What is the need for supply chain consulting in India?

Supply chain management entails the managing of the entire production flow of a product or service, from the procurement of raw components to the delivery of the final product to the customer. It is a system used by small and large companies alike, with the scale of operations depending on the resources available with the company. Supply chain management is an integral part of most businesses.

Hence, when issues arise in supply chain operations, they need to be addressed immediately to prevent further complications. This is where supply chain consulting can help. 

The right supply chain solutions can enable a business to optimize operations, make them fast, efficient, boost customer service, reduce operating costs and improve the financial standing of the company.  A supply chain consultant is an expert in vendor and inventory management, who aids with the management of freight costs for shipments, procurement and even price negotiation, thus clearing the bottlenecks encountered in supply chain management.

Need vs. Sustainability

Logistics costs make up more than 13 percent of India’s GDP, and the government has introduced several policy changes in an effort to reduce it to less than 8 percent. With supply chain networks transforming to support e-commerce growth, companies need to improve their supply chain management.  A company opts for supply chain consulting mainly to gather information, solve a problem, get recommendation for a plan of action and assistance to implement the same.  

Supply chain consulting in India is definitely in demand as more and more companies need to engage with experts to deal with their supply chain issues. They can provide you with the best possible supply chain solutions that will involve the use of technology designed to cater to the specific demands of their customers. A well-planned supply chain operation can help reduce environmental impact, and for India, this can become a focal point for improving sustainability.

Safexpress, one of the leading supply chain and logistics providers, has over 2000+ professional in their organization to guide and support companies which require consulting services. Their subject matter expertise involves fields like warehouse requirement planning, labor resource planning, supply chain optimization and much more. 

 

Their consultants with their in-depth experience, international certifications would be well-equipped to tackle the various logistics problems and ensure streamlining all logistic activities cost-effectively.   

 

Benefits of supply chain consulting

Many companies avail consulting services as they are able to provide practical guidance and advice to help optimize a supply chain. They also:

· Provide independent, impartial objectivity to address the problem

· Have dedicated focus on the company’s problem

· Have the know how and experience to solve the issues

· Have the skills to execute and implement changes

· Are able to provide analytics

· Are able to quantify the benefits of change

· Undertake the implementation of the latest technology

Key advantages of supply chain solutions

An effective supply chain solution will help you to have a competitive advantage in the industry while decreasing the risks and increasing customer satisfaction. Other advantages include:

· Better collaboration with various stakeholders

· Efficient inventory management

· Improved quality control

· Reduced overhead costs

· Improved cash flow

· Higher efficiency rate

· Increase in profit margins

· Improved supply chain network

In conclusion

A supply chain consultation can provide your company with supply chain solutions that will help to identify and plan the steps needed to assemble an effective supply chain strategy that matches the needs of your business. Improved supply chain management can help boost economic growth, besides providing an opportunity to decrease pollution and energy usage, thereby improving the quality of life.

Why reverse logistics in India needs to be an essential part of SCM?

A majority of logistic services in India deal with the process of delivering the product to the customer. But reverse logistics involves moving the product from the customer to the distributor or manufacturer. The reverse logistics process usually involves returns, recalls, repairs, recycling and disposal. According to Allied Market Research’s Reverse Logistics Market report from 2018-2025, the reverse logistics sector is expected to reach $603.90 billion by 2025.

In an ideal scenario, the supply chain should end when the final product has reached the customer. But this is not what actually occurs. A customer might have many reasons to return products and it is the responsibility of the company to organize the logistics to pick up the product from the customer and deliver it back to the distributor or manufacturer. With an increase in e-commerce sales, companies have started realizing the importance of well-organized reverse logistics as it can help increase the company performance and customer relations.

Safexpress, a market leader in supply chain and logistics, has expertise in effectively managing the return of goods with various processes and documentation in place to make it easy and timely for all parties involved. The REVLOG system provided by Safexpress is a platform designed to automate the process of return request by dealers or partners. This platform enables to provide all parties involved a transparent view to keep track of the entire reverse logistics process.    

Benefits of good reverse logistics

Good reverse logistics impact both the customer experience and the bottom line of the company. By establishing good reverse logistics, you not only invite repeat orders, but also improve customer satisfaction and their loyalty to the brand. Prior to the growth of e-commerce, reverse logistics in India was largely unorganized.  With major e-commerce players like Amazon and Flipkart preferring an organized provider, this segment has seen a bunch of new companies in India focusing on reverse logistics. 

By monitoring the flow of reverse logistics, companies can understand the volume of products being returned, percentage of sales getting affected due to the returned products, reasons behind the products getting returned, and finally enable you to determine whether any financial value of the product can be regained by selling its various components or as scrap material. An effective reverse logistics system can reduce operational costs, provide faster service in case of refunds or replacement of goods, and customer retention.

 Challenges faced in reverse logistics

Reverse logistics is an area which presents great operational challenges due to the large volume and processing costs. Reverse logistics in India need to be more efficient and cost-saving in nature to enhance supply chain optimization. Reverse logistics can be complex and time-consuming to implement, and for many companies, lack of competency or resources may act as a hindrance. Many such companies have outsourced their reverse logistic services, which help them to improve quality, cost savings, inventory management and customer experience.

Although the reverse logistics industry is growing, companies have to deal with unpredictable returns and recalls of products from different locations, thus making this kind of logistics difficult. Reports suggest that a reverse logistics supply chain can require up to 20 percent more space than an outbound supply chain. Companies have started utilizing artificial intelligence to best determine return rates and route optimizations to optimize reverse logistics. 

With the help of these new and emerging technologies, reverse logistics can be made more efficient and economical. A reverse logistics process, after proper implementation, can lead to a 25 percent reduction in the returns processing costs, 10 per cent increase in productivity and 2 to 5 percent increase in net profits, along with significant growth in customer satisfaction and retention.

In Conclusion

Logistic services in India need to involve a synchronized supply chain, which will include forward traditional logistics, inbound logistics and reverse logistics, in order to achieve greater transparency in operations and reduce costs without compromising on customer service.     

Source:- https://www.reddit.com/user/safexpress1/comments/liwev0/why_reverse_logistics_in_india_needs_to_be_an/