PRESS RELEASE
9th October 2009
Worldwide distribution of books set to be revolutionised by SBS Worldwide
LONDON, 9 OCTOBER 2009 - Publishers seeking a faster, cheaper and easier
way to ship books from printers to customers are being offered a revolutionary
new service by SBS Worldwide, an expert in designing and managing global supply
chains.
“We have taken our logistics expertise and combined it with our extensive
knowledge of the publishing industry to develop eDC (electronic Distribution
Centre) specifically for this market,” explains Steve Walker, Chairman, SBS
Worldwide Ltd. The concept is being launched at the Frankfurt Book Fair next
week.
“We wanted to offer our publishing customers the speed, cost-effectiveness and
visibility that is available in other industries such as automotive and retail,”
he says. “We wanted to integrate supply chain capabilities with total web-based
visibility to the ISBN level. And we've done it.”
eDC will help publishers take control of costs – and of the books themselves.
The software gives everyone who needs it – production, accounts, sales teams –
access to the information about where the books are and when delivery can be
expected, right from the pre-production stage.
A ‘traffic light’ system flags up potential problems or delays in production,
allowing publishers to better manage the operation – and their customers’
expectations.
The system is especially useful for the many publishers who use printers in Asia.
“Many people took the decision to shift their printing to Asia to reduce costs,
but did not then take the next logical step of reorganising the complete supply
chain,” says Steve Walker. Many companies ship the books from the printers to a
distribution centre in Europe or the US and then organise worldwide distribution
from there.
With the electronic Distribution Centre (eDC), SBS Worldwide can organise the
worldwide distribution of books direct from Asia. This not only reduces
transport costs, it can also cut delivery times by up to two weeks and gives
more flexibility to redirect books to areas of highest demand.
“We are changing the perception of what a publisher’s supply chain has to look
like,” says Steve Walker.
SBS Worldwide, headquartered in the UK, offers the full range of air, ocean and
courier services, with a particular expertise in the publishing and retail
sectors. www.sbsworldwide.com/eDC
End of Press Statement
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