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Menlo Worldwide handling Teachers’ Curriculum Institute program

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Menlo Worldwide Logistics, the global logistics subsidiary of Con-way Inc., announced that it has launched a program for Teachers’ Curriculum Institute to manage warehouse and distribution operations serving customers in the Midwest and U.S. East Coast regions.

TCI, a publisher of social studies educational materials for grades K-12, has retained Menlo to provide its multiclient network warehouse management solution in support of its distribution strategies, while providing faster delivery to customers and lower transportation costs. Menlo says it is providing TCI with an integrated program incorporating management of inbound and outbound orders of textbooks out of its multiclient warehouse facility in Aurora, Ill. Menlo says its facility, which is close in proximity to TCI’s printers in the Midwest, enables the company to shorten its supply chain and employ more direct deliveries to school districts.

Previously, TCI would consolidate product at warehouse locations in the Western United States, fulfilling orders to all its customers from there. Under the new Menlo solution, the company’s location in Aurora takes over receipt of product, warehousing, inventory management and fulfillment for orders going to school districts in the Midwest and on the East Coast. Menlo says its multiclient environment offers inventory control, Web visibility tools, technology and processes, and the flexibility to meet seasonal surges typical of the educational publishing business. Menlo says its facility currently handles average daily shipments ranging from 1,300 to more than 10,000 textbooks depending on the academic term of the school district served.

“After evaluating other logistics providers, it became clear that Menlo had the technology and expertise to meet the needs of our seasonal business and enable us to continue to provide high levels of service,” says Ellen Hardy, director of business for TCI. “We are not only able to cut our transit times, but we are also reducing our impact on the environment, which is an important initiative for us. With multiclient warehousing, we use only the space that we need, but we still benefit from shared systems, experience and best practices.”

Menlo says its multiclient warehouse management solution also offers flexibility in contract commitment length, the ability to share existing IT platforms, an experienced management and labor infrastructure, requisite equipment and assets, and a more extensive geographic network of preconfigured warehouse operations.

“The multiclient facility in Aurora is a perfect fit for Teachers’ Curriculum Institute, giving them the expertise and services they were looking for without the need for a capital investment in new infrastructure,” says Robert L. Bianco Jr., president of Menlo Worldwide Logistics, based in San Mateo, Calif. “Now, they’re closer to their customers in the Midwest and on the East Coast, have greater control and insight into inventory levels, and can respond quickly to surges in demand – crucial to success in their industry. We look forward to helping them deliver their unique social studies programs to schools across the country.”

In addition to Aurora, Menlo has multiclient facilities in Atlanta; Dallas; Cranbury, N.J.; Fontana and Fremont, Calif.; and Portland, Ore. Outside the United States, Menlo’s multiclient network facilities are located in Mexico, Canada, Asia and Europe.