Minimizing Handling, Maximizing Transport

From manufacturing to distribution, the process of creating a product from a raw material to a recognizable item in the hands of a consumer is a lengthy process. We rely on trucks to move finished goods between our manufacturing facilities and our local distribution center, before finally shipping to a regional demand distribution center for dissemination to our customers and distribution partners – a process that could net both extra handling and additional miles on the road.

Shifting Our Mindset

While ensuring compliance with related industry standards, we implemented a project to support the process of trimming the extra handling and transportation associated with moving product between our Stony Point, NC, manufacturing facility and our North Carolina distribution center.

“As they say, there’s always room for improvement – and our logistics practices provided a great opportunity to enhance efficiency,” says Marty Homes, Logistics Planning & Analysis Manager at Shurtape Technologies, LLC. ” Implementing this targeted project allowed us to change our mindset and become more efficient by eliminating double-handling in our distribution center, maximizing our trailer utilization and, ultimately, reducing the miles traveled by our fleet.”

Win-Win

Since initiating this project, we have been able to streamline the handling of our products, shipping direct to the demand center versus using our North Carolina distribution center as our “middleman.”

We have also been able to reduce miles on the roads – to date, approximately 16,000 miles. While that may not seem like a lot, in terms of CO2 emissions, that’s equivalent to charging 3.1 million smartphones.

Not only have we decreased our carbon footprint on the roads, but we have also saved over 2,000 gallons of gas, further enhancing the overall environmental impact of this project.