Unisource selects Transplace for logistics management outsourcing

Mar 09, 2005. /Lesprom Network/. Transplace, Inc., a logistics technology and transportation management services provider, today announced that Unisource Worldwide, Inc. has selected Transplace for in-bound logistics management outsourcing in the United States. Unisource, the leading independent marketer and distributor of commercial printing and business imaging papers, packaging systems and facility supplies and equipment in North America, will leverage Transplace's expertise in supply chain management to control and optimize shipments to its domestic customers. Implementation of Transplace's supply chain technology and services within Unisource is already underway. Through this outsourcing agreement, Transplace will provide Unisource with a complete suite of logistics management technology and services. This includes shipment planning, vendor prepaid management to collect conversion, carrier shipment tender, carrier selection, carrier management and shipment status reporting and freight bill audit and payment. With more than 80 flow centers, a fleet of about 1,300 trucks, approximately 10 million square feet of domestic inventory capacity and more than 150,000 different products in stock, Unisource will also rely heavily on Transplace for truckload- and cross-dock-collaboration between its customers, its private fleet, its vendors and Transplace's vast network of client freight. "Unisource wants to provide our customers the best service levels in the industry," said Thomas H. Shortt, Unisource's president of Supply Chain. "This relationship with Transplace will provide us the opportunity to reduce vendor lead-time through tighter integration, leveraging their advanced logistics technologies and broad network of resources, resulting in better service levels for our customers." Transplace will analyze Unisource's logistics operations online through its proprietary Dense Network Efficiency (DNE) to identify the appropriate transportation synergies and collaboration opportunities that will yield the greatest returns of increased service and reduced time and cost. "Like Unisource, we are committed to identifying opportunities to reduce our customers overall expenditures," said Jun-Sheng Li, Ph. D., Transplace's chairman and chief executive officer. "By utilizing our DNE platform, Unisource will be able to lower its logistics and supply chain costs all while achieving peak collaboration efficiencies -- an equation for transport and business success." Transplace-managed shipping lanes will be used to optimize Unisource's fleet, a scenario that will enhance the productivity of the existing Unisource fleet and driver base. Transplace will also leverage its set of logistics management best practices to establish processes for monitoring and measuring transportation network delivery and performance, communicating key metrics to Unisource management. "After witnessing first-hand Transplace's expertise and success and knowing how Transplace offers immediate and long-term supply chain solutions, I am confident Unisource will realize a similar return," Shortt added. "The combination of Transplace's logistics management and transportation services with our in-house expertise has already provided Unisource significant improvements that are receiving a positive response among our customer base."