A. Duie Pyle is a transportation and logistics provider that offers LTL, truckload and custom distribution services across the northeastern U.S. The company also works with a number of major auto parts distributors.
What are some of the pressures that e-commerce is putting on delivery operations for distributors?
The pressure is competition, because the customer has more choices. Some of the choices cost a bit more for the service. A good e-commerce site with an expedited shipping solution can get you anything within a thousand miles. You can order from that vendor and have the product to them the following day. It puts a lot of pressure on these locations to be able to ship, and get that ordered processed on time for delivery the following day.
In the aftermarket, we pick up directly from one of the larger auto parts dealers at their primary location. Customers can order up to 5:30 p.m., and we can still process and deliver the freight anywhere within our service footprint the following morning. They can get it as early as they want.
Another large auto parts distributor loads trailers out of their distribution center each night to several of our asset facilities, and we have drivers drop off parts to their stores all night long. In some cases, they have small vans deliver to customers very early, or have a will-call service. Both avenues offer relatively late shipping cycles and early delivery cycles.
What type of communication is in place to facilitate those solutions?
Both of those companies send electronic data interchange (EDI) information to us in the afternoon and early evening, so it goes directly into our processing system. As freight arrives, we already have the destination information and all the information to build the delivery routes for the next day.
As we put the goods on the delivery trucks, we send them back EDI information so the customer can go onto their website and see in real-time when things will be delivered.
What have you had to do internally to accommodate the new requirements customers have for expedited delivery?
We’ve had to expand our minds, I guess is how I would put it. At one of those locations we pick up at 9 p.m. We used to want all our trailers closed out by that time. Now, it’s very late when the driver leaves the terminal, and it’s pushed us to have better technology to understand when freight will arrive at the next location and we can work it in, in the right order. It’s based on when freight is arriving as opposed to the route configurations.
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