Company Reports - RLS Logistics: Family owned logistics provider
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RLS Logistics: Family owned logistics provider
Family owned logistics provider
Written by Gabe Perna & Produced by Lorraine Heist
The philosophy at RLS Logistics would likely make legendary football coach Vince Lombardi proud. As President and CEO of the Transportation Division, Russell Leo, puts it quite bluntly regarding the company's approach: "If a potential client comes to us with a logistics problem, we will find a solution; failure is not an option."
With this attitude, RLS Logistics has established itself as one of the Northeast region's leading temperature-controlled logistics providers offering superior transportation, warehousing, packaging and distribution services. Located in Malaga, NJ, RLS has expanded its services and coverage area since its inception in 1988 as R. Leo & Son Freezer Storage, founded by Anthony Leo. In 2007, the company acquired a facility in Pittston, PA, and recently it underwent an expansion at its cold storage facility in Malaga, NJ. RLS also manages a dedicated facility in Vineland, NJ, for an international baked goods manufacturer.
The company's success is based on its turnkey solutions, which are offered to food-industry companies that service retail, food service and institutional distributors. The company also does a lot of plant support work for food processors. According to Russell and his brother, Tony, President and CEO of the Warehousing Division, RLS offers LTL, truckload and consolidated transportation as well as a host of other logistics services.
"We have a lot of value-added services. We offer customized packaging solutions, tempering services, USDA inspection and much more. When the product is here we can do many things to add value for our customer. There are a lot of cold storage facilities in the Northeast; it is our multitude of services along with our flexibility that distinguishes us from everyone else. When it's finally time to ship the product, we can ship it truckload, LTL or consolidate it with other shipments going to the same region," explains Tony Leo.
ACCELEFRATE CONSOLIDATION PROGRAM
One of the company's latest value added services is one of its most successfully implemented programs to date. Accelefrate SM is a multi-vendor freight consolidation program designed to offer customers reduced transportation costs and the convenience of having one logistics provider. Accelefrate SM combines warehousing and transportation services in where customers maintain inventory at one of RLS's facilities and use its transportation service to deliver orders on a regional or national basis.
"There are a number of benefits with Accelefrate SM. It provides customers that already maintain an inventory a more cost-effective solution for their products. It allows them to ship orders with other clients' freight to the same region. There are a lot of consolidation programs out there, but we have benefits that we feel distinguish ours such as a guaranteed rate schedule and a guaranteed sailing schedule, and some are regional while ours is nationwide. We offer the program out of all three of our facilities," explains Tony.
There are a number of other benefits to Accelefrate SM including an unlimited consignee base. While other companies limit their consolidation program to the larger foodservice and retail distributors, Accelefrate SM is offered to any consignee, no matter the size. Russell says RLS feels now has been the perfect time to implement this innovative program.
"We feel this is the future of the industry, to be able to offer this type of consolidation and help customers reduce costs. With the current recession, everyone is looking to reduce costs. We have been working on this program for over a year now so the timing was perfect", he says.
TECHNICALLY ENHANCED
On top of implementing the consolidation program, RLS Logistics has been successful through its use of high-end, industry-leading technology. Tony says RLS allocates significantly more dollars to its IT budget than the average competitor. It gives their customers a huge benefit.
Of the many examples of RLS Logistics' technological implementations, its most customer-centric might be its NetView system, a combined online WMS and TMS that allows RLS' clients to view their data in real time. This Web-based system was implemented with the help of RLS' software provider, Maves International Software. RLS considers Maves one of its key vendors and has used their services for more than 10 years. The two companies work very closely to develop cutting-edge 3PL software systems to aid RLS and its clients.
RLS also makes extensive use of electronic data interchange (EDI) software. EDI allows for electronic communication between RLS and its customers. This means an increased accuracy of shipments, quick and effective processing of orders and receipts, and reduced transaction costs. Other technological systems implemented by RLS include RF bar code scanning, trailer tracking, customized software, backup power and computerized temperature monitors.
"As technology costs come down, we're able to offer customers the same type of online access that our larger competitors are able to offer. Our customers can view their inventory online 24/7, generate reports at their convenience, and track their shipments from the point of pick-up until the order is delivered," explains Russell on the capabilities of NetView.
EMPLOYEE CULTURE
Safety is another important measure at RLS Logistics as is continuous improvement. The Leo brothers stress the company takes safety very seriously with numerous training programs implemented and required for all associates. In addition, RLS Logistics constantly measures itself in terms of quality with KPIs (key performance indicators) related to on-time shipping, on-time delivery, and shipping and inventory accuracy. In order to keep everyone focused on safety and quality, an employee bonus program is provided to all associates on a quarterly basis that is tied to the company's safety and service performance.
All in all, the atmosphere at RLS has made for what Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Kevin McVey, says has been an attractive place to work for associates. Not surprisingly, the company enjoys low turnover. McVey has the external perspective of someone outside the family holding a key management position with RLS. He attests that the family atmosphere at RLS is evident in the way the company treats all of its associates.
"The interesting thing working for this family is as the company continues to grow, they still keep things intimate. All associates are challenged to be creative thinkers and bring fresh ideas to their job. The overall vision is to grow the business and be a strong regional player that offers nationwide services. Our professional management team is accessible to everyone from the customers to the associates," McVey states. Both Russell and Tony attribute the company's success to the values they learned from their father, and also to the hard work of their dedicated associates, many of whom have been with the company since day one.
FACTS AT A GLANCE:
Company Name: RLS Logistics
Presidents: Russell Leo, Transportation / Tony Leo, Warehousing
Operations: Temperature-controlled logistics provider
Established: 1968
Employees: 120
www.rlslogistics.com
With this attitude, RLS Logistics has established itself as one of the Northeast region's leading temperature-controlled logistics providers offering superior transportation, warehousing, packaging and distribution services. Located in Malaga, NJ, RLS has expanded its services and coverage area since its inception in 1988 as R. Leo & Son Freezer Storage, founded by Anthony Leo. In 2007, the company acquired a facility in Pittston, PA, and recently it underwent an expansion at its cold storage facility in Malaga, NJ. RLS also manages a dedicated facility in Vineland, NJ, for an international baked goods manufacturer.
The company's success is based on its turnkey solutions, which are offered to food-industry companies that service retail, food service and institutional distributors. The company also does a lot of plant support work for food processors. According to Russell and his brother, Tony, President and CEO of the Warehousing Division, RLS offers LTL, truckload and consolidated transportation as well as a host of other logistics services.
"We have a lot of value-added services. We offer customized packaging solutions, tempering services, USDA inspection and much more. When the product is here we can do many things to add value for our customer. There are a lot of cold storage facilities in the Northeast; it is our multitude of services along with our flexibility that distinguishes us from everyone else. When it's finally time to ship the product, we can ship it truckload, LTL or consolidate it with other shipments going to the same region," explains Tony Leo.
ACCELEFRATE CONSOLIDATION PROGRAM
One of the company's latest value added services is one of its most successfully implemented programs to date. Accelefrate SM is a multi-vendor freight consolidation program designed to offer customers reduced transportation costs and the convenience of having one logistics provider. Accelefrate SM combines warehousing and transportation services in where customers maintain inventory at one of RLS's facilities and use its transportation service to deliver orders on a regional or national basis.
"There are a number of benefits with Accelefrate SM. It provides customers that already maintain an inventory a more cost-effective solution for their products. It allows them to ship orders with other clients' freight to the same region. There are a lot of consolidation programs out there, but we have benefits that we feel distinguish ours such as a guaranteed rate schedule and a guaranteed sailing schedule, and some are regional while ours is nationwide. We offer the program out of all three of our facilities," explains Tony.
There are a number of other benefits to Accelefrate SM including an unlimited consignee base. While other companies limit their consolidation program to the larger foodservice and retail distributors, Accelefrate SM is offered to any consignee, no matter the size. Russell says RLS feels now has been the perfect time to implement this innovative program.
"We feel this is the future of the industry, to be able to offer this type of consolidation and help customers reduce costs. With the current recession, everyone is looking to reduce costs. We have been working on this program for over a year now so the timing was perfect", he says.
TECHNICALLY ENHANCED
On top of implementing the consolidation program, RLS Logistics has been successful through its use of high-end, industry-leading technology. Tony says RLS allocates significantly more dollars to its IT budget than the average competitor. It gives their customers a huge benefit.
Of the many examples of RLS Logistics' technological implementations, its most customer-centric might be its NetView system, a combined online WMS and TMS that allows RLS' clients to view their data in real time. This Web-based system was implemented with the help of RLS' software provider, Maves International Software. RLS considers Maves one of its key vendors and has used their services for more than 10 years. The two companies work very closely to develop cutting-edge 3PL software systems to aid RLS and its clients.
RLS also makes extensive use of electronic data interchange (EDI) software. EDI allows for electronic communication between RLS and its customers. This means an increased accuracy of shipments, quick and effective processing of orders and receipts, and reduced transaction costs. Other technological systems implemented by RLS include RF bar code scanning, trailer tracking, customized software, backup power and computerized temperature monitors.
"As technology costs come down, we're able to offer customers the same type of online access that our larger competitors are able to offer. Our customers can view their inventory online 24/7, generate reports at their convenience, and track their shipments from the point of pick-up until the order is delivered," explains Russell on the capabilities of NetView.
EMPLOYEE CULTURE
Safety is another important measure at RLS Logistics as is continuous improvement. The Leo brothers stress the company takes safety very seriously with numerous training programs implemented and required for all associates. In addition, RLS Logistics constantly measures itself in terms of quality with KPIs (key performance indicators) related to on-time shipping, on-time delivery, and shipping and inventory accuracy. In order to keep everyone focused on safety and quality, an employee bonus program is provided to all associates on a quarterly basis that is tied to the company's safety and service performance.
All in all, the atmosphere at RLS has made for what Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Kevin McVey, says has been an attractive place to work for associates. Not surprisingly, the company enjoys low turnover. McVey has the external perspective of someone outside the family holding a key management position with RLS. He attests that the family atmosphere at RLS is evident in the way the company treats all of its associates.
"The interesting thing working for this family is as the company continues to grow, they still keep things intimate. All associates are challenged to be creative thinkers and bring fresh ideas to their job. The overall vision is to grow the business and be a strong regional player that offers nationwide services. Our professional management team is accessible to everyone from the customers to the associates," McVey states. Both Russell and Tony attribute the company's success to the values they learned from their father, and also to the hard work of their dedicated associates, many of whom have been with the company since day one.
FACTS AT A GLANCE:
Company Name: RLS Logistics
Presidents: Russell Leo, Transportation / Tony Leo, Warehousing
Operations: Temperature-controlled logistics provider
Established: 1968
Employees: 120
www.rlslogistics.com