Unlocking the Potential of Bundled Services

- How to improve delivery efficiency and control while reducing costs in marine operations

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In the global shipping industry, procurement and technical directors are under pressure to ensure operational efficiency and cost management due to the increasing food prices and fluctuating indexes for certain spare parts. The huge potential of Bundled Services – consolidated deliveries of commodities, spare parts and owners’ goods – tends to be underestimated despite recognized improved efficiency, cost savings and increased control of the vessel’s supplies.

Forward-looking shipowners and operators are increasingly turning to consolidated marine logistics solutions built on the principles of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), transparent supply chain, scalable setup and a single point of contact to avoid “invisible” costs and operational hassle.

The Effect of Non-consolidated Agreements

As an experienced marine supply and logistics player, we truly see the advantages of the Bundled Services concept.  Non-consolidated deliveries can cause limited visibility and lack of coordination between suppliers and logistics providers, causing hidden costs and increased administrative and operational burden. When multiple deliveries are not centrally managed, shipowners risk facing a cascade of inefficiencies.
- Mario Cavallucci, Global Managing Director, WML.

Multiple, separate deliveries of provisions, spare parts and owners’ goods for the same port call can lead to repeated customs clearance and higher port service fees. With no single point of contact, different suppliers communicate separately with the vessel or the superintendent, causing delays, miscommunication or duplicated work. Without a data-based consolidated overview, it becomes difficult to plan the storage of owners’ goods, loading and inventory onboard, often resulting in extra handling fees and agent charges.

By adopting a modular, scalable and TCO-based single point of contact model supported by real-time data, shipowners achieve less coordination, more control and data-driven decisions – apart from direct savings.

Consolidated Deliveries

By grouping provisions, spare parts, safety items and owners’ goods into one consolidated shipment per port call, delivery control and security in the entire supply chain are improved, avoiding the risk of items disappearing due to multiple suppliers and deliveries.

In practice, the shipment of spare parts, provisions, stores and maybe owners’ goods are consolidated into one shipment at the Wrist Marine Logistics’ distribution center and loaded into one truck and potentially, if the vessel is lying in the roads, onto one barge out to the vessel.

Shipping companies that operate through consolidated delivery solutions reduce their costs for customs clearance and last-mile delivery while also simplifying onboard handling.

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A case study has demonstrated that a consolidated delivery from three suppliers with provisions, stores and spare parts can lead to cost savings on freight of around 44%, including airfreight, courier, clearance and barge cost, depending on port, vessel type etc. (WML case study: Long Beach – June 2023).

Single Point of Contact

A dedicated account manager acts as the single point of contact between the procurement or technical director and the suppliers of commodities. The shipowner operates through a single channel for updates, documentation and problem-solving, ensuring clear accountability, faster decision-making and eliminating the need to coordinate with multiple agents and suppliers onboard.

Total Cost of Ownership

Rather than looking only at unit prices, the TCO model accounts for all associated costs by taking full charge of the customer’s end-to-end supply chain of marine supplies, spare parts, owners’ goods, storage, clearance, delivery and administration. This allows for the shipowner to make better supplier selection based on real cost impact, fixed-cost model including transparent budgeting and forecasting for evidence-based procurement decisions.

Scalable Solution and Real-time Visibility

Future-oriented shipping companies view scalability and integrated customer portals with real-time data not solely as smart, proactive planning and data-driven decision-making, but as a necessary tool to contribute to CO2 emission reductions. With a scalable solution, whether managing 10 or 200 vessels, the same standardized processes apply. Integrated data-based order and delivery status, port schedules and CO2 emissions data allow for continuous KPI performance reports, which contribute to an overview of the company’s CO2 emission footprint and potential reduction.

The Wrist Marine Logistics customer portal provides such dynamic real-time tracking with live status updates for each shipment. It ensures complete transparency into delivery history and performance across all transport modes, offering detailed transport reports for each order by transport mode, destination, departure city, weight etc. The portal also enables users to calculate CO2 emissions per order, per vessel or across the entire consolidated freight.

The case study also demonstrated that consolidated delivery reduced CO2 emissions by around 46%, depending on port, transport type, courier company etc. (WML case study based on EcoTransIT World independent scientific based methodology: Long Beach – June 2023)

In an era where shipping and marine logistics are expected to be leaner, more responsible and smarter, it is paramount to unlock the huge potential of customized Bundled Services. For shipowners, the cost of non-visible, non-consolidated deliveries go far beyond a few extra invoices – they represent a significant loss of operational efficiency and delivery control. Addressing this challenge calls for a modular, Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) solution, that delivers real-time visibility along with CO2 emission insights.