Bergey’s Truck Centers Acquires Cumberland Truck
Bergey’s Truck Centers Acquires Cumberland Truck

Understanding Final Mile Logistics

final mile logistics

Depending on where you are in the supply chain, you may know the challenges of managing final mile delivery in today’s world. It has been a quickly evolving service area within distribution, mostly due to the demand of consumers, as well as just-in-time B2B deliveries.

What is Final Mile?

In distribution, the final mile, also known as last mile, is typically defined as the end-stop in the supply chain. This can be to the shelf in the store to a home delivery from online. Both scenarios have the same goal – to keep customers happy, which keeps the supply chain strong and profitable.

final mile delivery
Adjusting to the New Final Mile Mindset

The key is establishing a final mile strategy that works for your business. First, determine how the final or last mile currently works within your business. Do you take on the final mile in house, is it your core business, or do you outsource it?

The final mile shipment industry is valued at over $83 billion and is only expected to increase in the coming years. This has been significantly affected by the COVID pandemic lock-down period and what is also referred to as “The Amazon Effect”. Both these elements have impacted the way consumers expect product availability, delivery, and communication, all at a smaller price.

To be able to see the profits, last mile strategies need to be done right. Just over half of a shipment’s total cost is in the final mile.

Making Final Mile Work for You

Successful final mile deliveries require real-time communications and tracking, all working in conjunction with your other fleet management systems. Given this heavy tech burden, many have decided to outsource this aspect of the supply chain. If so, be sure to continually evaluate your partners.

  • Do they communicate with you and your customer using easy to use, user friendly technology that you can set up to feed into your own systems?
  • Are they professional? Not just to you and your team, but most importantly to your end user customers. Remember, these teams are the face of your brand and represent you when they deliver the goods.

Another element to a successful final mile delivery is your fleet. Do you have the equipment needed to maximize efficiency for the typical stop-n-go, short run, hub & spoke routes? This decision should go beyond the equipment type – box trucks and cargo vans – but also the technology and fueling of these trucks. Consider alternative fuel systems to save on operational costs. Trucks run on CNG and newer Electric Vehicles (EVs) are both ideal for the daily out-and-back delivery plans of final mile operations. The Bergey’s Group is not only a dealer of medium duty truck sales from Isuzu, Hino and even Mack MD, but we also have light duty fleet solutions at our automotive dealerships for Ford, Chevrolet, GMC, and Ram. And we are equipped to evaluate your needs and offer the most financially beneficial program for you, with financing and lease options on any truck we sell.

Bergey's Truck Brand Line Up

Maintaining short-run trucks is important for the daily wear and tear on the truck. Brakes, tires, and many systems in these units will wear differently than a long-haul truck. Be sure you partner with a dealership that can offer a specialized service program that can take the burden of fault codes and warranties off your plate so you can focus on your core business. The Bergey’s Fleet RPM Program does just that.

The final mile mindset is not going away any time soon. Be sure you take the time to determine the best solutions for your business.