Saturday, 29 June 2019

Transport Is An Overhead, So It Needs To Happen Seamlessly

At SSO Logistics we fully understand that what we do is an overhead for every one of our customers. Transportation and logistics services are something that a huge number of businesses need and have to pay for, so it is understandable that our customers want to pay as little as possible and still get their goods to wherever they want them on time and with no fuss. What we do should operate in the background like a well-oiled machine, and we work tirelessly to ensure that our customers get just that. You don’t want to know how we do it, just as long as it gets done.


What’s more, you don’t want to hear a list of excuses as to why it didn’t get done. Have you ever heard the excuse “The agency driver didn’t turn up for work”? Yes, that happens to us sometimes too. Which is why we have five of our office staff trained to HGV standard so that when things go wrong, we can handle them. That’s why you won’t hear that excuse from us: in fact, you’ll never know it happened. That’s what we mean by working like a well-oiled machine in the background.

We have a very large and ever-growing fleet to ensure that we have the right size of van for every job. This is because we want to provide the best possible service while at the same time reducing our carbon footprint to the minimum. If you need just a few pallets delivered, you don’t need something which can carry 26 pallets. That’s wasted space, wasted fuel, and would cost you more than it should.

Looking For Safe and Efficient Shipment Method? Time to Get a Pallet Delivery Quote

There’s no doubt that logistics presents the biggest challenge for any business organisation. In the UK, the high cost of manufacturing, coupled with geopolitical issues, has made running a business difficult. As a business owner, you also have to consider the safety of your items when in freight.

All these factors necessitate an innovative solution. This is where palletisation comes into play. Using a palletised distributor is the best way to get your shipments across the UK and the world.

Basics of Palletisation
A pallet is a flat transport structure which holds goods while being lifted by a forklift. It has become a popular solution for the transportation of large items.  Straps or shrink wrap are necessary to secure the items on a pallet.  Once in position on a pallet, your goods can safely travel across the world.


The size of the pallet and weight make it easier to calculate shipping costs. Most pallet delivery services have calculators on their websites to help clients estimate the shipping costs.

Whatever the size of your cargo, your logistics firm will provide a pallet delivery quote depending on your shipping needs.

Why Use Pallet Delivery Services?
Using pallets to transport your items is a smart move for several reasons. Take a look:

  1. Portability: It is easier to handle large items through palletisation. Before pallets came to the picture, handling these large items was cumbersome and costly.
  2. Cost savings: Palletisation saves your business a lot of money. It is more cost-effective than using a van or truck when transporting a very large item.
  3. Secure transportation: Every item on a pallet is safe and secure. The straps used are sturdy and for delicate items, shrink wrap adds extra protection.
  4. Sustainable transportation: Pallets are recyclable, and shippers use them over and over again. This is one of the outstanding eco-friendly technologies in the logistics industry.
  5. Streamline your business: Partnering with a pallet delivery network helps streamline your operations. You can tailor your distribution services to suit your needs. This allows you to focus on other aspects of your business.

It is time to request a pallet delivery quote from a reliable pallet distribution service. This allows you to improve your transportation solutions.

Unlock Your Company’s Potential Using a Business Warehouse Solutions Provider

For a business involved in manufacturing and distribution of goods, it is imperative to have the best storage solution. Traditionally, large manufacturers had to build or lease warehousing space to run their operations. Today, the concept of outsourcing has changed all this. Third-party logistics (3PL) companies now provide seamless warehousing solutions allowing you to focus on the core business.

How Warehouse Solutions Work
In the past, businesses had to manage all aspects of operations from the factory, storage to the distribution. A third party logistics provider helps out by providing all your warehousing needs. You don’t have to worry about the storage of your goods before distribution anymore.

These specialists handle the collection and safe storage of your goods until customers need them. The money that would normally go to the warehousing logistics is now available for other uses. 


You also don’t have to go through the hassle of warehouse floor management and the risks involved. All the lease and insurance processes will not hamper smooth operations in your business.

The best business warehouse solutions provider received your containers, de-vans, palletises, stores, and distribute them. They have invested in highly trained personnel and the latest warehousing technology to streamline these processes.

Finding the Best Warehousing Provider
Now that you want to entrust the warehousing part of your business to a third party Logistics Company, you have to choose the best.

Some of the things to consider include:

  1. Security: Look for a company that leverages the latest security hardware and software to secure your goods.
  2. Technology: To improve efficiency in the handling of your goods, a good warehousing provider will use the latest warehousing software. This increases productivity and cuts the cost of warehousing. There’s more transparency when using this technology, and you can monitor this part of the supply chain remotely.
  3. Experience and reputation: Look for a company with a solid reputation in logistics. They should have years of experience handling products like yours. It is also good to ask for referrals and read reviews about the 3PL service you want to use.
  4. Communication: Establish a partnership and ensure you have clear lines of communication and data sharing.
  5. Scalable and tailored solutions: Look for scalable and custom warehousing solutions to suit your growing inventory needs.

With these tips, it is now easier to find the best business warehouse solutions provider for your business.

How Can Third Party Logistics Services Help Your UK Business?

What Are Third Party Logistics (3PL)?
For many years, businesses across the world handled the entire supply chain under one roof. This meant capital injection for entire operations. From manufacturing, marketing, to distribution, small businesses had to do it all.

With new theories and business models, the idea of outsourcing started growing. This is where third-party logistics comes in handy.  A third party logistics company offers its expertise and resources for advanced logistics and management.

The best third-party logistics providers in the UK offer a comprehensive range of services to sort logistics in the supply chain. These services range from:
  • Product transportation
  • Warehousing
  • Inventory management
  • picking and packing
  • order fulfilment
  • Packaging
  • Freight forwarding.
  • Freight audit and consulting
  • Shipment tracking and tracing


This means you can focus on the core business as the third party logistics company handles all the logistics in your supply chain.

The Pros of Working with Third Party Logistics Services
To appreciate why you should outsource to a reliable 3PL company, consider these benefits:
  • Reduction in costs: It is the primary goal of any business to cut costs. By using 3PL services, you will greatly reduce transportation costs. You don’t need capital for a fleet and personnel to run it. You also don’t maintain such a fleet.
  •  Gain industry insight: The best third party logistics services adapt quickly to the changes in the industry. They ensure your business is up-to-date with the latest technology in logistics. For instance, the use of advanced reporting and inventory management software enhances efficiency and boosts transparency in logistics.
  • Improve productivity:  Your employees can now focus on the core business and leave logistics to the experts. This leads to increased input and better business performance.
  • Scalability and flexibility: As your business expands, so will the logistical needs. Working with a resourceful 3PL company makes it easy to scale space, labour, and transportation to meet your new inventory needs.  Logistic services offered depend on your needs.
  • Resource network: Your 3PL partner has a vast resource network to guarantee seamless and efficient services in the supply chain.

Using third party logistics services increases your logistics capabilities, saves your business time and money, enhances efficiency and accuracy, and ensures business growth. It is a smart business strategy in a competitive operating environment.

Wednesday, 5 June 2019

What You Need To Know About Licenced Waste Carriers

Fly-tipping in the UK is a huge problem, as anybody who has seen large amounts of waste dumped down country lanes will know. This is why the government has, quite rightly in the view of most people, made it a criminal offence. That doesn’t prevent a lot of cowboys from continuing to do it and destroying swathes of our beautiful countryside. However, they are not, in most instances, interested in our countryside, but simply how much profit that they can make. After all, if they remove your waste and you pay them in cash it is 100% profit. What’s more, they are hardly likely to declare it to the tax man!

This is why, if you are a homeowner, businessman, or anyone else who needs to dispose of waste, should ensure that any business that you call to remove waste is a licenced waste carrier. We all need waste removed occasionally in our lives, but if and when you do, you should ask them for their waste carrier’s licence number. This applies to any sort of contractors such as builders, landscape gardeners, tree fellers, house clearance companies, furniture retailers, carpet fitters, scrap metal merchants, skip hire companies, and so on.


The requirement to be a licensed waste carrier applies regardless of where the waste is taken (whether back to the carrier’s own premises, another person’s premises, or directly to a licensed disposal facility) or whether the waste carrier is a one-man band, partnership, or limited company.

It also applies to any tradesman, such as a bathroom fitter for instance, who is transporting rubbish they themselves have created, such as an old bath. Failing to register as a waste carrier – which costs £154 for a three-year licence – can result in a fine, a criminal record, and seizure of the vehicle which was used to transport the waste. That doesn’t seem to deter some of the individuals who still do it, and it results in a £100 million a year bill to the taxpayer for the clean-up. 

So before you select a company to remove any waste from your premises, just check that they are a licenced waste carrier. You can do this by calling the Environment Agency on 08708 506506 or checking online.

The Many Curious Online Searches For things “Near Me”

Today, more than ever, people go online and search for things “near me”. So for instance, they may search for something such as “warehouse logistics near me”. Quite why this is so is a bit of a mystery.

Certainly, if you need a dentist you might search for “dentist near me” based on the assumption that Google knows where you are. (Just so you know, Google does know where you are, and not only that knows how many children you have and what you are cooking for dinner).

But leaving that aside for the moment, yes, if you need a dentist you want one that is near you because you have to go to the dentist. So, obviously, you don’t want to have to travel to the other side of the country. That makes perfect sense.


But the other way around, searching for something like “warehouse logistics near me” or “plumber near me” or “builder near me” makes no sense at all. All the while the provider of a service is prepared to come to you, it really doesn’t matter where they are located. What you want is the BEST plumber, builder, warehouse logistics operator, or whatever, and if they happen to be 50 miles away, why should you care?

Finding “warehouse logistics near me” is completely pointless. It really doesn’t matter where they are, as long as they can and will provide the service that you need. So in the case of warehouse logistics, for example, you need a company with enough space to handle all the goods that you need to store and ship. If you are in Newcastle and they happen to be in Minchinhampton (wherever that is!) it really isn’t important, provided they can do the job that you want at the best price.

(Just checked. It’s in Gloucestershire, on a road named Woefuldane Bottom. Seriously!)

But, getting back to the point, there are many services that you need that really don’t matter where the supplier is based as long as it can provide the services that you require.

Tuesday, 4 June 2019

Warehousing and Logistics: You Don’t Need Excuses

At SSO Logistics we fully understand that what we do is simply a necessary evil for your business. Necessary, in the sense that you simply cannot do without having your goods transported from one place to another, and evil in the sense that – yes – we are an overhead.


It is for that reason that we have always recognised that what we do should be in the background. It should just “happen”. The very last things that you need from warehousing and distribution companies are excuses. You really do not want to know that the reason your goods did not arrive at the destination at the time you were told they would is because an agency driver didn’t turn up.

You were told that “xyz transport company” would always do what you need and get your pallets where they need to be on time. What you don’t want to hear is a long list of excuses as to why that didn’t happen. We understand that if things don’t arrive on time it can cost you money – a lot of money.