Dunkin Donuts and supply chain hole

DALLAS: The National DCP, LLC (NDCP), the exclusive member-owned distribution and purchasing cooperative for Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin Robbins outlets, has selected Transplace as its third party logistics (3PL) provider to efficiently manage inbound shipments to its distribution centers throughout the United States.

Transplace’s Transportation Management System (TMS) will provide inbound shipment lifecycle visibility, reduce direct transportation costs and improve overall operational efficiencies for National DCP. In addition, Transplace brings deep domain expertise in cooperative business to National DCP, along with on-demand supply chain visibility, providing transparency for day-to-day operations decisions, as per a press release.

“While our outbound program has done very well and will remain in place, we wanted the same type of success when managing deliveries from suppliers to our distribution centers. National DCP wanted the best choice for a partner that provided subject matter expertise along with innovation, and discovered that these qualities are resident in Transplace,” said Kevin Bruce, National DCP chief executive officer. “Transplace has the quick-serve restaurant experience and broad network that National DCP can leverage, along with the tools and processes desired for our inbound operations. With Transplace as a supply chain partner, National DCP can better oversee business with our members, manage growth opportunities and also identify efficiencies.”

National DCP provides distribution services for more than 7,000 Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin Robbins restaurant locations in the United States, by managing the delivery of products from hundreds of suppliers to seven distribution centers across the country. In the past several years, Transplace has invested heavily in Lean Six Sigma education and execution along with business intelligence tools and reports for its customers. The web-based portal allows Transplace customers to produce standard and custom reports on-demand or on a scheduled basis to generate detailed insight and greater visibility into their transportation operations in real-time or on a historical basis to identify trends.

“We recognized that Lean processes and real-time business intelligence were opportunities for Transplace to better serve its customers; and, they are also differentiators that translate directly to our customers’ bottom lines,” said Transplace President George Abernathy. “The collaboration across the supply chain and visibility we provide is vital to ensuring the best service and on-time delivery for cooperatives such as National DCP.”