Glossario
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Clear Height
The height pallets can be stacked while leaving clearance for product movement or for lights, sprinklers, etc., hanging from a ceiling.
Client
The stock that arrives at our Distribution Centers is owned by the client, the companies that have made arrangements with Nexus to store and distribute their products.
COGS, Cost of goods sold
Accounting term used to describe the total value (cost) of products sold during a specific time period. Since inventory is an asset, it is not expensed when it is purchased or produced. It instead goes into an asset account (usually called Inventory). When product is sold, the value of the product (the cost, not the sell price) is moved form the asset account to an expense account called cost of goods sold or COGS. COGS appears on the profit-and-loss statement and is also used for calculating inventory turns.
Concealed Damage
Damage to product that is not obvious until the product is examined or the condition becomes apparent during storage or transfer.
Consignee
The client’s customers are referred to as the consignee. Just think of the consignee as the “end user” or the company where Nexus ships the stock.
Consignment inventory
Inventory that is in the possession of the customer, but is still owned by the supplier. Consignment inventory is used as a marketing tool to make it easier for a customer to stock a specific supplier's inventory. Read my article on Consignment Inventory.
Consolidate
Combine two or more shipments going in the same direction or to the same destination on a single trailer.
Container
A container is a box that resembles a box railcar that holds product that can be transported by ship, rail or tractor. Containers do not have wheels; it has to be placed on a chassis in order to be pulled by a tractor. Although a container can be anything designed to hold (contain) materials for storage or transport, the most common definition for Container in logistics refers to the specific types of containers used for intermodal transportation, often referred to as "Ocean Containers". Standard external dimensions for containers are width of 8', height of 8' 6" or 9' 6" (High Cube), and lengths of 20', 40', 45' (deduct 4" from width, 9" from height and 7" to 9" from length to determine inside demensions). More specs and info on containers at Seaboard Marine, Maersk Sealand, and a nice independent site The Intermodal Container FAQ put out by a commercial photographer.
Contract
A binding agreement between Nexus and a client stating terms of the agreement, storage fees, transportation rates, and accessorial charges.
Contract warehouse
A contract warehouse is a business that handles shipping, receiving, and storage of products on a contract basis. Contract warehouses will generally require a client to commit to a specific period of time (generally in years) for the services. Contracts may or may not require clients to purchase or subsidize storage and material-handling equipment. Fees for contract warehouses may be transaction and storage based, fixed, cost plus, or any combination. Also see Public Warehouse and 3PL.
Cross-belt sorter
Conveyor sorting system that uses a series of devices (carriers) mounted on a conveyor to sort materials. Each device has a small belt conveyor mounted on top of it that runs perpendicular to the direction of the main conveyor. When it arrives at a sort point, the conveyor on the carrier will spin, moving the materials to the side of the main conveyor (usually onto another conveyor, dropping down a chute, or into a container).
Cross-dock
Instead of the stock arriving and being placed into storage, the stock is left at the dock to be delivered or goes out immediately on another vehicle to be shipped. This stock is usually shipped immediately or within a day and does not go into storage.
Cross-docking
In its purest form cross-docking is the action of unloading materials from an incoming trailer or rail car and immediately loading these materials in outbound trailers or rail cars, thus eliminating the need for warehousing (storage). In reality, pure cross-docking is rare outside of transportation hubs and hub-and-spoke type distribution networks. Many "cross-docking" operations require large staging areas where inbound materials are sorted, consolidated, and stored until the outbound shipment is complete and ready to ship. This staging may take hours, days, or even weeks in which case the "staging area" is essentially a "warehouse".
Cube utilization
Term used in Warehouse Management Systems. Cube logic is often incorporated but seldom used in WMS systems because of its tendency to treat your product as liquid (fitting a round peg in a square hole). See article on Warehouse Management Systems.
Cycle Count
The process of taking a physical inventory of products on a rotating basis so that after a period of time all products have been counted.
DC
Distribution Center
Dimensional weight
A.k.a. Dim weight. Formula used to determine freight charges when the minimum weight to volume ratio has not been met. Actual weight and dim weight are compared, and the larger weight is used for the freight calculation. Dim weight is calculated by: Dim weight= (Length x Width x Height)/194 . All dimensional measurements are in inches.
Distribution
Describes the process of storing, shipping, and transporting goods. Also describes the facilities (distribution operations, distribution centers) that conduct these activities. In statistical analysis, describes the measurement of a group of events or occurrences (see Normal distribution).
Distribution Center
The Nexus Distribution Center is a facility which stores goods used in filling orders. Inbound carriers bring stock into the Distribution Center. Stock can be used for immediately filling open orders, or filling future orders. Outbound carriers transport stock from the Distribution Center to the end user. Nexus Distribution Centers are strategically placed close to major transportation lanes (i.e. highways, railroads). Nexus relies on outside carriers as well as our own fleet to transport stock.
Dock
A warehouse door with an extending platform where trailers are loaded and unloaded.
Dock Plate
A moveable metal plate that is placed between the warehouse dock door and a trailer or railcar.
Drayage
A container or piggyback is moved from a rail yard to another location (which is most likely a Nexus Distribution Center) and then returning that piggyback / container back to the initial pick-up point, is known as a dray. It is important that these containers get unloaded quickly and returned back to the original point so not to incur detention charges.
Drive-in rack
Racking system designed to allow a lift truck to drive into the bay creating very high density storage for non-stackable loads. Useful for operations with limited SKUs and high quantities of pallets per SKU. FIFO is difficult to maintain in drive-in racking systems. a.k.a. Drive-thru Rack.
Drum-handling attachments
Describes the various designs of lift-truck attachment used to handle 55 gallon drums. Some are smaller versions of a paper roll clamp while others may engage the upper rim of the drum, or the lower rings. Some drum attachments are capable of picking up multiple drums at the same time.
Dunnage
Fill material. Types of dunnage include loose fill (packing peanuts), papar, bubble wrap, foam, and air pillows. Airbags and cardboard packing material used to pad a load to prevent shifting during transport.