determine if they wish to contract Los Angeles Public Warehouse at certain points in their operation. Companies that explore their outsourcing options may ponder over employing a Los Angeles Fulfillment service provider. Fulfillment centers are independent entities specializing in the delivery of essential business solutions focused on the storage, handling and transporting of finished products.
A public warehouse offers the following services:
1. Storage and Warehousing – A fulfillment center offers a wide range of services that meet the storage and warehousing goals of the company. A majority of the third party logistics companies are equipped with an extensive variety of devices and tools to complement their storage and warehousing services. This would include essential materials handling devices like docking doors, forklifts, conveyor belts and scanners. The 3PL company implements a comprehensive warehouse and storage management system to ensure that they meet the requirements and needs of your company. The client company is freed from logistical requirements as soon as it transfers the finished products from the production line to the public warehouse.
2. Processing of Orders – The fulfillment company receives and processes the company’s customer orders. The order processing system adopted uses a web based application. The company’s customers place their orders online using a protected ordering system. Once the fulfillment company receives an order, the request is promptly processed and delivery is arranged within the set ordering cycle.
3. Handling and Shipping Orders – Once the products are prepared for delivery, two activities will have to be undertaken. These are the packaging of products and the second is shipping the packaged products to customers. The cycle of packaging and shipping is normally completed within the day and is released for shipping the following day. FedEx, UPS, etc. are used for the shipment of the products. Since these fulfillment companies bring a wealth of business, they are given big discounts which they normally pass on to the customers. For bulk orders, the fulfillment company adopts cargo consolidation. For volume deliveries, the fulfillment company may opt to get the services of private carriers as this is the more cost effective alternative.
4. Handling of Product Returns – The last step that the fulfillment company handles is the processing of product returns. This aspect of the chain provided by a 3PL company requires attention to detail. This is tedious and labor intensive work because each product return has to be checked manually. The inspector has to document the results of the inspection in conjunction with his findings and recommendations. The returned goods are deposited in a special area in the storage facility intended for such types of goods. These returned goods are then processed by batches to be returned to the manufacturer for the appropriate disposition.
When considering which 3PL company to choose, it is essential that the services offered by the provider meet the requirements and needs of your company. In some instances, the 3PL company develops customized warehousing and storage systems to provide the unique services deemed essential by their clients.