Global Tech Distributor Reduces Damages, Costs, and Transit Time by Improving Export Accuracy

A leading, tech distributor that delivers personal computer parts, printers, and related supplies around the world quickly discovered the value of continual improvement efforts with help from C.H. Robinson. 

Identifying a priority area of improvement: Damaged and inaccurate shipments

The sensitive nature of the items this distributor moves naturally requires precise handling—and careful timing—throughout the transit process to maintain quality and meet customer expectations. Accordingly, the company uses a combination of air, ocean, and less than truckload (LTL) services.

In the first four months of working together, the C.H. Robinson implementation team uncovered nearly $50K (USD) worth of the distributor’s exports from Miami to Peru were in fact physically damaged prior to arrival in the United States or did not match the shipping manifest.

These shipments were most often returned or refused all together, costing the company time and money. If left unchecked, the problem could have potentially impacted operations and even the distributor’s reputation with their customers.

“The high number of returns and refusals due to damaged or inaccurate shipments was not only affecting our customer’s financial performance, but it also slowed their response time considerably since new parts needed to ship when damaged or missing items were found,” explained Fernando Cornejo, C.H. Robinson implementation manager.

Implementing consistent export processes across suppliers

Once aware of the issue, the distributor wanted to solve it as quickly and efficiently as possible. They trusted the C.H. Robinson team in Latin America to use their deep understanding of existing supply chain processes to solve the issues.

The implementation team started the customized implementation process with a discovery process to find areas of opportunity and critical pain points. For this company, the team’s investigation focused primarily on how the damaged and inaccurate shipments were occurring.

To accomplish this, C.H. Robinson consulted regularly with the distributor—both in-person and virtually to gather information and align on goals.

“We thoroughly inspected the distributor’s export process from Miami and found many inconsistencies,” explained Fernando, “From there, our first goal was to identify suppliers that consistently had higher rates of damages or inaccuracies. We started with suppliers that typically ship via air to help reduce costs quickly.”

Once a target group of suppliers was identified, the implementation team at C.H. Robinson carried out a series of tests across modes and suppliers to minimize errors. Through these tests, C.H. Robinson identified best practices, including additional pre-export checks and validations for suppliers to follow.

After some experimentation with the initial supplier test group, these processes were formalized into a manual of standard operating procedures (SOPs) that focused on consistency and compliance. The manual was quickly implemented across the company’s entire supply chain.

Achieving excellence: The impact of improved shipping processes

The implementation of these tailored solutions helped the tech distributor achieve some significant improvements. The SOP manual, detailing expectations and requirements for all suppliers led to a 19% reduction in shipment damages or inaccuracies in the first month.

While the initial results were promising, the long-term results have had an even bigger impact on the distributor’s bottom line. 

With fewer replacement parts requiring expedited shipping, air service isn’t required as often. The added lead time means greater flexibility in choosing a mode of transportation, which has also contributed to cost savings. 

“The results were beyond our expectations. Not only did the customer see a marked reduction in damages, but they were able to significantly increase shipment volumes because of it,” shared Fernando.

By working closely C.H. Robinson, the distributor was able to turn a significant challenge into a success, ensuring better service for customers and stronger performance for the company.