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APC beats the clock. Today’s distributors are under pressure from the ever-increasing speed of the order cycle. End-users, squeezing nickels to survive, are reducing inventories, employing “just-in-time” and “integrated supply” purchasing techniques, cutting staff, and placing higher demands on the distributor to have or get product when and where it's needed. Distributors, in turn, lean heavily on their vendors for fast delivery. Blame it on the global economy or global warming, Boomers raised on instant karma or Gen-X’ers demanding instant gratification. Whatever the cause, those who can’t keep pace are left eating dust from an empty wallet. But we can help.
APC has outstanding availability and delivery--far above industry average. Reps must be aware of this powerful sales feature of the Polywater® line. Here’s how we do it:
- Production: APC can receive truckload orders one day and ship the next--running at less than 50% capacity! Our only limitation is our vendor’s ability to supply raw materials. We have excess capacity. Accountants hate it. You should love it.
- Inventory: We ignore our tax advisor’s plea to reduce inventory, carrying about a four-month supply of finished goods--more than enough to weather sudden sales surges or other strains on production. Customer satisfaction may not appear on the balance sheet, but it justifies a bloated inventory.
- Availability: We have 15 stocking locations in the U.S. This is a logistical nightmare for us, and a boon for customers. Will-calls, rep deliveries, and inexpensive one-day deliveries are common. Out-of-stocks are easily satisfied by routing from the nearest location.
The statistics are impressive: +95% of orders ship by due date. 70% of orders ship at least one day early. Many orders are filled same-day. The vast majority ship within 24 hours of placement; the average is skewed only by the few unusually large, complex orders. This response time applies to more than orders: samples, literature, and MSDS requests are handled at the same pace. Website inquiries receive response measured in minutes or hours, rather than days.
We're not perfect and aim to improve, but APC compares very favorably with competitors and others in the industry on delivery speed. We’ve previously responded to compliments with a modest, “Aw, shucks.” But no more. The time has come to acknowledge our good service record--and for you to sell it. |
