Our service mission is simple: We supply our workforce teams, management skills and operational know-how to perform your processes, fulfill your service requirements and meet your financial objectives.

 

It's a simple concept but it's our knack for execution and results that set us apart.

 

A key reason for our success is our operating discipline: we stick to what we know. This comes from our corporate experience, where we learned that service providers who claim to be all things to all customers usually end up being long on promises and short on performance.

 

But the ultimate key to Premier's successful execution comes from our workforce teams. All team members are full-time, non-union Premier employees. They are well-trained people who see themselves as a part of our customers' team. And they take pride of ownership in the services they perform.

 

Our services focus on six key areas in which we have extensive skill sets and a proven ability to execute.

 

  

Logistics Services

 

Focus:

All physical distribution and order fulfillment processes associated with the finished goods segment of a customer's supply chain. This can involve supplying our workforce teams on a full-time basis or on a part-time basis to meet a surge in volume due to seasonal demand. We also can provide what we call "supplemental teams."   

 

What we do:

We assume responsibility for all operational processes, financial accountability, throughput efficiency, cost-center reporting and metrics. We are unique in the industry in that all our metrics are specified by our customers and connected to their reporting systems. This means we're measuring what's really important and relevant to them.

 

Our workforce and management teams are located on-site at customer warehouses, distribution facilities, cross-docks or service centers. Representative processes performed include:

 

Order fulfillment services: 

 

  -         Inbound scheduling and product receipt (from customer plants, distribution centers or

      third parties)

  -        Product put-away

  -         "4-walls" inventory management (i.e., control of product within the customer facility;

      no forecasting)

  -         Order pulling, packing and staging

  -        Outbound load planning and carrier scheduling

  -         On-time shipping performance 

  -         Overage, shortage and damage (OS&D) control

  -         Customer returns and product recoup/repack

 

Transportation management services:

 

  -        Carrier Management (due diligence; selection; negotiations; contract preparation;

      performance reviews)

  -        Private and dedicated fleet management

  -        International drayage (to/from U.S. ports) 

  -        Fleet drivers (customer-owned service vehicles) 

 

 

Client Example:

 

For a global Fortune 500 electrical and tools conglomerate... we operate a major regional service center in the company's fastest growing domestic market. Premier handles the entire flow of product from inbound receipt to customer shipping, including customer returns. We provide 24-hour order turnaround. Inventory accuracy for the last 3 years has averaged 99.2% (based on company-performed physical inventories). Premier's performance received "Top Supplier of the Year" award from the company. We were also cited in a recent webcast from the CEO to analysts after we provided 24-7 support to restore operations with minimal customer disruptions when a major tornado wreaked significant damage to the customer's service facility.

 

 

 

Reverse Logistics

 

Focus:

Providing what we call the Five "Rs" of reverse logistics: Returns... Repairs... Repack... Reuse... Recoup. 

 

What we do:

"Reverse logistics", as the name implies, involves the flow of product or materials from the end customer back to the manufacturer, supplier or distributor. In reality, this is really a "negative sale" i.e., product intended to produce revenue is being returned to its source at an additional cost in labor, transportation and processing. Still, reverse logistics are a necessary cost of doing business.

 

Premier uses its expertise in Lean Distribution methods to help clients minimize these costs and processing cycle times. In fact, our clients have turned to us because their financial analyses have shown that we can do it more rapidly and at a lower cost than they could internally - and our performance supports that.

 

We can manage and execute the reverse logistics process from the source of the return through final disposition and distribution of the returned product or material. This includes performing the inventory record keeping, paperwork and systems processing associated with these tasks. Our services include, but are not limited to:

 

     -           Repair of damaged or defective goods

  -          Customer returns (e.g., overstock returns, etc.)

     -          Product recoup and repack

  -          Account close-outs and/or changeovers

  -          Scrap processing for resale

  -          Maintaining cost and productivity metrics for all reverse logistics processes

 

Client Examples:      

 

For a Fortune 500 industrial products manufacturer... we receive damaged and defective products from our client's customers. Our team tests the product with the client's equipment, then cleans and repacks all materials suitable for reshipment to customers. Based on client analysis, Premier has been able to reduce processing costs and times by 12% and 16%, respectively.

 

For a major energy company... we send our teams to the client's service stations where we take down their transformers. We then dismantle, clean, polish, test and repack them for return to the client's warehouses.

 

For a major consumer products manufacturer... our work teams, located on-site at the client's facility, receives truckload-quantity product returns from the client's national retail accounts. Our teams then sort, segregate, test and repack the product for redeployment to our client's distribution centers. During the three years of our contract, we have delivered double-digit annual savings and productivity returns over those of the client's previous service provider.

 

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Manufacturing and Light Industrial

 

Focus:

Premier supplies work teams on-site at our clients' facilities to deliver cost savings and productivity improvements in light manufacturing and assembly operations.

 

What we do:

Global sourcing, high fuel and energy costs and rapidly shifting customer demand patterns have all conspired to require companies to be extremely flexible in their manufacturing and labor decisions. We have helped both large companies and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) meet these challenges with our flexible workforce services. Using the client's facilities and equipment, our services include:

 

  -          Light product assembly

  -          Kitting

  -          Packaging

  -          Assemble-to-order

 

Client Example:          

 

For a global manufacturer... Premier was contracted to operate a national small-package consolidation center for slow-moving SKUs. We trained and implemented a 100-person Premier team on site to receive raw materials from Mexico into a U.S. consolidation center. Using Six Sigma practices, the team performed assembly on an as-needed (just in time) basis.

 

We promised - and delivered - lower labor costs, higher productivity and faster service. In addition, the company saved significant inventory carrying costs by consolidating the lower velocity inventory into a single location. Additional savings accrued by shifting the operation from Mexico to the U.S., thus reducing customs expenses and value-added taxes - something that would not have been achievable without Premier's competitive rates.

 

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Investment Recovery 

Focus:

Investment Recovery (IR) is "the practice of recovering high value assets no longer needed by a company."  Premier assists clients with the implementation and ongoing execution of their Green initiatives, projects and programs.

What we do:

Companies frequently refer to their "green" initiatives these days.  CEOs are talking about such strategies as "sustainability" and "triple bottom line" in their annual reports and meetings with analysts.

Investment Recovery is the ultimate "green initiative".  The IR process begins with identifying idle assets within the organization then reusing or disposing of the surplus; recouping substantial value in the process.  According to the Investment Recovery Association, "70 to 90 percent of every sales dollar generated by investment recovery goes straight to the bottom line as profit."

Many of the required skill sets may not be part of a company's core competencies, and realistically, these programs can be costly, time-consuming and divert resources from the company's basic mission and daily operations.

Premier can help companies implement Investment Recovery strategies.  Our resource services can reduce the cost and effort associated with Green-related projects, while allowing the customer to focus on mission-critical areas of their business.

We do this by working with you to review your program needs, regulatory requirements and compliance specifications.  We then design a program based on the 7 R's: REUSE - RECYCLE - RECONDITION - RESELL - RECLAIM - RETURN - REMOVE.

Client Example:

For a major utility company with operations in 24 states ... Premier assists in the on-site field servicing of electrical transformers.  Transformers targeted for changeover or failed service are field or lab tested for detection of harmful PCBs based on strict compliance grids and hazmat standards.  For any oil-contamination and roll-off we apply oil-soaking material, collect any contaminated soil and load it into dumpsters for proper disposal at a certified site.  Premier manages the cleanup and disposal of various types of spills (e.g., petroleum, mineral, hazardous and non-hazardous materials).  Our teams also serve on a 24-7 standby basis to offer rapid response and support of our customer's field crews when emergencies occur (such as lightning strikes or leaking oil-filled equipment).

In addition, Premier manages the utilities Corporate Recycling Services operation which includes: refurbishing material for placement back into inventory, processing excess copper & aluminum wire, draining & selling spent transformers, and providing streetlight & photocell warranty and repair.

      

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Productivity and Process Improvement Projects

 

Focus:

Thanks to the vision of our customers, they have helped us create a new service that focuses on productivity and process improvement (PPI) projects in areas beyond our traditional workforce services.

 

What we do:

Our customers realize that productivity is more than just a function of "labor input-output." They astutely see improvement opportunities everywhere. As a result, they have engaged us to apply our expertise in productivity management and process change to help them find new and resourceful ways to improve productivity of in a wide variety of operational and organizational areas.

 

For this service, we act as a temporary extension of the customer's management team. Our role is to serve as interim management advisors assigned to find productivity and process gains in specific areas targeted by the customer.

 

We don't act as traditional consultants. We don't bring in large teams of data gatherers and overhead just to validate what you already know. We don't produce ideas and concepts; we produce actionable plans and deliver results. And we work with our customers' employee teams in a collaborative, non-threatening way.

 

In this role we have participated in PPI projects that include a wide variety of functions. For small-to-medium businesses (SBEs), we have even conducted productivity reviews of their entire organization and operations. Our PPI projects have been in such areas as:

 

  -          Order fulfillment (e.g., workflow and process redesign)

  -          Transportation (e.g., carrier management; contracts; network)

  -          Warehousing (e.g., layout; process and product flow)

  -          Training and documentation (e.g., vendor guides; employee training playbooks)

  -          Information technology (e.g., systems performance assessments; user satisfaction

      evaluations) 

  -          Customer service (e.g., service quality audits)

 

Client Example:          

 

For a multi-billion dollar supplier of retail products... Premier's PPI management team was asked to assist the client in assessing the reasons for a high level of product damage with one of its national retail accounts. Using Six Sigma methods, we performed a store-level audit and root-cause analysis of product receipts. We identified improvements to significantly decrease damage in six key process phases: packing materials; product handling techniques; order picking processes; in-transit damage; store receiving procedures; and standard package quantity evaluation. This resulted in reduced costs, improved quality and productivity, and a big boost in customer satisfaction.   

 

For a service provider to major airlines... The client performed baggage and package handling for the airline industry. Our team was called in to help eliminate late, lost and missed service failures. We tracked the defect rates and assessed processes to identify the source of defects. We implemented real-time reports, installed a clear ID tagging system, and created dedicated staging lanes for high-volume items (none previously existed). Although the customer's contract stipulated a fixed number of service people, we created quality auditors positions to double-check offload manifests, without adding headcount. By reassigning personnel and redesigning process flow, quality improved from 86% to 98%, while operational costs decreased.

 

For a 400,00 sq. ft. distribution center... A global manufacturer of electrical devices engaged Premier to find ways for improving cost, quality and productivity at a major service facility. Our PPI team created a shipping manifest system for more efficient scheduling and workload planning (none existed)... designed a new warehouse layout to reduce order pick and travel times via dedicated pick areas for high volume accounts... reorganized the client's work teams to reduce headcount from 80 to 60 people... created special less-than-standard pick areas to reduce damage and errors... established metrics for all inbound processes from product receipt to put-away... created lines picked-per-hour standards and an employee dashboard to alert all personnel about daily status of planned vs. actual orders picked.

 

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Customized Client Programs

 

Focus:

Because of our close working relationship with customers, they often turn to us for resource help with highly specialized programs that are unique to their company. These may be one-time, short-term projects. Or they may ongoing long-term programs.

 

What we do:

Regardless of their length or nature, these programs involve unique needs. We have the flexibility, resources and know-how to readily provide workforce services that can make your program a success. The proof is in the process.

 

From the time a customer calls with a request for services until we implement our workforce teams, we follow a systematic and proven program management process. We meet with customer management to define the program requirements and determine the necessary resource levels. We will then "map" the relevant processes, train the Premier team in those processes, and collaborate with the client to develop customer-defined key performance indicators (KPI) and metrics.

 

We thrive and excel especially in high-pressure, tight deadline projects: for example, both "greenfield" (new facility startups) and "brownfield" (facility closedown) projects. We also can provide "shift support" services; for example, when a client needs to supplement its own work teams, or when a second or third shift is needed to support seasonal demand or rapid volume growth.

 

Client Example:          

 

For an international manufacturer with over a billion dollars in global sourcing ... The client sought to reduce its transportation spend for imported product. Premier's management team set up a cross-dock network to receive the product from the client's facilities in Asia, Europe and Mexico. We formulated economic shipping lots and least-cost transportation lanes to redirect the product to the clients DCs on a cost-effective and timely basis.

 

For a leading fleet services company... Premier provides workforce teams for this company that services intermodal trailers and containers in the railroad industry. Our 120-person team performs repair audits for both In-service (in the yard) and Out-of-service (out of yard) equipment. We monitor the service records and repairs performed by vendors to ensure that the work was actually performed and in compliance with our customer's quality standards. In our first year, we reduced repair costs by 25% from catching errors, work that was not performed, and work that was under-performed by the vendors.

 

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