As someone who procures and/or ships chemical products, you've probably realized that the pre-COVID global supply chain may never return.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website.
Nearly three years into this global pandemic, persistent labor and supply chain shortages continue to cause logistical disruptions both nationally and globally.
This means you need to forecast further ahead and get creative to ensure your products remain at the quality levels your customers expect and arrive on time.
It also means you may want to consider changing up your buying habits and purchasing chemicals in bulk.
However, buying chemicals in bulk quantities may not be right for your organization. Here's what you need to consider before buying chemicals in bulk.
Why Should You Buy Bulk Chemicals?
Long-Term Cost Savings
The clearest benefit of buying in bulk is long-term cost savings. Having more product shipped less often will allow you to keep your freight costs down, as long as you ship in these larger quantities directly to &#; or as close as possible to &#; the facilities where your products are made.
Flexibility
As force majeures, sales-controlled product allocations, and staffing shortages continue to impact the chemical industry's supply chain, it's a good idea to have more product on hand than you need right now.
Raw material shortages are now commonplace. And when they happen, the first people to not get their shipments are those who don't have their volumes secured. Often, this impacts people who are ordering chemicals infrequently or irregularly.
Buying in bulk will ensure you have the crucial chemical products you need on hand when you need them. This, in turn, will translate into more efficient and cost-effective scheduling and shipment options.
If your product expiration dates and cashflow allow for it, buying in bulk and storing more product on-site will make your operations more nimble &#; and save you costs down the road.
Sustainability
If your organization is looking to reduce its carbon footprint, buying in bulk is the right choice. Fewer shipments ultimately produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, bulk packaging like super sacks produces less packaging waste compared to non-bulk options like drums or boxes.
Why Shouldn't You Buy Bulk Chemicals?
Immediate Cashflow Impacts
Bulk buying restricts cashflow in the short term. Shipping in greater volumes will cost you more upfront, as will any facility investments (like storage tanks or warehouse modifications) you need to make to accommodate these higher volumes of product.
Storage Restrictions
Once you decide to buy in bulk, you're going to need to invest in storage options &#; if that's even possible. Your facility may not have the space, making purchasing bulk chemical products infeasible.
More Involved Planning
If shipments are coming in only once per month as opposed to daily or weekly, you're going to need to take more time to resource plan further in advance. And more complex capacity planning may translate to higher labor costs, training costs, and employee bandwidth restrictions, especially if your team isn't accustomed to it or is learning new processes altogether.
What's Meant by "Bulk" and What Packaging Options Are Available?
By definition, shipping liquid in volumes over 119 gallons (or 450 liters) is considered bulk. When it comes to solids, anything over 882 pounds (or 400 kilograms) is considered bulk. Alternately, solids with volumes over 119 gallons are also considered bulk.
The packaging options that can accommodate these volumes of bulk chemicals include:
- Bulk rail cars (hold between 13,000 and 33,000 U.S. gallons)
- Bulk tank trucks (hold between 3,000 and 11,600 U.S. gallons)
- Super sacks (hold between 1,100 and 3,300 pounds)
- Totes (hold either 275 gallons or 330 gallons)
Are You Considering Buying Chemicals in Bulk Quantities?
Even if you think budgetary restrictions and storage space may prohibit bulk chemical shipments from being a reality for your organization, it's often worth discussing your options with experts who can guide you to a solution based on your specific needs.
It's worth reiterating that cost savings over time can be substantial if you buy chemicals in bulk. And buying your chemicals in bulk may provide you the flexibility you need to navigate today's supply chain challenges.
At Royal Chemical, we have over 80 years of experience finding packaging solutions that work exactly for our customers' needs &#; including bulk packaging solutions.
Reach out and talk to one of our experts to discuss whether you should consider bulk- buying chemicals.
There are 4 questions about How to choose best chemical raw materials suppliers
Haihang Industry
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Sep 4,
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With the globalization of trade, the world has become a big factory. Many of these chemical product manufacturers have become anxious about choosing their quality chemical raw material suppliers.
When you open Google, enter the chemical raw material supplier, there are hundreds of thousands or even millions of information, when you go to view the product information of these suppliers, company information, you become impatient. The variety of choices makes you wonder how to choose the supplier you want, and you don&#;t know if the product provided by the supplier meets your needs.
This is a very headache for any buyer or buyer. In this regard, Zhonglan as a chemical raw material supplierwith 20 years of experience gives the following suggestions, I hope to help you choose chemical raw material suppliers.
First, use online search, use Google, bing, etc. to enter keywords instead of looking for places like business directories, because you are looking for a target in the business directory, you can&#;t understand much of the information you are looking for. For example, company information, product information, service information, and so on.
Type of chemical raw materials
When you search for a supplier in Google, first go to his product category page to see if you have all the chemical raw materials you need. After all, choosing a supplier to solve all the ingredients you need will save you money, remembering that time is money.
Quality of products
When you find a few suppliers that can meet your needs, you need to check the quality of their products. After all, high-quality raw materials can make high-quality products.
First of all, each chemical has a corresponding MSDS, which contains important processing information and storage information about the chemical. Generally speaking, the corresponding pgf document will be given on the product details page (for example, this website: Hainan Industry )
Next, check the introduction of the product, in addition to the basic molecular formula, CAS number···
You should also check other data on this product, such as quality test data, national or institutional certifications, etc. If necessary, you can ask the seller for a sample of the chemical.
Note: Many suppliers may write the application or use of the product in their product introduction, so that it is just a matter of judging whether the chemical is the chemical you need.
Perfect service
First of all, whether it is in the right package, the right size and the right form for your safe use. You can handle it safely, what kind of personal protective equipment you need, if there is any training, you or others may need to prepare your own chemicals in advance.
You can check if the questions are clearly written on the service page of each site, or you can send an to the merchant to ask about the specific situation.
The second is transportation, after all, when you are enough to buy the goods. It may take a week or even a month to get to your hands. If the goods are in transit, it is a big loss. This requires you to ask the supplier about all the conditions of transportation.
Field trips
If you want to find a stable supplier, or if your goods are in high demand, field trips are a good way.
Investigate the supplier&#;s office environment, plant size, plant equipment, laboratories, etc.
Note: Generally speaking, it is most reasonable to find a manufacturer with its own factory. The price of the product will be cheaper. The parameters of the product will be more detailed. For example, the storage, use, temperature and environment of the product have more detailed data. Such as the cosmetics raw materials of this company (http://www.cosmeticchem.com).
As long as you stabilize these four points, you can generally find a suitable supplier. I hope this small essay can help you!
If you are looking for more details, kindly visit raw material used in chemical industry.