IBIE - 2016 Special Edition & Show Preview - (Page 85)

COLD STORAGE LOGISTICS Smooth Sailing to run a seamless, efficient operation. "What is critical is that everybody is on the same page - schedules, appointments and everything else is flowing nicely," he noted. "That's what you see with a dedicated system." At Alpha Baking, however, his logistics team oversees a multi-faceted frozen distribution operation that includes a company-run freezer with 8,500 pallet positions as well as a "hybrid" arrangement where it leases 2,500 dedicated pallet positions within a public warehouse. Moreover, the baking company rents about 1,000 pallet positions in a third-party or public freezer in another region of the country. Along with coordinating distribution of its own products, Alpha Baking stores frozen breads, desserts and other baked goods from other companies and helps ship them to a wide variety of foodservice and retail customers. It works with about 40 outside carriers - including foodservice distributors - as well as services its own fleet of trucks. As a result, Alpha Baking plays on both sides of the coin, and Mr. McGuire comprehends the integral complexities of frozen distribution from the customer and operator perspective. "I think of all our carriers as an extension of our customers," he said. "We have an efficient outbound program where carriers can get in, load up and get out on the road in one hour. The industry average is two hours." By controlling its own frozen operation - as much as anyone can control destiny in the transportation industry that has so many moving parts - Alpha Baking strives to work around its carriers' schedules. "If you're six or eight hours early, we'll come outside and see if we can give you a different, earlier appointment time," Mr. McGuire said. "At the end of the day, it's all those efficiencies - where a truck isn't sitting around to make a pickup - that allows them to make money." For Alpha, such versatility provides other benefits. "When it comes to our operation where the carriers know they'll come in and get out quickly, guess what? We're able to negotiate favorable freight rates to our customers, which is part of our program called 'system optimized costing,' " he explained. "I want that freight rate or those savings passed along the supply chain to make our products more cost-competitive at the end of the day. I don't want our pricing based on a 'worst case' scenario. I want it based on a 'best case' scenario." Cool ideas at IBIE During the past two decades, an increasing number of baking companies have been getting out of the directstore distribution (DSD) business, focusing more on "What is critical is that everybody is on the same page - schedules, appointments and everything else is flowing nicely." Bob McGuire, Alpha Baking Co. production of baked goods while leaving the expense of shipping and distribution to the cost-control experts in transportation. Along with advances in freezing technology, improvements in ingredients and formulations have made the quality of many fully baked frozen and par-baked bread and rolls - and even sweet goods like donuts - nearly indecipherable from their fresh-baked counterparts. Likewise, enhanced logistics have allowed many regional artisan and specialty bakeries to branch slightly beyond a 200-mile radius often restricted to DSD operations and even serve a growing number of multi-state and national foodservice operators, in-store bakeries and c-stores through a myriad of distributors and other warehouse accommodations. IBIE 2016 / PreShow Guide / 85

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IBIE - 2016 Special Edition & Show Preview

IBIE - 2016 Special Edition & Show Preview
Table of Contents
IBIE PERSPECTIVE - Challenges Amid Attractive Conditions
STATE OF THE INDUSTRY - Well Positioned for Growth
Fuel for the future
PARADE OF PROGRESS - Bakers and exhibitors say they go to IBIE because …It's About the Future
EQUIPMENT TRENDS SURVEY - Good Vibrations
IBIE TECH - Must-have Mobile
ENGINEERING ROUNDTABLE - Putting it on Automatic
ABA PERSPECTIVE - Election 2016: The Stretch Run
Getting the Message Out
‘Premiumization’ opportunities abound
B&CMA, ABA - Pathway to the Future
Cookie-cracker education at IBIE
FSMA & THE BAKERY - Proof of Validation
SANITATION & SAFETY - Signs of the Times
How to collaborate, a PMMI protocol
PACKAGING - One-stop Shop
COLD STORAGE LOGISTICS - Securing Smooth Sailing
INGREDIENT CHOICES - The Big Questions
Go ahead, eat, it’s safe
TAX RELIEF - Go Ahead, Spend
SOCIAL MEDIA - Plugged into Consumers
INGREDIENT TRENDS - Favorable Forecast
INGREDIENT TRENDS: FATS & OILS - Deadline: 2018
WORKFORCE GAP - A New Paradigm
BREAD TRENDS - I Love Bread
bake - Special Edition
Retail Perspective - Road to Recovery
Retail Perspective: Equipment - Innovations Abound
Retail Perspective: Cake - Standing out from the crowd
Retail Perspective: Education - School in session
A World of Opportunity
INTERNATIONAL INSIGHT: BAKED FOODS - Global Growth: It's Not Easy
ALL-AMERICAN TAILGATE - Kickoff IBIE 2016
VEGAS GUIDE - Something for everyone
Off the beaten path
Ad Index

IBIE - 2016 Special Edition & Show Preview