Using SLAM Automation to Rate Shop
When looking to improve your carrier rate shopping, make sure you consider automating your SLAM line.
Your warehouse likely uses multiple carriers for its many shipments. These can vary from small-parcel carriers to less-than-truckload and on up to full truckload. Every carrier will have its own system for calculating rates. To make your shipping economical, you’ll want to optimize your processes to get the best rates. Automating your scanning, labeling, applying and manifesting (SLAM) line is one of the best ways to accomplish that goal.
When rate shopping, you’ll be up against carriers who calculate rates based on weight, order volume, zone, transit speeds, desired service levels, point of origin, and other criteria. For instance, one carrier may use the dimensional weight of a package, while another might use actual weight.
There is a high cost to providing inaccurate data. If your weights and dimensions are missing or off—especially if you underestimate—you may choose the wrong carrier for the job and pay more than necessary. Or you may experience surcharges from the carrier. When you add up those extra charges over the course of a year and thousands of packages, the cost of inaccurate data will cost you dearly. The differences between carriers may seem minimal, but at volume, it matters.
An example: If you ship 1.3 million items per month and you saved even just one penny on each, that’s $130,000 per month. It pays to rate shop. Rates ebb and flow daily, so this must be a regular task. Factored into those rates is also how much work you are willing to do with your shipments. If you’re using UPS, for instance, and you need to do 40 splits, managing that on your side will save the costs that the carrier would add for doing the splitting for you. How you sort and manage the products all impact the rates you will incur.
An automated SLAM line can make all the difference here. For starters, when you pack and scan an order, you can see how many carriers are available for it, see what their rates are, and then create and print a label accordingly.
You will need warehouse execution software to help manage your rate shopping and SLAM lines. The software inputs the data from SLAM and manages the fields that will be printed specific to the carrier you chose. Your WMS does the rate shopping and sends that information to the WES once it has determined the best carrier.
Your SLAM line can vary in complexity and number of pieces of equipment, depending on the size of your operations. A three-shift operation, for instance, with hundreds of pack lines, will require more print and apply engines than a smaller, one-shift operation. You may need multiple print and apply engines, and you may need to separate and scan every parcel to make sure you are printing the right label and applying it to the right parcel once you have the information you need from the software. If your operations are highly complex, you may need to invest in multiple print/apply stations and may need multiple scan points.
When working to determine what your SLAM line needs, you’ll need to assemble your product specs and rates. Once that is determined, you need to know how many and which carriers you use regularly, and the different number of labels you need to apply. All told, the process to automate a SLAM line may take anywhere from 12 to 16 weeks to implement. Achieving ROI will also vary, but it can range from a matter of a few months on up to just over a year. An automated SLAM line is often a low hanging piece of fruit, and one that delivers faster than other types of automation.
Your ROI will come from multiple points of savings, and your improved ability to rate shop will be one of them. The other comes from labor savings. At a time when finding reliable warehousing staff is difficult, having automation for SLAM tasks can cut down on the number of employees you need in this area. Using machines can also mitigate costly human-caused errors in shipping.
Using SLAM automation will make your processes more efficient, and this is especially true when it comes to rate shopping.
To determine what your SLAM line should look like and consist of, you’ll want to work with your OEM partner and/or integrator. If you’re considering taking the leap to an automated SLAM line, reach out to MHI’s SLAM working group and tap into the ROI calculator, as well.
Contributor: Greg Meyne, Envista
Reviewed by: SLAM Marketing Committee
To learn more about MHI’s SLAM industry group: www.mhi.org/slam
More information about Scanning, Labeling, Applying, Manifesting:
You’ve Looked at SLAM Technology—Now What?
Why WARP Matters in Warehouse Receiving
How to Prepare for Trade Shows
Increased Demand for Robotic Packaging and Solutions
5 Major Reasons Companies are Automating Their SLAM Lines
The Business Case for SLAM Automation
Maintaining Your SLAM Equipment
