Mazda deploys shipping solution to manage 750,000 shipments per year

Sept. 21, 2004
Automobile manufacturer Mazda North American Operations has gone live with an enterprise shipping solution from Kewill Solutions North America. Kewill's

Automobile manufacturer Mazda North American Operations has gone live with an enterprise shipping solution from Kewill Solutions North America. Kewill's application will manage the fulfillment of auto parts from Mazda's five U.S. distribution centers to its 700 dealerships across the U.S. and 200 in Canada.

The shipping solution will optimize the fulfillment of 724,000 parcels and 35,000 LTL shipments annually from Mazda's five distribution facilities.

Prior to working with Kewill, Mazda had multiple, fragmented, stand-alone systems at each location to manage its domestic parcel, international parcel and less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments. By deploying a centralized enterprise system, Mazda can enforce contracted carriers are used, maximizing service levels while cutting freight costs. Kewill's time-in-transit optimization selects the best carrier based on costs and required delivery commitment.

"Prior to Kewill, there was no ability to enforce our carrier and shipping strategy," says Bobbie Rooney, manager, national logistics and transportation, for Mazda North American Operations. "We would sometimes ship an engine 10 miles from the warehouse via a parcel carrier because our terms and conditions with our customers dictated it, when using an LTL carrier was half the cost. Kewill allows us to drive best practices throughout our supply chain. There is complete visibility and accountability on how we ship. Furthermore, we have increased service levels while cutting costs."

In addition to providing Mazda with the cost and time savings associated with rate shopping and shipping automation, the shipping solution integrates with Mazda's other business applications, giving total visibility into order status, shipping charges and tracking information. Mazda is now able to upload all freight charges to its third-party auditor to validate carrier shipment detail (bill matching) while the company also benefits from complete shipping activity reports that provide comprehensive information to better manage costs.

As a result, Mazda has restructured its supply chain to increase on-time deliveries, cut costs, reduce stocking points, lower inventories, and move to a demand driven supply network for the spare parts fulfillment.

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