Customized Distribution Services

Customized Distribution Services (CDS) Boosts Inbound Receiving Speed and Reduces Overtime Expenses with Veryable

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"Veryable gave the operation more flexibility and has allowed us to be able to react to demand more efficiently"

-Christopher Couture, GM, Customized Distribution Services

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Setting the Stage

In early 2022, companies across the logistics sector were still grappling with the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and a fast-escalating supply chain crisis. Customized Distribution Services (CDS), a third-party logistics provider serving clients like Henkel, PepsiCo, and WestRock, faced a significant challenge at its distribution center near St. Louis, Missouri.

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At that time, CDS was dealing with a backlog of over 100 trailers waiting in its yard, and a tight local labor market left them reliant on costly overtime and temp labor to try to keep up. In February 2022, Chris Couture, General Manager of the Edwardsville Distribution Center, met with the Veryable team to explore solutions.

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Solution

CDS began posting shifts on the Veryable platform to address its inbound trailer backlog. Within days, Veryable operators had helped alleviate the issue, allowing CDS to focus on further operational improvements.

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After establishing processes and a steady rhythm with the platform, CDS expanded its use of Veryable to weekend shifts, then soon to night shifts as well. By May, they had built a “sideline bench” of around 50 trained operators familiar with the facility and ready to flex in as needed.

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When demand spiked at the end of Q2, CDS scaled from needing an average of 15 operators per day to more than 40. That higher volume continued through July, with their labor pool growing to over 100 operators. CDS’s Operations Managers reported that without their on-demand labor pool, they wouldn’t have been able to keep up with the increased workload.

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One of the key advantages of the Veryable model was the ability to instantly scale down as volume decreased. In August, when demand at the Edwardsville facility fell sharply, CDS was able to reduce labor immediately, protecting profit margins and avoiding layoffs.

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Results

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‍Speeding Up Inbound Receiving

Before partnering with Veryable, CDS was receiving and processing inbound shipments on time just 44.3% of the time. After building their labor pool, that rate improved to approximately 80%, a 35.7% increase.

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Dwell Time Reduction

High driver dwell times were another major issue. Previously, there were over 62 instances each week where drivers waited more than two hours to unload. With Veryable’s flexible labor, dwell time incidents dropped by roughly 38%.

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