Logistics | MI Transport

Why Logistics Planning is Important

Any business that manufactures or transports stock should have a robust logistics plan. Ample logistics planning allows your company to minimise delays, reduce costs, offer excellent customer service and expand your business capacity. By partnering with reliable suppliers and transport services, you can ensure the supply chain is operating optimally and you are consistently providing quality services.

Creating a logistics plan

The first step in logistics planning involves gaining a thorough understanding of your supply chain. From sourcing materials to transportation and even customer returns, researching your current system and collecting information on the stages that are time consuming or often cause delays will provide crucial insight when planning.

Logistics planning services can allow you to gain professional advice to construct a detailed short-term and long-term logistics plan to meet customer demand and accommodate for growth. Your plan should incorporate details on all facets of the logistical process to reduce potential delays at any stage.

logistics planning

Things to consider when logistics planning

The different aspects of the supply chain include: procurement, suppliers, transportation, handling, resource management, inventory management, packaging, fulfilment and reverse logistics.

Properly vet your suppliers and partner with multiple manufacturers in case one experiences issues or delays. Package goods safely and professionally and consider purchasing shipping insurance to protect your stock.

When hiring transportation services, prioritise safe handling and prompt delivery times. If you are transporting temperature-controlled goods or other delicate or sensitive material, ensure staff have been suitably trained in handling these products.

Collect data on your delivery times and notice which areas may be lacking in efficiency. Streamline or automate certain processes to reduce the need for unnecessary paperwork or admin. 

At MI Transport, we can offer same-day delivery with a skilled team and a range of transportation specialities. To learn more, get in touch with our team by emailing info@mitransportltd.co.uk.

When to Use Temperature-Controlled Transport

Temperature-controlled transport is ideal for hauling goods that need to be kept at cold or frozen temperatures. Some examples of temperature-controlled items include chilled or frozen foods (such as dairy products that could spoil if kept in warm conditions), flowers that are liable to wilting, and pharmaceutical and medical supplies.

At best, if these products are not temperature-controlled they may decrease in quality or become less effective. At worse, it could lead to severe health problems and liabilities for the supplier. This is why procuring reliable temperature-controlled haulage is so important.

How Temp-Controlled Transport Works

Temperature-controlled transport can take the form of refrigerated vehicles, such as MI Transport’s Arctic lorry, and/or temperature-controlled packaging which uses insulation, cold-packs or electric refrigeration to maintain a consistent temperature. Most temperature-controlled goods are kept between 2 and 8oC to ensure the quality of the goods is not compromised.

Temperature controlled transport for goods

There are areas of the transportation process that pose risks to temperature-controlled goods. If the goods are temporarily stored in warehouses without refrigeration, the shipments take a long time to be unloaded, or if there are delays during transportation with unrefrigerated vehicles, this can compromise the temperature of the products.

To combat this, there are legal standards and regulations that must be abided when shipping temperature-controlled goods.

These include:

  • Setting operational directives for all parties involved in transportation
  • Constructing a smooth and effective transport network that maintains temperature-controlled conditions
  • Maintaining appropriate handling of temperature-controlled items (including during inspection)
  • Monitoring the temperature and location of the cold chain shipping containers.

At MI Transport, we can provide a refrigerated lorry with a max weight of 26,000kg, allowing us to assist with even very large deliveries. We also pride ourselves on our quick service and adaptability, so you can rely on us to deliver your goods at the optimal temperature and right on time.

To learn more about our refrigerated logistics and other haulage services, get in touch by emailing  info@mitransportltd.co.uk.