Winter Storm OTIF: A Tactic That Worked
When winter storms threaten supply chains, maintaining on-time-in-full delivery becomes a significant challenge. This article examines a proven tactic for protecting OTIF performance during severe weather events, with insights from logistics experts who have successfully implemented it. Learn how auto-adjusting buffers based on geofence alerts can help teams stay ahead of weather disruptions.
Auto-Adjust Buffers on Geofence Alerts
From our NetSuite projects, we've seen some clients set automated stock buffer adjustments once certain geofenced logistics routes hit a weather alert. When persistent delays hit a key northern hub during a storm, a workflow bumping minimum safety stock up just 10% per alert managed the risk without major cost spikes. After automating the signal, delayed shipments stopped surprising the ops team, and order fulfillment stats held steady. It's not the only way, but it's helped several SaaS-driven supply teams smooth out winter disruptions quite a bit.
Prestage Stock at Regional Depots
Pre-staging inventory at regional depots turned a weather risk into a service buffer. Stock was moved closer to high demand stores before the storm hit. This cut long hauls during icy days and kept shelves filled.
The plan used clear safety stock rules and simple slotting plans so teams could move fast. Carrying cost rose a bit, but OTIF and customer fill stayed strong. Build a pre-storm map of priority SKUs and place buffers at nearby depots two weeks before peak weather.
Reserve Tiered Surge Capacity
Reserved surge carriers through pre-negotiated deals gave a fast safety valve. Rates and activation steps were set in advance, so tenders went out without delay. Carriers with winter gear and strong scores were placed in the first call tier.
Early tenders and longer lead windows let fleets stage near the pickup zones. This kept OTIF steady when primary fleets timed out or faced road closures. Build a tiered surge plan with caps and trigger rules ahead of the season.
Shift Long Lanes to Rail
Shifting critical lanes to intermodal rail protected schedules when highways froze. Rail service stayed more stable in heavy snow, especially on long corridors. Cutoff times were planned a day earlier to protect dwell and ramp transfers.
Dray teams pre-pulled boxes to yards before the storm window. The change lowered crash risk and held OTIF targets with a small lead time tradeoff. Test intermodal on your longest cold weather lanes and lock in ramp slots now.
Set Daylight-Only Delivery Windows
Daylight-only delivery windows raised safety and kept docks predictable. Drivers had better visibility and less black ice risk. Yard crews cleared snow faster when all moves happened in the same light hours.
Shippers spread arrivals across the day to avoid mid-day peaks. Receivers got steadier flow and fewer damaged pallets. Align your partners on daylight slots and update appointment rules before the next alert.
Reroute via Live Road Intelligence
Dynamic rerouting with live road data kept trucks on safe and open paths. A transport system pulled feeds from weather services and traffic cams to update ETAs. When a pass closed, the system shifted stops or swapped the delivery DC.
Drivers got simple turn by turn updates and new rest plans. Dispatch saw fewer surprises and used fuel and hours more wisely. Connect your transport system to live road data and set rules that auto reroute during storm events.