THE ADVANTAGES OF COOPERATION AND CONSOLIDATION

Alex Van Breedam is CEO of TRI-VIZOR N.V and part-time professor at the University of Antwerp and Leuven. From 2003 to 2008, he was director of the Flemish Institute for Logistics.

TRI-VIZOR is the first company to design, support and coordinate cross-company logistics partnerships. TRI-VIZOR believes that strong alliances and the consolidation of the supply chains are the features of businesses that will set themselves apart from the competition in the very near future.

LOGISTICAL CAR-POOLING

Alex Van Breedam:
"You can see TRI-VIZOR as a company that organises and coordinates logistical car-pooling for companies. If everyone continues to sit in their own car, we will all end up arriving hopelessly late at our destination at a cost that is far too high. Our aim is to develop joint ventures between shippers. The latter can be producers or distributors. Horizontal cooperation between equals in the chain (and therefore also between competitors!) will soon change the logistics landscape thoroughly."

THE ADVANTAGES OF COOPERATION AND CONSOLIDATION

Alex Van Breedam:
"By bundling flows and consolidating supply chains, companies are able to work more efficiently, provide better customer service and improved sustainability. With the expected increase in fuel prices, but also a potential carbon tax in the pipeline, efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability will become major supply chain criteria for businesses."
"Cooperation with respect to logistics not only provides solutions, it also delivers demonstrable and particularly significant benefits for companies, both economically and socially."

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CONSOLIDATING AND COORDINATING

Alex Van Breedam:
"Today there are obviously distribution companies that consolidate the supply of goods from various companies. But there is a huge difference between consolidating and coordinating."
"Roughly, consolidating implies getting as many goods as possible into a vehicle in order for said vehicle to run between the point of departure and the point of arrival, as full as possible."
"Coordinating implies bringing together the right products and the right companies and taking action across the entire distribution chain, from producer, through distributor to end customer, which requires an in-depth knowledge of all the links and various operations. This also implies that shippers must be prepared to adjust specific internal processes in order to achieve a better relationship. This could, for example, be an adjustment in the delivery days. The ultimate goal is to maximise profits for the joint venture. TRI-VIZOR will also distribute the profits between the members of the cooperation on the basis of previously agreed, objective criteria.
Profits could be very high. You can best draw a parallel with a box filled with Lego bricks. In the case of consolidation the box is filled to the rim with Lego bricks. TRI-VIZOR coordinates and will fit together the Lego bricks in the box, resulting in the same box with the same number of bricks suddenly having 30% more space. This 30% saving is subsequently distributed by TRI-VIZOR in accordance with the agreed rules between participants in the joint venture.

YOU NEED A CONDUCTOR TO PLAY A SYMPHONY 

Alex Van Breedam:
"Competing companies are often ideal logistics partners because they deal with similar products and markets. But obviously they don’t want the competition to see their products or volumes. And who is responsible if a partner in a joint venture delivers goods behind schedule, resulting in the other partners’ goods not being delivered either or distributed less cost-effectively? Or what if a partner leaves the joint venture? These are but a few examples of problems that may arise during the orchestration of logistics joint ventures."
"In order to turn the supply of goods from various participating shippers into a perfect symphony, read a well-organised supply chain, you need a conductor, a supply chain manager for the bundled stream. That is, in a nutshell, what TRI-VIZOR does."

DHB: SAME LOGISTICS, DIFFERENT APPROACH.

Alex Van Breedam:
"Whilst TRI-VIZOR sets up horizontal cooperation between shippers, DHB achieves the same between logistics service providers.
"DHB opts for horizontal cooperation in order to link large geographical coverage with fast and detailed distribution at Benelux level. Hence, DHB does not create more capacity, but optimises the existing geographical capacity. The immediate result is of course increased efficiency and more sustainable distribution."
"DHB’s true strength, however, lies in the fact that its partners are all family businesses with lots of experience. The advantage here is that their customers, despite the scale of the operations, still receive the service specific to a family business, with, for example, very short lines of communication between customer and distributor."
"The combination of these factors enables DHB to respond quickly, even in the highly specific Benelux context, to the wishes of customers and of customers’ customers. A feature that is highly appreciated, for example, in retail-oriented companies."

Further information about TRI-VIZOR?  Go to www.trivizor.com

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  DHB optimises the existing geographical capacity.