The manufacturing industry is approaching a new era. Operations are moving closer to home to repair displaced international supply chains with shorter, more localized solutions that deliver cost-savings on the plant floor and beyond.
The industry has been hit hard over the last few years with stubborn supply chain challenges that continue to impact many operations. The changes we’re seeing now within manufacturing are meant to solve challenges that have existed for years, if not decades. Manufacturers are now realizing, however, that living with these issues is no longer an option – not for our businesses or our economies.
What exactly is changing? Manufacturers (and their partners and customers) want more sustainable production; they want more efficient, streamlined production capabilities; and they want faster-to-market strategies. One major element that has impacted this entire wish list is clunky, outdated transportation management strategies and systems. While an afterthought for years, rampant supply chain challenges unveiled just how important efficient, transparent logistics and transportation capabilities are to the success of manufacturing operations.
5 Benefits a Shipper TMS Provides Manufacturing Operations
As manufacturers rethink and reshape supply chain operations, it’s time to take a closer look at transportation management needs. In many cases, businesses are still using outdated, time- and resource-intensive systems that can’t pivot when their operations need to in today’s dynamic market.
Manufacturers need better systems that work with them and for them, not against them. Those who embrace modern solutions –who understand the value of cloud-based, AI-supported transportation management systems (TMS) – will iron out inefficiencies quickly and be poised to take advantage of new opportunities.
Here’s what a Shipper TMS provides manufacturers:
- Improved visibility: Visibility into raw materials, components, and other moving parts of a manufacturer’s operation is critical to keep the assembly line moving. In many instances, inbound trailers must be loaded with items in sequence to be dropped straight into the production line. Knowing when loads are scheduled to arrive is critical to avoid shutdowns and keep production running on time. A Shipper TMS that integrates with shipment tracking and visibility platforms can show where freight is and use predictive analytics to give accurate ETAs based on historical and real-time data and conditions.
- Greater adaptability: A Shipper TMS provides the ability to easily edit orders for loads if something needs to shift. For example, when changes are made, such as needing to speed up a delivery, those updates are pushed out to carriers assigned to the loads automatically. Shippers can have the ability to see the full order and change history in a TMS to see where recurring problems are happening, so they can course correct moving forward.
- Up-to-date pricing insights: Manufacturers today are operating on slim margins and need to ensure they aren’t overpaying for freight or caught unaware of extra charges like load detention. Motor carriers have technology to track detention times at shipper facilities, and shippers need to monitor activities to make sure they efficiently load and unload trailers as well. The PCS Shipper TMS, for example, has an API integration with DAT RateView to monitor historical and forecast market rates to ensure that pricing for shipping lanes is up to date in real time.
- Actionable analytics: The PCS Shipper TMS will have the ability to connect to a community of carriers who use the Carrier TMS from PCS to simplify the process of finding complementary inbound and outbound solutions. If a carrier has 20 trucks going to Dallas every week, for example, and a shipper has ten lanes from Dallas to the Northeast region every week that will get the carrier’s trucks back to headquarters, they will be able to have visibility of each other’s recurring needs. These are truly actionable analytics provided directly by the TMS.
- Greater confidence: With real-time insights, actionable analytics, and streamlined workflows, manufacturers can start to feel greater confidence in their decision-making process. They’re no longer relying on historical know-how or gut instincts. They’re monitoring critical operational details that make them smarter, faster, and more agile throughout their days—so they can finally start to focus on more innovation, greater digital evolution, and new opportunities that grow the business.
Manufacturing operations are undergoing significant transformation, and it’s critical to evolve transportation management strategies alongside everything else. The right Shipper TMS contributes to better, faster end-to-end production and enables greater operational resiliency—a true win-win for manufacturers ready to embrace change.
For shippers seeking a solution to navigate the complexities of today’s dynamic market, a demo of the PCS Shipper TMS presents an invaluable opportunity to experience firsthand the transformative power that will propel their manufacturing endeavors into a more innovative, resilient, and prosperous future. Sign up for a personalized demo or give us a call at (800) 474-8241.