Supply Chain and Logistics Forum hears how to cut freight costs

The August meeting of the Central Coast Supply Chain and Logistics Forum, hosted by Australian Beverage Contract Filling Pty Ltd at Lisarow saw fifty-five plus representatives from the region’s manufacturing and logistics companies gain an insight into ABC’s manufacturing business as well as hear speakers from Dyson Logistics and Linfox.

Adam Neale, Operations Director of ABC shared their journey over many years and their relocation to the Central Coast in 2019 followed by a comprehensive tour of their manufacturing plant.

Kane Dyson from Dyson Logistics which relocated from Mascot to West Gosford in 2017 provided an overview of logistics services on the Central Coast and highlighted how Sydney freight forwarders and transport companies price gouge local companies.

“After a period familiarising myself with the area, it soon became apparent that businesses were by and large being service-neglected and price gouged, purely due to their geography,” he said.

“It seemed that because these companies were located on the Coast, the Sydney forwarders and their affiliated transport companies saw them as an inconvenience and dictated what level of service and commitment they would receive. Additionally, when it came to shipping containers it wasn’t uncommon to be told by local companies that they actually don’t have any say as to when they will receive their containers with forwarders not interested in fitting in with their timing,” he said.

“As soon as I started hearing these stories, I knew that with a little service and a tweaking of their supply chain procedures, I could introduce real cost and time savings to businesses on the Coast,” Mr Dyson said.

“Utilising my local knowledge and contacts, I came back to them with a service offer that would see all their requirements met and at a fraction of the cost. Containers would be dropped at Lisarow about 5am and collected as soon as packed. This gave them greater flexibility and importantly provided a substantial saving in costs.”

Mr Dyson said that Sydney-based forwarders and transport companies still see the Central Coast as a ‘day trip’ and an inconvenience and charge accordingly. It is in fact quicker to deliver to the parts of the Central Coast than Penrith or the outer Western Suburbs so the added costs are totally unjustified.

The Central Coast Supply Chain and Logistics Forums are an initiative of Central Coast Industry Connect and Rarekind now in their tenth year.