At States Logistics, our employees feel it is our responsibility to come together as a team and give back to our community. Through customer donations and employee donations we have walked for the cure of Breast Cancer and Alzheimer's, volunteered at the Orange County Food Bank and we have contributed to the Door of Faith Orphange in Mexico.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Green Third Party Logistic Research Report
To view the original article on Logistics Viewpoints, please click here.
Customers to 3PLs: Be Green, But Cost is King
Posted on Apr 28 2010 By Adrian Gonzalez
Last Thursday, in commemoration of Earth Day, Penske Logistics, Dr.
Robert C. Lieb, Professor of Supply Chain Management at Northeastern University,
and Dr. Kristin J. Lieb, Assistant Professor of Marketing Communication, Emerson
College, issued the “Third Party Logistics Sustainability Report.” The
information is based on the 2008 and 2009 annual survey of forty 3PL CEOs
conducted by Lieb and Lieb.[...]
3PLs are making investments in “green” initiatives; they are seeing positive results from these investments; existing and prospective customers are interested in 3PL sustainability efforts, but it is not an important factor in their selection process.
3PLS are investing and taking action is a wide variety of sustainability-related
initiatives, which the authors categorized into four groups: administrative
(e.g., setting sustainability goals for operating units), analytical (e.g., investing in evaluation software, developing environmental KPIs), transportation-related, and “other” (e.g., promote use of LEED warehouses). Based on the detail provided in the report, it appears that 3PLs are most active in transportation-related initiatives, including:
•Experimenting with
alternative fuels
•Purchasing more fuel efficient vehicles
•Reducing
vehicle mileage operated
•Participating in government-sponsored programs
such as the EPA’s SmartWay program in the trucking industry
•Promoting
freight consolidation initiatives within the company
•Shifting freight to
more fuel efficient modes
•Limiting the speeds at which company equipment is
operated
•Sharing vehicles across multiple customers
•Reducing vehicle
idling time
3PL CEOs in the 2008 survey reported that about 21 percent of
existing customers and about 20 percent of prospective customers raised
sustainability issues in their discussions with the 3PLs. Customers are
interested in a 3PL’s ability to:
•Support customer efforts to reduce
their carbon footprints
•Enhance existing return logistics programs
•Reduce fuel, water and electricity consumption
•Help customers comply
with various industry certification programs
•Dispose of hazardous materials
•Develop recycling programs
•Improve the performance of customer vehicle
fleets
•Develop renewable energy sources, especially at customer facilities
These findings underscore a point that we have raised in previous postings:
sustainability opens the door to new business opportunities for 3PLs (see
“Ryder’s Answers to Carbon Disclosure Project” and “A New Business Intelligence
Solution…from a 3PL!”).
But as the authors noted, “While the 2008 survey results clearly demonstrated that there was considerable customer interest in discussing sustainability issues with major 3PLs, those issues were not yet playing a major role in either the 3PL selection or retention process, and they were not being significantly reflected in 3PL contracts.”
Based on our research, cost is by far the most important factor in a 3PL selection process (see chart below), a point that was also reflected in the report. The 3PL CEOs ranked “balancing sustainability efforts with customer expectations for
low-priced 3PL services” as the most important short-term sustainability
challenge they faced.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
States Logistics Services Joins Distribution Centers of America (DCA)
Integrated 3PL to Represent Both Arizona and Southern California Regions
Buena Park, CA – January 11, 2010: States Logistics Services Inc (SLSI) has assumed regional representation in both the Arizona and Southern California markets for the national marketing cooperative, the Distribution Centers of America (DCA). Membership in DCA, now celebrating 25 years of national advantage through regional excellence, is a highly coveted privilege, by invitation only and reflects the voted approval of all member companies.
States Logistics is an excellent illustration of that caliber. In a recent ExecDigital online magazine, SLSI is cited for differentiating itself through integrated service, technology, and sustainability initiatives, having earned numerous “Best of the Best” ratings within their customers’ distribution networks.
“States’ mission is to be the best fully integrated provider of 3PL services,” states Ryan Donovan, VP Operations in California. “With so many customers in food manufacturing, we have to stay ahead of the game to survive.”
Sustainability is core to the company’s philosophy and operations, with recent achievements including Silver LEED status for the new Arizona warehouse, achieved in part, by using locally provided products, T-8 lamps and solar panels powering half the 417,000 sq ft facility. Last quarter, States won a U.S. EPA Smartway Environmental Excellence Award for conserving energy and lowering greenhouse gas emissions in freight and transportation activities, related to SLSI’s B99 Biodiesel fleet – a pioneering joint initiative with progressive customer, ClifBar.
About States Logistics Services, Inc (SLSI):
States Logistics Services provides fuly integrated solutions including contract packaging, assembly, consolidation and import/export management beyond the basics of transportation and warehousing. The company maintains leading edge technology throughout more than 2Mil sq ft of both public and private warehousing capacity in Arizona and Southern California.
For more, contact: AZ: Kirk Hellofs, VP Operations, 623-936-9122, x6101; CA: Ryan Donovan, VP Operations, 714-521-6520, x514 and visit www.stateslogistics.com.
About TeamDCA:
For 25 years, Distribution Centers of America (DCA) has been recognized for service excellence throughout its national network of member companies, together comprising 23 million square feet of warehouse space. Individually owned and operated, each member of TeamDCA is a leader in its regional market, providing value-added warehousing and third party logistics services responsive to the needs of global companies and committed to customer success in that region. Request a quote for service at www.teamdca.com.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Green Shipping Practices
States Logistics is making an impact in the logistics industry by focusing on sustainability and green business practices. With green shipping and bio-diesel transportation, States services have positioned themselves as a leader for fellow businesses. Alternative fuel methods have decreased carbon dioxide emissions, unburned hydrocarbons, the amount of sulfates released and much more. From SCMR, we have found this great article on others forming guidelines to help save the environment and promote green shipping.
Green logistics: New set of guidelines from World Economic Forum and Accenture focus on carbon impact of product transport
One major obstacle to more widespread carbon awareness in the corporate world has been a lack of standardized methods for measuring carbon emissions. Now, an industry group and a consultancy firm are trying to change that.
Jeff Berman, Group News Editor -- Supply Chain Management Review, 2/23/2010
An effort by The World Economic Forum's Logistics & Transport Industry Group with help from consultancy Accenture has come up with so-called standard guidelines for calculating consignment level carbon emissions from logistics and shipping operations.
Entitled the "Consignment-Level Carbon Reporting Guidelines," their objective is to help the transportation and logistics industries inform consumers and businesses about the carbon impact of product transport, and the guidelines were endorsed by the Governors of the World Economic Forum's Logistics & Transport Industry Group at its recently-held meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
These guidelines include principles for defining the scope of emissions to report and how these emissions should be allocated for things like shared transport or backhaul, according to the World Economic Forum and Accenture. They added that these guidelines will also complement broader upcoming and existing product-level carbon reporting standards, including the GHG (greenhouse gas) Protocol Life Cycle and Scope 3 Standards, which they said should be released by the end of this year.
In an interview with Logistics Management, Jonathan Wright, senior executive in Accenture's Supply Chain Practice, said that there were a number of factors that influenced the introduction of these guidelines.
Wright explained that as confidence begins to return to the freight sector, with weak signals of an upturn, or at least stability, conversations among industry executives shift from survival to growth. But in a highly commoditized and convergent market, new growth opportunities require the development of different business models by the sector's firms-from tackling the challenges presented by emerging markets-to embracing renewed demands from customers for granular reporting on sustainability.
"To help address uncertainty around carbon and sustainability in particular, Accenture has been collaborating with the World Economic Forum's Logistics and Transport group for the past couple of years," said Wright. "A year ago, Accenture jointly published the Supply Chain Decarbonization report...[which] outlined the main ways in which the transport sector-both unilaterally and working with the wider supply chain-can begin to take practical, near-term steps to cut its carbon footprint."
In 2009 between the Davos meeting and this year's meeting, Wright said Accenture has seen the demand for product-level carbon footprinting information take off, with many leading global retailers and manufacturers launching their own labeling efforts, which has led to a significant uptick in the number and detail of requests made of freight firms, where accurate product-level carbon footprint data is currently hard to calculate on a systematic and standardized basis.
These guidelines, Wright said, are a set of practical guidelines that the transport industry can use to respond to the increasing numbers of requests from its customers for product-level carbon footprint data.
"The guidelines come at a time when consumer interest in the carbon footprints of the products they buy is growing," said Wright. "For example, a recent Accenture survey found that 90 percent of consumers would be willing to switch to a new product if it was certified as minimizing its impact on climate change, our research shows that transport and logistics operations typically make up 5-15 percent of the carbon footprint of a product's carbon emissions. The remainder of the footprint is elsewhere in the value chain-in raw materials extraction, manufacturing, selling or disposal phases. These guidelines represent a first step towards creating a standard approach for measuring the transportation portion of a product's carbon footprint, which shippers can use as an input to reporting the total carbon emissions associated with the products they sell."
A leading expert on green logistics and supply chains said that these guidelines are very promising in that standardizing guidelines for calculating consignment-level carbon emissions from logistics and shipping operations reaffirms the impact that logistics drivers (facilities, inventory, and transportation) will have on the bottom lines of companies as the Green movement continues to grow.
"Simply trying to compete on price or through innovation is being severely tested by the increasing focus on reducing the carbon footprint of the products companies manufacture and that consumers purchase," said Brittain Ladd, a supply chain consultant and lecturer on green supply chain strategies for a consulting firm. "As we move towards a point and time when most products will have a carbon footprint rating, imagine how even more important supply chain management will become in ensuring competitive advantage in terms of minimizing the carbon rating of products. If consumers are willing to choose one brand over another because of small differences in price, why wouldn't consumers choose one brand over the other due to small differences in carbon rankings?" Ladd also noted that achieving low carbon rating on products is directly related to how well companies manage their supply chain and logistics drivers.
In order for these guidelines to come to fruition, Accenture's Wright said the in order to implement these guidelines logistics and transportation providers will have to invest in process, reporting and IT, which will take some time.
"We recommend the industry take two key next steps: conduct pilot operations on various transport modes and logistics facilities to establish consignment-level reporting at an operational level and assess implementation difficulties; and adopt automated reporting systems and software to increase efficiency and accuracy in reporting and enable automated information transfer to suppliers, shippers, contractors or customers," commented Wright.
Wright also explained that if done successfully, there is often a win-win on cost and carbon for shippers, and both the bottom line and the organization's emissions can benefit from an increased focus on energy usage.
"Quite simply, looking along the supply chain at carbon brings a different perspective that can yield new and previously unseen savings," he said. "One example is PepsiCo's Walkers Crisps, which switched to 100 percent British potatoes to lower food miles and used biodiesel containing 5 percent used cooking oil for their delivery trucks. There are other reasons to pursue carbon emissions reporting and reduction--it can often contribute to improved employee engagement and enhanced customer service, and perhaps most importantly is what many customers want."
Monday, January 25, 2010
Vote for States Logistics!
Vote now!
From Inbound Logistics' 3PL Excellence Survey page:
“Each year, in its July issue, Inbound Logistics publishes the most definitive resource on third-party logistics and the outsourced logistics market. If you are already a subscriber, you know that we ask our readers which third-party logistics companies provide excellent service, and publish the results. If you are not yet a subscriber, you can get a list of this year's Excellence Survey winners, as well as the Top 100 third-party companies in the world, by checking the box below.
We're now conducting next year's 3PL Excellence Survey. The results will be presented in the July 2010 3PL issue. Give us your input and we'll express our appreciation by entering you in a drawing for a free 18-carat gold Parker pen, which includes a coupon for free engraving."
~~~~~~~~~~
To get more info on States Logistics, green shipping and contract packaging Phoenix Arizona, please visit our website!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Going Green: Responsible Packaging & Shipping Decisions
States Logistics is offers green shipping with bio diesel transportation. It is very important to work towards sustainability in our community. Businesses can take a look at the following article to enhance their packaging practices. Let us take care of the green shipping and transportation efforts!
"Product packaging and shipping practices play a substantial role in a business' carbon footprint. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, product packaging currently makes up approximately one-third of the non-industrial waste produced in most of the developed world. This is of significant importance to anyone that is looking to run an environmentally responsible business. By making green packaging and shipping choices, we can greatly reduce our waste production and encourage our customers to do the same.
So, where do we begin? Let's first look at packing/shipping materials. A good place to start is with the materials that we receive from our own vendors. If you receive books, supplies and other materials that come in less than environmentally friendly packing materials, reusing rather than discarding them is always a wise choice. If the packaging does not suit your product(s), or is not in good enough shape to reuse for shipping, look for other ways to use them. A banged up box may still be good for storing some supplies or transporting products, for example. Recycle and/or reuse what you can. Giving existing materials a longer life is a great way to reduce our impact on the environment, while also reducing costs.
Another environmentally responsible shipping decision is to choose environmentally friendly alternatives to traditional packing materials. When packing items for shipping, you can recycle and save money at the same time by using shredded paper as a padding material. If your a die-hard fan of packing peanuts or bubble wrap, seek biodegradable and recycled alternatives. Staples carries biodegradable packing peanuts made from cornstarch that dissolve in water, as well as recycled packing peanuts made from the remains of other loose fill. As an alternative to the traditional plastic bubble wrap, Bio-Bubble wrap is a 100% biodegradable bubble wrap option that breaks down naturally when exposed to environmental factors. When selecting shipping boxes, you can choose 100% recycled boxes produced from post-consumer waste... .
If you take the time and effort to ensure that your packaging and shipping materials are eco-friendly, be sure to include a small statement about your green shipping practices on your shipping invoice and on your website. Always let your customers know what steps you take to operate an environmentally responsible business. It does make a difference.
Learn more about waste prevention and source reduction via Project Green."
Read full article here
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