Proactive Supply Chain Logistics Strategies Needed for Competitive Advantage

EXTON, PA--(Marketwired - Aug 21, 2013) - Elemica, the leading Supply Chain Operating Network provider for the process industries, recently announced that their customer-centric Supply Chain Operating Network enables an outside-in supply chain. Logistics management strategies built on top of Elemica's entirely new QuickLink Network platform follows this approach. With greater ability to be proactive versus reactive, businesses become more capable of responding to customer demands. Using innovative technologies, waste and costs are reduced within the entire supply chain mutually benefiting all trading partners and logistics service providers.

"Despite the many technology choices for complex transportation management, most shippers still find themselves in a reactionary mode with their Logistics Service Providers. What has been missing from the options is a solution that combines real-time transactional data and business process automation with exception-based alerts and a collaboration space for all parties," said Cindi Hane, Vice-President of Logistics Management at Elemica. "All parties are 'at the table,' making decisions and solving problems together, before they become missed shipments, late payments, and freight claims."

A reactive logistics management approach is a one-way street where the shipper tells the service provider what services they want, how they want them, and when they want them. Shippers invest more time and effort than the service provider who only has to meet service level requirements with a minimal investment of time and innovation. With a proactive approach, the service provider moves beyond simply satisfying service requirements, to a team approach with mutually beneficial value-added offerings. The service provider is viewed as an integral and invaluable part of the shipper's supply chain operations.

Elemica's outside-in supply chain approach means logistics service providers continuously engage with their customers to discover new and innovative ways for collaboration and conducting business. All trading partners on the network gain visibility into each other's supply chain networks to drive out costs and improve service levels. Logistics service providers proactively alert shippers to potential issues or changes in shipments, and in turn shippers can make this information available to their customers, bringing them into the collaboration for a solution. More information in real-time throughout the transaction translates to fewer surprises for the final consignee.

Proactive logistics management looks at the end-to-end supply chain in real-time, looking for greater efficiencies that save time and money. For example, automating the onboarding process of a critical mass of carriers reduces manual intervention while creating a network effect that dramatically improves collaboration. This type of network means trading partners can share information about rates and capacity across different modes, can gain insights into industry trends and regulation, and can better understand about impending risks and their impact.

"When using Elemica's new QuickLink Network platform to connect trading partners into a Supply Chain Operating Network, companies benefit from proactive logistics practices that increase the flow of inventory, cut costs while maintaining quality and meeting customer demand, and save time and money through proactive management of potential issues," added Ms. Hane.

About Elemica

Elemica's Supply Chain Operating Network is designed to give clients greater control over their global supply chains. Capturing transaction data, across all trading partners, and translating it into actionable information is key to driving value out of the supply chain. By combining powerful SmartLink business process applications with a robust QuickLink Network, Elemica solutions improve operational efficiency, lower costs, and decrease working capital. Founded in 2000, Elemica today processes nearly $200B in annual transactions across more than 5,000 process industry trading partners. Elemica's global operations are headquartered outside Philadelphia and include offices in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Frankfurt, London, Seoul, Singapore, and Tokyo. Clients include BASF, BP, Continental, The Dow Chemical Company, DuPont, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, LANXESS, Michelin, Rhodia, Shell, Sumitomo Chemical, and Yokohama. For more information, visit www.elemica.com.