Armstrong amp; Associates rolls out 3PLAdvisor.com

Supply chain consultancy Armstrong & Associates has introduced a new product designed to provide shippers with a way to share customer relationship experiences about their third-party logistics (3PL) providers.

The product, entitled 3PLAdvisor.com, enables 3PLs to receive free customer feedback, with shippers able to anonymously rate the 3PLs they use, as well as send request for information forms to 3PLs they may want to use in the future.

Armstrong & Associates Chairman Richard Armstrong told LM that economic globalization and the need for more sophisticated management of global supply chains served as the primary drivers for 3PLAdvisor.com.

“As markets expanded, 3PLs have had to become more sophisticated in providing solutions, geographical coverage and visibility to their customers,” said.

The concept for launching 3PLAdvisor.com was created by Evan Armstrong, president of Armstrong & Associates, with engineering and planning kicking off a year ago.

How it works: When shippers submit reviews to 3PLAdvisor.com, the site automatically generates more than 100 top ranked 3PL lists for things like Top Rated Global 3PLs, Top Rated North America 3PLs, and Top Rates China 3PLs, among other regions.

And as of press time, 3PLAdvisor.com has profile information for more than 280 3PLs, with information such as company name, basic services provided headquarters location, website, and other related items.

“We’ve developed a straightforward website where 3PL customers can easily provide feedback on their 3PL relationships and where 3PLs can see how well they are meeting customer needs,” said Evan Armstrong in a statement. “This type of no-cost information sharing forum is one of the greatest benefits from internet business social networking and customers’ shared experiences have considerable value as firms evaluate 3PL providers as part of their strategic outsourcing decisions. Unlike customer satisfaction surveys, 3PL Advisor takes an ongoing approach versus a one-time snapshot. To ensure a high level of quality, A&A reviews each 3PL customer review and 3PL profile submission prior to it being displayed on 3PLAdvisor.com. While customers can anonymously post reviews of their 3PLs, we strictly prohibit 3PLs from evaluating other 3PLs and strive to ensure that the site contains the most accurate 3PL profile information possible.”

And in terms of competitive benefits 3PLAdvisor.com provides, Richard Armstrong said that the company needs to continue as the 3PL information leader as it has been doing for more than 20 years, explaining that the company has been consistently providing new ideas and methods for doing third party logistics better and noting that leading edge ideas keep Armstrong and Associates excited about this business.