Supply Chain Logistics Optimization

We help organizations with customized solutions that solve problems off-the-shelf tools cannot address, providing insight, visibility, and optimization that delivers exceptional business results

We help customers overcome the startling supply chain issues prevalent today and prepare for many elements of the APQC list of massive changes coming by 2023, including robotic process automation, blockchain, continuing digitalization of the supply chain, global tariff uncertainties, and the leverage of artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Our supply chain modeling, complex analysis, and optimization deliver custom solutions that solve problems that off-the-shelf packages cannot solve. We handle challenges ranging from minimizing transshipment and inventory cost to selecting optimal replacement products.

How We Help Clients

Problem Recognition

We help organizations recognize the real problems that are impacting their supply chains. First, we drill down to root causes and identify current and future gaps in the organization’s technical stack, processes, and management tools. Then, from a new understanding of the problem, we build a prioritized portfolio of supply chain issues that offer the best opportunity for resolution and results.

Building Visibility

Our Glimpse® tools and connectors enable us to join real-time data feeds from disparate ERP, CRM, and WMS tools and clean and transform the data. We present clever and insightful displays not ordinarily available. What-If controls enable quick sensitivity analysis and enable disruption recovery planning, transshipment cost minimization, and inventory cost reduction.

Lead Custom Solution Implementation

We lead solution implementation projects that deliver unique and remarkable solutions for our customers. Solution elements vary with the nature of the project, but we pursue exceptional results with the best technology available. We combine on-site engagement with remote support to work with customer staff and executive sponsors.

What We Do

Transshipment Cost Minimization

Modeling inbound vendor deliveries through networked DCs, studying local demand, and adding in lot size, truck size, and dock restrictions to create a tunable model to slash costs by choice of optimal transshipment routing.

Stocking and Order Cost Minimization

Choosing a modified EOQ model that cuts stocking and ordering cost by incorporating machine learning-based forecasts and applying proven cost minimization techniques to select order quantity for any of hundreds of thousands of inventoried SKUs.

Fulfillment Performance Tuning

Examining the organization and function of fulfillment operations to create a performance model to tune.

Optimal Warehouse Location

Calculating optimal locations for new DCs, or for replacing some or all existing DCs.

Vendor Management

Implementing automated data collection and visualizations that span multiple systems to reveal vendor performance measures and to show current stocking levels and inbound stock for each supplier, supporting order actions.

Delivery Route Optimization

Creating optimal plans for outbound delivery from an existing DC to reduce costs while maintaining customer satisfaction and enforcing realistic restrictions on truck capacity, route length, and dock limitations, among others.

Loading Dock Labor Forecasting

Applying machine learning forecasting techniques and data ingestion from production systems and including restrictions on truck and dock types to build and update least-cost dock staffing plans.

Supply Chain Assessment

Creating sophisticated models of existing supply chain logistics, in whole or in part, to identify vulnerabilities and redundancies and to power interactive What-If sensitivity analysis, even in real-time within a team meeting.

Solutions For All Aspects of Your Business

Our Approach

We help customers tune existing supply chain logistics and design the optimal supply chain logistics they need for the future

We deliver information visualizations that make supply chain statistics actionable. We use modeling, analysis, simulation, and optimization tools to provide the best results today and the best possible designs for the future.

Study and Discovery

We invest the effort needed to build an in-depth understanding of our customer’s logistics network. This effort includes the identification of restrictions of all types and consideration of upcoming impacts such as planned mergers and acquisitions.

Analysis and Modeling

Securing access to clean, accurate, and timely data is a primary concern of modeling and analysis problems. When the data is secured, EDA (exploratory data analysis) reveals the quality of the solution that can be achieved and the types of methods that will offer the best analysis and optimization.

Modeling and Analysis

We build high-fidelity models that accurately reflect the production reality. With these models, we can apply classical simulation and optimization techniques to yield excellent and sometimes surprising results or provide valuable insights.

Data Acquisition

Our data team makes a concerted effort to identify the true source of data for each element needed for analysis and works with the organization’s staff to secure access to the data. In addition, the team sets up connectors that provide sophisticated data transformation and cleaning.

Sectors We Serve

Chemicals, Metals, and Mining
Distribution
Electric Power & Natural Gas
Engineering, Construction, Building Materials
Financial Services
Manufacturing

Quality Focused, Result Driven

Impact Stories

What-If Analysis for Call Centers

What-if analysis provides the ability to compare different scenarios and their potential outcomes based on fluctuating conditions. Einstein Analytics and Tableau SF are just some of the tools that can be utilized to show data interdependencies for key outcomes. Learn more about how Blackstone + Cullen worked with Norfolk Southern Railway Company on their what-if analysis for their call center.

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Customer Profitability Model

Do you know the status of all the products in your supply chain? Do you how much revenue each of your customers bring in? If a product is unavailable, what is the next most likely substitution of a similar product that will deliver the same profit? Blackstone + Cullen delivers solutions that provide never before seen insights to organizations that can help answer these questions.

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Global Business Capability Model

In the strategic planning process, Business Capability Modeling can help the business translate their IT capabilities into a roadmap for business success. A Business Capability Roadmapping approach was used by Blackstone + Cullen to converge business and IT strategies and priorities for Imerys, the world's leading supplier of mineral-based specialty solutions for industry.

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Delivering the Enterprise What-If Capability

Organizations are always looking for more insight out of their reports and dashboards. What-if analysis can deliver exactly that. Discover how to maximize the capabilities of Power BI or Tableau, and how they can be used with advanced what-if analysis to help you answer not only "What happened?" but "What could happen?" and deliver an optimized yet dynamically configurable business scenario models.

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