The use of cross-docking involves the necessity of making various types of preliminary decisions. These concern the cross-docking strategy itself, the organizational and technical conditions accompanying its implementation, as well as operational planning. There also remains the difficult-to-parameterize organizational sphere, concerning the ability to expand cooperation, incur additional costs, and ensure transparency of operations.
Cross-docking strategies
The cross-docking strategy depends on internal relationships in the supply chain, that is, on its configuration, organization, technical conditions, and the degree of readiness of trading partners to expand cooperation beyond customary buying/selling activities. Deliveries to the manufacturer can be carried out according to the JiT concept, while the manufacturer to the distributor or retailer and the distributor to the retailer should deliver products using the cross-docking method. This rather categorical statement is justified by the real possibilities of reducing total supply chain costs by simplifying the receipt of goods into the warehouse, reducing the scope of warehouse operations, and increasing the fluidity of product flow from the production line to the end recipient. The supply chain does not need different infrastructure than what it already has. Instead, it needs a significant increase in the degree of integration in terms of communication and operational activities, and above all, an increase in the level of trust and responsibility with a simultaneous increase in the transparency of operations.
We distinguish the following three cross-docking strategies:
• cross-docking without sorting and labeling
• cross-docking without sorting, but with labeling
• cross-docking with sorting and labeling.
Each of these strategies can be used in any type of cross-docking. Every product in an enterprise may or may not be subject to sorting. The benefit of not sorting exists when it results from the needs or possibilities of reducing the handling of the issued batch of goods. This occurs when the carrier-forwarder takes on the supplementary sorting operation. This additional labor intensity is usually less than the labor intensity of sorting products in the supplier’s warehouse. A product within the supply chain can be labeled by the supplier or not labeled by them. When a product collected from the supplier’s warehouse is not labeled, these activities are performed by the logistics operator, identifying all outgoing collective packaging and load units with a barcode.
We distinguish the following three cross-docking strategies:
• cross-docking without sorting and labeling
• cross-docking without sorting, but with labeling
• cross-docking with sorting and labeling.
Each of these strategies can be used in any type of cross-docking. Every product in an enterprise may or may not be subject to sorting. The benefit of not sorting exists when it results from the needs or possibilities of reducing the handling of the issued batch of goods. This occurs when the carrier-forwarder takes on the supplementary sorting operation. This additional labor intensity is usually less than the labor intensity of sorting products in the supplier’s warehouse. A product within the supply chain can be labeled by the supplier or not labeled by them. When a product collected from the supplier’s warehouse is not labeled, these activities are performed by the logistics operator, identifying all outgoing collective packaging and load units with a barcode.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 2009/3.