Location of the Consolidation Center

From a strict logistics point of view, the best location for the consolidation center would be inside the plant building. Transportation from the consolidation center to the line side could then rely on the same marshaling trains or carts used for other items, and the weather would not matter. 

Consolidation centers are often located in a separate building within the same industrial park as the plant. If the climate permits, it is still possible to load vehicles that go directly to the line side at the consolidation center. Otherwise, an additional transfer is needed when the parts reach the plant. The consolidation center staff still comes from the same labor pool as the plant staff, but corporate identities are more clearly separated and daily contacts are few. 

Manufacturing companies usually do not set up from scratch a consolidation center that is several miles from their plant, because transportation would then require road trucks. This type of situation arises mostly when an existing trading company is drafted into the role of consolidation center. If it has a facility that is less than a 15- to 20-minute drive from the plant, then it is not worth building a new one nearer. This facility then taps into a different labor pool from the plant, and can recruit employees for whom the wages it offers are an improvement. 

There are limits to what can be reasonably asked of a consolidation center. We describe here three examples of work that, for different reasons, must be kept in-house. 

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