how to ensure sound inventory management; which headache is cured by
logistics management.
Major Functions of Logistics
Logistics is a process of movement of goods across the supply chain of a
company. However, this process consists of various functions that have to be
properly managed to bring effectiveness and efficiency to the supply chain of the
organization.
Order processing

It is an important task in functions of logistics operations. The purchase order

placed by a buyer to a supplier is an important legal document of the transactions
between the two parties.

This document incorporates the description or technical details of the product to

supply, price, delivery period, payment terms, taxes, and other commercial terms
as agreed.
The processing of this document is important as it has a direct relationship with
the order or the performance cycle time, which indicates the time when the
order is received and when the materials are received by the customer. The
order processing activity consists of the following steps:
Order checking for any deviations in agrees upon or negotiated terms
Prices, payment, and delivery terms.
Checking the availability of materials in stock.
Production and material scheduling for shortages.
Acknowledging the order indicating deviations if any.

Inventory control
Inventory management is to keep enough inventories to meet customer
requirements, and simultaneously its carrying cost should be lowest.

It is basically an exercise of striking a balance between the customer service

for not losing the market opportunity and the cost to meet the same.
The inventory is the greatest culprit in the overall supply chain of a firm
because of its huge carrying cost, which indirectly eats away the profits. It
consists of the cost of financing the inventory, insurance, storage, losses,
damages, and pilferage.
Warehousing
Warehousing is the storing of finished goods until they are sold. It plays a vital
role in logistics operations of a firm. The effectiveness of an organization’s
marketing depends on the appropriate decision on warehousing.
In today’s context, warehousing is treated as switching facility rather than a
storage of improper warehousing management. Warehousing is the key decision
area in logistics.
The major decisions in warehousing are:
Location of warehousing facilities
Number of warehouses
Size of the warehouse
Warehouse layout
Design of the building
Ownership of the warehouse
Transportation
For movement of goods from the supplier to the buyer, transportation is the most
fundamental and important component of logistics.
When an order is placed, the transaction is not completed till the goods are
physically moved to the customer’s place. The physical movement of goods is
through various transportation modes.
Firms choose the mode of transportation depending on the infrastructure of
transportation in the country or region. Cost is the most important consideration in
the selection of a particular mode of transport.
However, sometimes urgency of the good at the customer end overrides the cost
consideration, and goods are sent through the fastest mode, which is an expensive
alternative.
 Material handling and storage system
The speed of the inventory movement across the supply chain depends on the
material handling methods. An improper method of material handling will add to
the product damages and delays in deliveries and incidental overheads.

Mechanization and automation in material handling enhance the logistics system

productivity.
Other considerations for selection of a material handling system are the volumes to
be handled, the speed required for material movement and the level of service to be
offered to the customer.
The storage system is important for maximum space utilization (floor and cubic) in the
given size of a warehouse.
The material handling system should support the storage system for speedy
movement (storage and retrieval) of goods in and out of the warehouse.
Logistical packaging
Logistical or industrial packaging is a critical element in the physical distribution of a
product, which influences the efficiency of the logistical system. It differs from
product packaging, which is based on marketing objectives.
However, logistical packaging plays an important role in damage protection, case in
material handling and storage space economy. The utilization of load has a major
bearing on logistical packaging with regard to the packaging cost.

Information
Logistics is basically an information-based activity of inventory movement across a
supply chain. Hence, an information system plays a vital role in delivering a
superior service to the customers.
Use of IT tools for information identification, access, storage, analysis, retrieval and
decision support which is vital among the functions of logistics is helping business
firms to enhance their competitiveness.
 DISTRIBUTION RELATED ISSUES
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The top challenges facing the industry.
1. Fuel Costs. One of the highest costs contributing to the ‘cutting transportation
cost’concern is fuel prices. Higher fuel prices are likely to increase transportation
costs for US shippers this year by pushing up fuel surcharges. Rising US diesel fuel
prices are escalating surcharges added to freight rates, which is reversing a two-
year trend that cut into the revenue and earnings of truckers as fuel prices
plummeted.
2.Business Process Improvement. Not withstanding the need for new
technology, which we discuss in number eight on this list, it has become an
increasing challenge for the logistics industry to stay on top of new advances in
business processes. Taking advantage of these new opportunities sounds
enticing but adoption and onboarding can be overwhelming.
3.Improved Customer Service. Customers want full transparency into where
their delivery is at all times. These days, the location of a package is as
interconnected as your social network. In fact, as customer expectations have
increased, their willingness to pay for fast shipping has decreased with just about
64 percent of consumers unwilling to pay anything extra for less than two-day
shipping.
4.Economy. With high fuel prices comes a greater credit crisis and rising
inflationary demands that take a greater toll on the US economy. This industry is
then pressured by increasing compliance regulations, declining demand, additional
capacity with additional increases in key cost centers.
5.Driver Shortage & Retention. Hiring and retention remain an issue despite the
lower demand mentioned above.
6.Government Regulations. Carriers face significant compliance regulations
imposed by federal, state and local authorities.
7.Environmental Issues. The anti-idling and other emission reduction regulations
brought about by state and local governments has created concern that the compliance
costs could exceed benefits.
8.Technology Strategy & Implementation. While the industry understands and
supports many of the benefits of these technologies, some questions remain as to how
they will pay for it and who will help implement the improvements.
 GAINING COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE THROUGH LOGISTICS

Logistics Intelligence + Efficiency = Competitive Advantage

A firm can gain competitive advantage only when it performs its strategically
important activities (designing, producing, marketing delivering and
supporting its product) more cheaply or better than its competitors.
Value chain activity disaggregates a firm into its strategically relevant activities in
order to understand behavior of costs and existing and potential sources of
differentiation. They are further categorized into two types
(i) Primary – inbound logistics, operation outbound logistics, marketing and
sales, and service
(ii) Support – infrastructure, human resource management, technology
development and procurement
To gain competitive advantage over its rivals, a firm must deliver value to its
customers through performing these activities more efficiently than its
competitors or by performing these activities in a unique way that creates greater
differentiation.

Logistics management has the potential to assist the firm in the achievement of
both a cost/productivity advantage and a value advantage. The under lying
philosophy behind the logistics concept is that of planning and coordinating the
materials flow from source to user as an integrated system rather than, as was
so often the case in the past, managing the goods flow as a series of
independent activities. Thus under a logistics management regime the goal is to
link the marketplace, the distribution network, the manufacturing process and the
procurement activity in such a way that customers are service at higher levels
and yet at lower cost.
 Businesses are always searching for a competitive advantage that will set them
apart from others offering a similar product or service. The competitive
advantage is gained by offering a customer services of greater value, lower
pricing or greater benefits. Without a distinguishing advantage, what is the
lure for a potential customer to select one provider over the other? Businesses
without a competitive advantage will have a harder time maintaining their
relevance in the market.
In today’s global economy, being adaptive and flexible is the key to staying
relevant. Changes to the logistics industry have been driven by reasons
such as the price of oil, labor costs, security, trade regulations, labor
stoppages, vessel capacity and technology. Having the personnel, practices
and tools to proactively adapt to these changes will give a company the
competitive advantage.
Here are a number of solutions that if used will help a company gain the
competitive advantage:
1.Shipper Associations / Consortiums: By being a part of a shippers association,
a business can benefit from lower transportation rates due to the competitive
negotiations and economies of scale.
2.Transportation Management Systems (TMS): Such platforms allow a business
to manage their data flow more efficiently and allows for visibility of performance
and cost. Keeping an eye on costs, transit times, delivery performance, freight
claims, and compliance will allow for strategic thinking and put a company a step in
front of its competitors.
3.Auto-Tender Functionality: This feature allows freight to be tendered directly to
carriers, greatly reducing the time spent scheduling a shipment. When set up
using a least cost carrier, the savings combined with the efficiency gain provide a
great advantage.
4.Advanced Tracking: Visibility and transparency are becoming more and more
important in business. Advanced tracking features have been adopted to give
customers real-time information on where their goods are.
5.Sustainability Comprehensive electronic tracking that aggregates loads and
routes is a planning solution that reduces fuel consumption and cost. It facilitates up-
to-the-minute route and load scheduling to take account of everything from weather
conditions to just-in-time shipment adjustments. An intelligent supply chain will use
cutting-edge electronic systems to improve both fuel efficiency and cost
effectiveness, by eliminating guesswork and backtracking to find misplaced
shipments. It affords maximum flexibility in route and load planning so that delivery
problems and energy consumption are minimized, saving fuel, resources and time
6.PAPERLESS PROCESSING THE AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION ONLINE
AND IN REAL TIME CAN LARGELY ELIMINATE THE NEED TO PRINT OUT
PAPER REPORTS AND FORMS THAT CREATE INEFFICIENCY, DELAY AND
WASTE.
Major objectives of logistics planning
On-time delivery.
Effectively meets emergency needs.
Careful handling of merchandise.
Willingness to take back defective goods and resupply them quickly
Quick Response
Minimum Product Damage
Freight Economy
Relaible and consisitent delivery performance
 Transportation Management
Transportation happens to be the most fundamental part of logistic management. Transport
costs include all costs associated with movement of products from one location to another.

The average transport costs ranges from 5 to 6% of the recommended retail price of the
product.

Transportation is the movement of products, materials and services from one area to
another, both inbound and outbound.
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A transportation management system (TMS) is a subset of supply chain
management (SCM) that deals with the planning, execution and optimization of
the physical movements of goods. In simpler terms, it's a logistics platform that
enables users to manage and optimize the daily operations of their
transportation fleets.

TMS is offered as a module within enterprise resource planning (ERP) and SCM
suites and helps organizations move inbound -- procurement -- and outbound --
shipment -- freight using tools such as route planning and optimization, load
building, operations execution, freight audit and payment, yard management,
order visibility, and carrier management. The ultimate goals of using a TMS are to
improve shipment efficiency, reduce costs, gain real-time supply chain visibility
and enhance customer service.
Typically, TMS serves both shippers and logistics service providers. Manufacturers,
distributors, e-commerce organizations, wholesalers, retailers and third-party
logistics (3PL) companies are some of the major users of TMS software.
SELECTION OF TRANSPORT
 Benefits of TMS
A fully deployed transportation management system can benefit organizations in
the following ways:

1.Transportation order planning and execution. TMS integrates well with enterprise
order management, warehouse management and purchasing systems, customer
relationship management (CRM), supplier relationship management (SRM), and other
systems for managing transport demand. It enables users to plan and manage both
international and domestic shipments and determines the cheapest and most efficient
carrier and mode using better route planning, load optimization, carrier mix and mode
selection.
2.Supply chain visibility and better control of inventory management. TMS
enables users to track and monitor the lifecycle of orders and shipments in real time
and get status updates on each. This offers users an accurate forecast for the
inventory and improves the visibility and accountability of the supply chain network.
3.Reduce invoice errors. By automating the freight payment and audit processes,
users can reduce errors that may arise from manual procedures.
4.Transport intelligence. Most TMS software offers users extensive insights and
reporting capabilities that provide them with detailed visibility into freight data and
metrics to help pinpoint any discrepancies. With this data, users can make the
necessary changes to improve service delivery and reduce cost, and they can also
create reports.
 Transportation Management
Mode of transports
Method of selection
Transportation costs
Fleet sizing and configuration
Routing and scheduling
Futuristic direction in transportation
 Mode of transports
Given below are the various mode of transports
1.By Road
2.By Railways
3.Water ways
4.Airways
5.Pipeline
6.Multimodal
Advantages and disadvantages of five modes of
transportation
 Method of selection
The selection procedure for the transport mode could vary from
the simple decision either to identify one feasible method of
distribution.

Judgment: Identification of the important factors affecting the

transport problem by the transport manager, and the
transport mode from a list of alternatives available, so that the
important features of the transport requirements are met.
 Method of selection
Cost- trade-off: It is where the impact of transport is
calculated in relation to immediate terminal objectives and
activities, and the total cost of distribution system is
optimized.
Distribution models: This identifies and explains the
interrelationships between the components of the distribution
system at various levels of daily, weekly or monthly
demands.
 Transportation costs
Transport costs vary from less than 1% (for machinery) to over 30
% (for food) of the recommended selling price of products, depending
upon the nature of the product range and its market. However the
average transport costs is between 5 to 6% of the recommended retail
price of a product.

With inflation transport costs also rise because the major components
are the workforce, fuel, spare parts and overall operating costs.
 Transportation costs
Transport is vital to the overall gambit (strategy / scheme) of
SCM operation and therefore cannot be considered in isolation. The
entire transportation process is to be monitored, in order to gauge the
exact location and state of the materials being transported.

Operational factors

 Environmental factors
 Characteristics of alternate transport modes
 Combination approach / multi-modal transport
 Fleet sizing and configuration
Fleet management is the function that oversees, coordinates and
facilitates various transport and transport related activities. For the
purpose of this document it will cover vehicles involved in the
movement of goods; the management of light vehicle fleets used in the
transportation of people and light cargo; possibly motorbikes and other
equipment such as generators and warehouse handling equipment.
Fleet management underpins and supports transport related activities
through the management of the assets that are used.

Effective fleet management aims at reducing and minimizing overall

costs through maximum, cost effective utilization of resources such as
vehicles, fuel, spare parts, etc.
 Fleet sizing and configuration
Fleet size can be regulated and minimized by
 Utilizing standard size transport containers

 monitoring fleet utilization levels periodically

 Maintaining total fleet visibility, including loading times, unloading, transit

times and maintenance times.
The approach to service planning laid out in this guide generally assumes that the
system operators can and will adjust the number of vehicles they operate per route,
and the size of the vehicles used on each route, to best serve the demand on each
route.

On the other hand, larger vehicles also directly translate into lower frequency, and
lower frequency means longer waiting times. Therefore, the costs of these two
effects need to be measured in specific conditions when selecting an optimal
vehicle size.
 Routing and scheduling
ROUTING is the process of mapping out the unique ways that one or more vehicles
will take while they deliver or collect stock from each of their stop points. This
involves considering the sequence of stops, and the ways that will be taken by each
vehicle to successfully achieve this outcome.
SCHEDULING is the process of calculating and assigning an arrival time for each
stop, with drivers being assigned shifts that adhere to working hours.
Delay in delivery due to routing problems increase costs of goods manifold.

Therefore, to tide over this the company has to plan these activities well in
advance with detailed coordination and judicious and realistic planning.
Companies have to gear itself to such changing scenarios and terrain since
the very inception.

Efficient versus inefficient routing can save tremendous amount of money

in fuel, labor, capital expenditures and significantly enhance customer satisfaction.
 Routing and scheduling
The objectives of routing and scheduling to minimize.
 Total route costs
 Number of routes

Distance travelled

The constraints are

 Customer requirements and time available
 Balancing of the route for the driver, to avoid overtaxing

 Maximum route time
 Vehicle capacity
 Start & Stop points enroute Infrastructure constraints
Multimodal
 Multimodal

Combination of two or more modes of movement of goods,

such as air, road, rail, or sea. Also called combined transport.

multimodal-transport today’s world, intelligent transport

systems impact on the infrastructure, networks, information
systems and strategies of all modes of transport.

But beyond the boundaries between different modes of

transport, intelligent transport systems also address the
challenges of multimodality.
 Futuristic Direction in transportation

Transportation too has improved considerably with the advent of

technology and mechanical developments within a short span.

 Carrier relationship management

 Corporate traffic certification (training for entire
department)


 Cross docking?
Speed and productivity of a supply chain has become an important factor of
growth for organisations. Cross-docking is just one strategy that can be
implemented to help achieve a competitive advantage. Implemented
appropriately and in the right conditions, cross-docking can provide significant
improvements in efficiency and handling times.

What is cross docking?

Cross docking is a logistics procedure where products from a supplier or
manufacturing plant are distributed directly to a customer or retail chain with
marginal to no handling or storage time. Cross docking takes place in a distribution
docking terminal; usually consisting of trucks and dock doors on two (inbound and
outbound) sides with minimal storage space. The name ‘cross docking’ explains the
process of receiving products through an inbound dock and then transferring them
across the dock to the outbound transportation dock.
Cross docking is a logistical strategy where products and materials are unloaded from
one inbound source (truck, railcar, etc.) and then immediately moved onto outbound
transportation with as little storage time as possible. This is desirable because the
longer products sit in a warehouse or other storage location, the less overall value they
provide.
Cross-docking is the practice of unloading goods from inbound delivery vehicles
and loading them directly onto outbound vehicles. By eliminating or minimizing
warehouse storage costs, space requirements and inventory handling, cross-
docking can streamline supply chains and help them move goods to market faster
and more efficiently.

Some manufacturers use cross-docking in their own facilities, moving finished

goods directly from production to an outbound dock without first storing them in the
warehouse. Not having to store the products avoids associated labor costs for order
fulfillment processes, such as picking and putting away goods, or the use of
fulfillment technologies such as pick-to-light. Other industry sectors employ cross-
docking, including distributors and retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
In simple terms, inbound products arrive through transportation such as
trucks/trailers, and are allocated to a receiving dock on one side of the ‘cross
dock’ terminal. Once the inbound transportation has been docked its products
can be moved either directly or indirectly to the outbound destinations; they can
be unloaded, sorted and screened to identify their end destinations. After being
sorted, products are moved to the other end of the ‘cross dock’ terminal via a
forklift, conveyor belt, pallet truck or another means of transportation to their
destined outbound dock. When the outbound transportation has been loaded,
the products can then make their way to customers.
When is cross-docking used?
The process of cross docking will not suit every warehouses needs, it is therefore
important to make an informed decision as to whether cross-docking will increase
the productivity, costs and customer satisfaction for your specific business. Cross
docking can advance the supply chain for a variety of specific products. For one,
unpreserved or temperature controlled items such as food which need to be
transported as quickly as possible can be benefitted by this process. Additionally,
already packaged and sorted products ready for transportation to a particular
customer can become a faster and more efficient process through cross docking.
Some of the main reasons cross docking is implemented is to:
Provide a central site for products to be sorted and similar products combined to
be delivered to multiple destinations in the most productive and fastest method.
This process can be described as “hub and spoke”
Combine numerous smaller product loads into one method of transport to save on
transportation costs. This process can be described as ‘consolidation
arrangements’.
Break down large product loads into smaller loads for transportation to create an
easier delivery process to the customer. This process can be described as
‘deconsolidation arrangements’.
Hopefully this blog assists you in understanding the concept of cross-docking and
why it is implemented into an organisations supply chain process. The next part
to this blog will detail the advantages and disadvantages of cross-docking for a
greater understanding of this process.
Cross docking isn’t complicated, but it’s not easy.
It requires military-like precision and perfect organization (it’s no wonder the U.S.
military started using it back in the 50’s).
Here’s how it work:
Truckloads arrive at the entrance docks to the warehouse
The goods are unloaded and sorted and loaded into trucks waiting on-site
The newly loaded trucks deliver the goods to the customers
That’s pretty much it.
You can pick and choose what products you want to cross dock and what
products you want to handle traditionally.
If you own your warehouse, you’re in complete control.

If you outsource your warehouse and shipping, you can talk to your 3PL
provider about implementing cross docking in your business.
 Pros of Cross Docking
Greater Efficiency
Cross docking is made to be a quick and speedy process for distributing your goods.
The only way to make cross docking work is by simplifying and streamlining your
loading and unloading systems to swiftly move goods from one truck to another,
which results in faster shipments to your customers – a powerful edge over your
competition.

Reduced Warehouse Cost

Cross docking provides a dramatic reduction in your cost of inventory.
There’s virtually no stock that you’re storing for any length of time – everything is
transferred from one truck to another, almost immediately.
You might hold a few items while waiting for a truck, but if it’s in your cross docking
warehouse, that means it will be leaving just as soon as it arrived.
When you cross dock, you simply receive the products, scan them into your OMS,
and then ship them off.
No inventory to worry about becoming obsolete. No reordering. No stockouts. No
shrinkage.
Reduced Labor Cost
With cross docking, you no longer have to pick and put away stock.
This equals a major reduction in labor costs. Less work required means fewer
workers needed.

Decreased Lead Time

Lead time reduction is a significant benefit to cross docking.
Your products are being moved faster and more efficiently, which means they’re
reaching your customers more quickly.
This improves your customer service and reputation for fast delivery times.
 Cons of Cross Docking
High-Cost of Precise Organization
Precise organization demands high-quality technology, efficient work processes, and
fast workers.
You may be saving money on inventory and warehouse costs, but you’ll have to buy
forklifts, pallet trucks, conveyor belts, and anything else required for smooth and
speedy operations.
You may also need electronic data interchange (EDI) to streamline the purchasing
process and SCM software to track your goods from suppliers to your docks and onto
your customers.
And, because multiple deliveries happen throughout a single day, every product has
to be unloaded and reloaded within precise time slots. Otherwise, the dock will
become congested, leading to potential damage or loss of goods.

Increased Cost of Trucks and Docks

Cross docking relies on a fleet of trucks and other transport carriers.
You’ll need space outside the warehouse to house the trucks if you plan on owning
them and not outsourcing them.
Similarly, you’ll still need to purchase docks to implement this system.
 Suppliers May Not Be Able to Do Cross Docking
Some suppliers may not be able to handle the tight deadlines that cross docking
demands.
There’s very little room for error in both quality of goods and lead time. If you
want to make cross docking work, you should have trustworthy and reliable
suppliers.

Inefficient for Low-Turnover Businesses

If you’re selling office supplies, for example, and your rate of inventory turnover is
relatively low, then you don’t need to invest in cross docking and the tracking
technology, transportation carriers, and warehouse space that comes with it.
Cross docking is best used by high turnover businesses in industries like food,
medical, and retail fashion.