A combination of technology and transportation services, Con-Way Retail will offer cross-docking, warehousing and final delivery to customers with multiple selling locations within a single geographic area, according to Con-Way Transportation. Truckload shipments from manufacturers’ plants or distribution centers will flow into a cross-dock facility where bar codes will be scanned to confirm delivery, quantity, product type and identify shortages, overages or damages. Shipments will be sorted and segregated into smaller shipments for local delivery to multiple selling locations within a single geographic area, says Con-Way.
All scanned data will be sent by electronic data interchange (EDI) to a Web site that streams the information into the store’s inventory system, according to Con-Way.
Con-Way rolled the service out in Cleveland and Pittsburgh in April. The company said the service uses resources within its network of over 400 facilities in the U.S. and Canada. Though it gave no schedule for expansion of the service, J. Edwin Conaway, president and CEO of Con-Way Now stated, “This gives us the unique ability to respond quickly when a customer needs us to open a new market.”
