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Managed Services vs. Web Platform Provider

August 29, 2022 0Blog

Freight managed services and web-based tendering platforms are different things. While there is a place for both, a mismatch between client expectations and capabilities can lead to great frustration.

Managed transportation services is an outside team led by a dedicated account manager. The team invests time and expertise into customizing a solution to your needs. They have access to multi-disciplinary teams such as truckload, LTL, small parcel, ocean, warehousing and optimization, etc. Their compensation is tied to your organization achieving its goals. Often they will identify issues with processes that are not purely logistics – for example, Synchro has assisted clients in reducing inventory carrying costs.

A web-platform offers a low cost way to take advantage of infrastructure you may have already set up. The more customization a client needs, the less profitable that client is. The best web-platform customers have a stable carrier base and a logistics team that feels that they have already solved all major logistics issues for the company. In other words, specialized help is not needed.

Both business models coexist in the market and have their areas of greatest value. Contact Synchro today to learn more about our offering and whether it fits your needs.

Read more about Synchro’s Managed Transportation Services here: Your Synchro Solution

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LTL Savings in Inflationary Market

August 22, 2022 0Case Study

Synchro’s sister company achieved a major milestone recently producing 25% in LTL savings for a client in this inflationary market. Interested to learn how they did it?

Here is the full case study:

Our client, a privately owned consumer product distributor, engaged Wynneford Advisors to run an LTL RFP and centralize their LTL freight booking. The client had nearly 100 branch locations spread throughout the United States, with each location handling its own LTL freight. Often, different branches would have separate pricing with the same LTL carrier. The client did not have the internal resources to gather their own shipping history, so they engaged Wynneford to get historical pricing and establish a baseline.

ACTIONS AND RESULTS

Wynneford used its proprietary data gathering processes to obtain a year’s-worth of client shipping data from both internal and external sources. Wynneford developed a complete picture of all the client’s LTL freight for the first time, which revealed a larger spend than the client had originally believed they had. Wynneford estimated savings potential of 10% or more based on the historical data.

As the chart below demonstrates, during the time that Wynneford was negotiating LTL rates for the client, overall LTL contract rates were increasing rapidly. Certain stakeholders at the client were concerned that it was not prudent to go to market in this environment. Management ultimately decided to trust in Wynneford’s expertise and allowed the RFP to continue.

Wynneford negotiated rate savings of 28% for the client resulting in savings of over $650,000 annually. We narrowed the carrier base from over 20 carriers (over 35 if one counts carriers that had multiple tariffs with different branches) down to about 10. Finally, Wynneford put in place a technology-enabled, centralized freight management process to allow all rates to be shown in one place. Wynneford is monitoring performance for 12 months to ensure savings are achieved.

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Paying More & Getting Less? Meet Skimpflation

August 15, 2022 0Blog

Here’s a skimpy idea – skimpflation means that you pay the same price for something but get less of it.

Think of hotels charging the same room rate but closing the breakfast buffet, or cereal companies charging the same price per box but reducing the size of the box.

Skimpflation is rampant in freight. Companies charge 50% – 100% more than a year ago yet won’t give you an update on your freight’s ETA.

Synchro is fighting skimpflation – we have increased our staff so that we can answer customer calls any time day or night. Contact our team today for a free rate analysis!

Read more here: Skimpflation: Planet Money : NPR

 

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Cross-Border Solutions

June 2, 2022 0Case Study

Our client was dealt a challenging hand shipping cross-border from Canada this year with vaccine mandates, weather emergencies and border closures. Our Managed Transportation team took the stress off our client’s team by leading the prioritization and optimization strategy to push product out as efficiently as possible.

1) When the border closed, we pre-called every receiver for each load giving us full visibility into their project status which allowed us to advise on prioritizing shipments.

2) We utilized our strong carrier relationships to have them pull drivers from other provinces.

3) Once the border reopened, we knew the critical loads and our top carriers to contact. 

We were able to rebound faster and cover the rural, cross-border lanes others would not take. Reach out today to learn more about managed transportation, The Synchro Way.

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2021 Year in Review

January 24, 2022 0Articles

Thank you to our team, clients, and carrier partners for a phenomenal year. We gained diverse talent, new partnerships with clients across industries, and advanced technology capabilities. With a focus on responsiveness and transparency, our team has successfully navigated this tough market and continues to offer flexible solutions. Reach out today to learn more about the Synchro Way!

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Synchrogistics Relocates Headquarters & Announces Rebrand

November 3, 2021 0Press Release

 

We have double our size this past year, in both volume and talent. Our fully customized new company headquarters offers the space and facilities needed to support our growing team. The new logo represents a decade of strength and our commitment to continuous improvement, getting your logistics in sync. Our focus lies with premier service, transparent partnerships, and a support team available around the clock, ensuring you have a ready hand at 2pm and 2am. Synchro is well positioned within the managed transportation space offering best-in-class strategic consulting married with results driven, tactical execution. With an updated Headquarters office tripling our space, we are ready to take on the next decade!

Are you ready to get your logistics in sync? Reach out today to learn more!

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Triangle Business Journal’s 2021 Fast 50 Award Winner

September 9, 2021 0Awards

It is an honor to again join fellow North Carolina business owners throughout Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill on Triangle Business Journal’s Fast 50 Awards for privately held business’ growth achievements last year.

2020 brought new challenges and opportunities for our team. A never-before seen environment forcing change and new pathways teaching us to be even more nimble and ultimately stronger together. 

A year delayed, but we finally got a chance to celebrate 10 years of Synchro!

Congratulations to the Synchro team along with all thriving Triangle business!

 

Read more here: Triangle Business Journal’s Fast 50 Awards

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Synchrogistics: Fueling the Logistics Chain with ‘Visibility’

February 13, 2019 0Awards

By implementing a modern logistics infrastructure, Synchrogistics saves their clients more money.

After experiencing a low coverage and high costs for shipments, a shipper saved over half a million dollars in just the first year of their contract with Synchrogistics—a Greensboro-based 3PL service provider. Synchrogistics implemented a modern logistics infrastructure and helped the client achieve a coverage rate of 99 percent, up from its earlier rate of under 75 percent. The resulting benefit was an increase in customer shipments due to the ability to promise and deliver on-time delivery at competitive prices. “Most CIOs and top management executives I’ve met had sour experiences after trying some variant of freight management, as the level of support could not live up to the promised efficiency,” says Bill Jackson, Founder and President of Synchrogistics.

Powering middle market manufacturing, retail, and distribution companies, Synchrogistics is on a mission to rapidly integrate different modes of transportation into a cohesive data-driven picture and reduce freight costs…

>> READ THE FULL ARTICLE on Logistics Freight Outlook

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Synchrogistics Announces WBENC Certification

November 2, 2018 0Awards

Expanded business opportunities and a broader network with the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).

Synchrogistics is pleased to announce we have been awarded national certification as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC). WBENC is the largest certifier of women-owned businesses in the U.S. and a leading advocate for women business owners and entrepreneurs. WBENC Certification validates that the business is 51 percent owned, controlled, operated, and managed by a woman or women.

Erica Jackson has worked at Synchrogistics since its founding in 2010 advising on operational, legal and compliance matters. She took on the leadership roll in 2017 as President and has led the company through a period of rapid growth and continual development initiatives.

“We are honored to receive this certification. While our consultative approach to solving customer logistics challenges has allowed us to grow at over 50% per year, it is the customer service DNA of our incredible staff that keeps those loyal customers coming back year after year,” said Mrs. Jackson.

With our national certification, we now have access to a broad network of other women entrepreneurs as well as expanded business opportunities. Our certification status does not change our commitment to provide unique, hands-on logistics solutions to our clients but does assist our customers with fulfilling their vendor diversity goals. Working with WBENC certified companies helps companies and government agencies to include women-owned businesses as their vendors and show their commitment to fostering diversity.

More than 1,000 corporations representing America’s most prestigious brands as well as many states, cities, and other entities accept WBENC certification. For more information, visit www.wbenc.org.

About Us: Synchrogistics is a national transportation provider focused on delivering exceptional service and freight analytics to their customers. They are a fast-growing and award-winning logistics company with offices in Raleigh and Greensboro, NC. Contact us to learn more.

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Have you done a deep dive on LTL blanket rates?

February 5, 2017 0Blog

 

Everyone has had this experience – you buy something, think you got just what you wanted and it’s a great deal! Then you find out that there are fees and unexpected / undisclosed costs you didn’t count on. Improperly used, broker-supplied Less than Truckload (LTL) blanket rates can be exactly that.  Small and middle market manufacturing and distribution companies often fall victim to poorly understood transportation products that end up costing them significantly more than the right product. 

How can you avoid falling for this? What is really happening here?

It’s likely a day doesn’t go by that your shipping team isn’t called by sales reps from brokerage firms telling you that they have the best LTL blanket rates. The broker has “consolidated millions in freight spend to bring YOU great rates!” They offer the best service, amazing technology and a big company name. Even better, when you give them shipments to compare their rates to yours, their rates look better than what you’re currently paying

Amazing! Simply by answering your phone, you have found a magic solution that lets you skip all that blocking and tackling that industry pros recommend you do to build a stable, low-cost and high-quality LTL freight purchasing program. 

Sounds great doesn’t it? Too good to be true? It probably is. Soon after biting on those low blanket rates, the invoice comes in and you see the real cost of moving that shipment. Unanticipated assessorial charges, reclassification or other fees eat into that great “introductory offer.” What’s worse, if you don’t have a system for auditing the invoice against that initial blanket rate quote, you may not even realize the pricing you are being asked to pay is different from what you were initially quoted

Read our white paper if your company has LTL shipments and you’re interested in seeing if you are one of the lucky few for whom broker-provided blanket rates are the right solution

What you will learn:

  • If you have LTL freight spend of $100k or more and are using blanket rates, you are likely paying too much for too little value.
  • Negotiating LTL pricing requires heavy analytical support and experience, and most of the time can be paid for out of the savings generated by switching from blanket rates to customer specific pricing. 

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