Container managementservices on the rise
By Staff -- Purchasing, 5/6/1999
The consolidation of container suppliers is opening up new doors in container management services. No longer are buyers just looking for easy disposal; they want the container to be picked up and taken away at any point in the shipment or storage cycle. With so many container users outsourcing parts of their manufacturing process, why not outsource the shipment, tracking, and removal of containers which carry their product? Consolidated suppliers now have enough resources that they can do these tasks.There are, of course, legitimate concerns about packaging disposal. But when the containers become the responsibility of an outside firm, it spares buyers one of the biggest headaches of dealing with IBCs and drums. A container is just a small segment of a complete range of services that customers are looking for. Increasingly, customers want to be able to obtain a range of services for one fixed price. "We are able to offer customers what they are looking for," says Ron Rakey, sales manager for Container Management Services (CMS). "Our agreements with customers offer a low, fixed price which includes the lease of the container, free pick up and return of the container for reconditioning or recycling with no hidden costs." In the end, both customers and end-users needs are met. "Both are thrilled that they don't have to dispose of unwanted, used packaging, and because the program is easy to use,'' says Rakey.
Most large container suppliers have or are developing container management programs. They often include leasing or rental options, as well as total container logistics management. Russell Stanley's subsidiary CMS is one such organization.
The ease of the programs are another selling point. "End users simply pick up the phone and make just one call to our toll-free number, and the rest is handled for them," says Rakey. Currently CMS's "1-Call Return" program is available to the lower 48 states, Canada, and select sites in Mexico.
IBC suppliers have found a big market for container management and see it as an area of even more growth. While some companies have been providing container tracking or container return for years, it is only now that so many of the suppliers are embracing the "whole system" trend. The industry is headed for the type of system where buyers will be able to know the exact status of their container fleets--but will not have to handle their management themselves. They're structuring controlled systems where the supplier guarantees the containers will be handled properly.
Markets that have shown high demand for container management include pulp and paper mills and the textile industry. Emerging markets include polymers & emulsions, water-based inks, and water-based adhesives.
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