Many large fortune 500 companies are using contractors to handle all warehouse operations or portions of warehouse operations. Benefits have gotten so expensive in this volatile economy that the benefits outweigh the cons.  Also to increase productivity most of the lumper services pay by case, pallet, or load so this almost guarantees that the freight handlers will be productive.   Labor is one of the biggest costs of warehouse and distribution services expenses and anything that can cut that down is a win-win situation for the warehouse or distribution service. As we move towards the future almost many different types of business will go performance based and by having your contractors on performance based you will surely reap the rewards.

Problems can arise with temp agencies as you have to manage their hours. Sometimes the hours can be extensive and when new temps arrived they are very non-productive. Generally you have to train them to get them up to par with you on going operations. They have to be site certified on all equipment to meet OSHA regulations. So regardless if they are certified on fork lifts and pallet jacks they have to be recertified. To ensure that you are protected in case of lawsuit always sign hold harmless agreements with all 3^rd party agencies. Most of them don’t provide on staff management so be prepared to manage them. Temps in my experience have been good for simple labor but for ongoing labor utilization lumper services always provide better services.

Lumper services provide great onsite management and by having the same lumpers on the dock for long term the productivity is always higher than temp agencies. The lumpers also get paid by productivity so their training cost you so much less than using a temp agency. Their management trains their employees on site for usage of equipment and large contracts generally mean that the lumper service will give you good rebates. Logistics are able to get an exact cost per case so you can keep control of your freight moving costs as the warehouse logistics department is billed by case, load, or pallet.

3^rd party contractors can be a great partnership to increase productivity and lower cost in your warehouse.

1. First you must have a evenly scheduled schedule. Do not let the buyers control the warehouse or take product after you cut off hours. This can cost you a ton of overtime hours and freeze your warehouse from being productive. Another thing is the carriers get used to this and it becomes a norm. Balance out your schedule to make sure that your getting loads spread out evenly throughout the week.

2. Staggering hours can be a great way of controlling hours. Another great way is using temp agencies or lumper services to handle all the additional work once your hourly employees reach overtime for the week.

3. Pre-receipt planning and documentation preparation. By having all your documentation prepared in advance it can save you from having a powder keg on the dock and keeping the dock moving fast at all times.

4. Unloading procedures - Have your lumper service follow a uniformed plan of action. Test what works and what does not work. Document it and implement in as standard operation procedure.

5. Vehicle arrivals- Organize your dock flow so each receiver has equal amounts of pallets. Make sure the slots are right behind the dock area where the carrier is being received. This limits the amount of space between the pallets and its designated slots.

6. Quality Control -Utilize great quality control to limit shrinkage. Are your employee’s following them quality control procedures.  Investing money and time in these procedures will return back to you ten fold in less damage, shrinkage, and increase profits. Make sure you are not receiving anything that is even a little questionable. Rule of thumb if the box is just a little bent refuse it.

A typical railway/railroad track consists of two parallel rails, normally made of steel, secured to cross-beams, termed sleepers (U.K.) or ‘ties’ (U.S.). The sleepers maintain a constant distance between the two rails; a measurement known as the ‘gauge’ of the track. To maintain the alignment of the track, it is either laid on a bed of ballast or else secured to a solid concrete foundation, and the whole is referred to as Permanent way(UK usage).

Railway rolling stock, which is fitted with metal wheels, moves with low frictional resistance when compared to road vehicles; on the other hand locomotives and power cars normally rely solely for traction on the point of contact of the wheel with the rail whence they obtain adhesion i.e. the part of the transmitted axle load that makes the wheel “adhere” to the smooth rail. Whilst this is usually sufficient under normal dry rail conditions, adhesion can be reduced or even lost through the presence of unwanted material on the rail surface, such as grease, ice or dead leaves.

In purest form this is done directly, with minimal or no warehousing. In practice many “cross-docking” operations require large staging areas where inbound materials are sorted, consolidated, and stored until the outbound shipment is complete and ready to ship. If the staging takes hours or a day the operation is usually referred to as a “cross-dock” distribution center. If it takes several days or even weeks the operation is usually considered a warehouse.

Crossdocking is used to decrease inventory storage by streamlining the flow between the supplier and the manufacturer.
Factors influencing the use of cross-docks

• Customer and supplier geography — particularly when a single corporate customer has many multiple branches or using points
• Freight costs for the commodities being transported
• Cost of inventory in transit
• Complexity of loads
• Handling methods
• Logistics software integration between supplier(s), vendor, and shipper
• Tracking of inventory in transit

There are three main components of food distribution:

* Transport infrastructure, such as roads, vehicles, rail transport, airports, and ports.
* Food handling technology and regulation, such as refrigeration, and storage, warehousing.
* Adequate source and supply logistics, based on demand and need.

Lumper services are 3^rd party contractors that warehouse, logistics, and distribution centers use for unloading and loading their freight. They are some of the hardest working individuals in the business and they get paid by productivity so the eliminate unnecessary man hours. Not only are they cost effective they cost so much less than having your own staff. Outsourcing to India, Brazil, and other countries are generally done for technical jobs but a lot of Americans are finding great benefits in outsourcing here in the United States to 3^rd party companies. 3^rd party competent companies are popping up all over the Internet like www.LumpersService.com which is a strong medium for finding 3^rd party warehouse employees. Let me show you some of the benefits of using 3^rd parties for your all your warehouse staffing needs.

Management is a big role in day to day operations for warehousing, if you don’t have strong management you will must likely fail as a team. All good 3^rd party warehouse employees commonly known and lumper’s services has management on site to work hand to hand with your management team to make sure dock flow is as effective and proficient as possible.

Cost is one of the single most important things to logistics departments. 3^rd party warehouse contractors always bill by the load or case. This gives the logistics the exact cost of getting product to and from the warehouse. There is no overtime so logistics can keep their numbers where they need to be and keep peace of mind.

Safety plays a major role in the warehouse. Good 3^rd party contractors follow all OSHA rules and legislation. Good safety programs include making sure all employees are site certified on each individual piece of equipment. Continuing recertification when the 3 years is up on all their licensing. Mirroring the warehouses safety policy is second to none.

Productivity plays and major role in operation costs of the warehouse. One of the most important things to warehouses is productivity. This can lower the entire operation cost of the warehouse by being productive. 3^rd party contractors always pay by the piece. By paying by the piece they pump out more productivity than hourly workers ever will.

3^rd party operations and logistics will continue to be strong for the future as operation costs and logistics costs continue to rise. Gas prices has seen a real low in forever and expenses continue to rise. One way to alleviate some of the cost is check out what your options are and making sound business decisions on what makes sense.