Client:
A food manufacturing company.
Challenge:
A food manufacturing company was expanding its operations to meet increasing consumer demand. The company relied on agricultural inputs such as soy hulls and wood pellets and needed to re-evaluate inbound logistics strategy during facility scale-up.
The company’s expansion required new storage infrastructure for bulk agricultural inputs. Without direct rail access, they planned to receive material via pneumatic trucks—which would also require investing in a $100,000 pneumatic unloading system.
In addition to the capital investment, the client was concerned about the cost and availability of pneumatic trucks, which were relatively expensive and less accessible than other modes of transportation. They wanted to explore more cost-effective inbound logistics solutions that could scale with their operations while avoiding unnecessary capex.
Strategic Objectives:
- Evaluate lower-cost alternatives to pneumatic truck infrastructure.
- Reduce transportation costs for bulk raw materials.
- Maintain operational flexibility and scalability for future rail options.
- Identify transload options to enable more efficient freight routing.
Approach:
Waypost deployed a logistics advisor with deep experience in bulk agricultural transport to lead the assessment. The process included:
- Researching market conditions, equipment availability, and cost drivers across bulk shipping lanes.
- Evaluating alternative vehicle types—including hopper trucks—and their load capacities relative to product density.
- Collaborating with the company’s engineers to design a simple unloading setup that would make hopper truck use feasible.
- Identifying a nearby transload facility that could receive railcars and transfer material to trucks for last-mile delivery.
This analysis revealed that with a modest design adjustment, the company could shift to hopper truck deliveries—eliminating the need for pneumatic systems and unlocking cheaper freight options. The setup would also lay the groundwork for future bulk rail utilization once the operation scaled.
Key Steps:
- Field research on logistics equipment cost and availability
- Bulk truck weight/load capacity modeling based on product density
- Collaborative design of hopper unload mechanism
- Identification of transload facility for future rail enablement
- Cost modeling across all options (capex vs. opex)
Assessment Areas:
- Capex requirements for pneumatic vs. hopper systems
- Transportation costs by truck type and equipment availability
- Bulk material handling feasibility and unload method design
- Infrastructure constraints and operational flexibility
- Rail access risk and cost-benefit forecasting
Tools and Methodologies:
- Logistics equipment cost modeling
- Freight load scenario simulations
- Transload partner vetting
- Transportation ROI and break-even analysis
- On-site feasibility review and technical design collaboration
Deliverables:
- Recommended hopper truck unload design
- Capital avoidance justification for pneumatic system
- Cost comparison across inbound freight modes
- Future-state bulk rail feasibility report
- 5-year logistics cost reduction model
Conclusion:
By replacing a planned pneumatic unloading system with a low-cost hopper unload alternative, the company avoided $50,000 in capex investment. They also created a 25% reduction in annual transportation costs by using higher-capacity hopper trucks and more affordable lane options.
Waypost not only solved thir immediate problem but also positioned the client to transition to bulk rail in the future—enhancing long-term supply chain flexibility and cost control.
“Waypost’s creative logistics thinking, combined with our internal engineering team, helped us cut costs dramatically while staying future-ready.”