by Scott Frederick | Jan 23, 2026 | News
Why Global Supply Chains Need Control Towers Now More Than Ever
Today’s global supply chains are more complex—and more interconnected—than ever before. Manufacturers, retailers, infrastructure developers, and industrial firms must manage thousands of suppliers, carriers, inventory locations, and job sites across multiple countries, regulatory regimes, and transportation modes. Without a centralized operating model, organizations face limited visibility, fragmented data, rising costs, and delayed decision‑making.
This is where Global Supply Chain Control Towers play a critical role.
A modern control tower is not just a dashboard – it is a centralized command center that integrates people, process, and technology to deliver real‑time visibility, exception management, performance analytics, and operational control across the entire supply chain. Logistics Plus has been designing, operating, and scaling control tower solutions for some of the world’s most complex and mission‑critical supply chains for decades.
What Is a Global Supply Chain Control Tower?
A Global Supply Chain Control Tower is a centralized 4PL operating model that provides a single source of truth across all supply chain participants—suppliers, carriers, freight forwarders, warehouses, customs authorities, job sites, and internal business stakeholders.
Through a combination of dedicated operational teams and purpose‑built technology, a control tower enables:
- End‑to‑end shipment visibility from purchase order through final delivery
- Centralized routing, scheduling, and execution control
- Proactive exception monitoring and escalation
- KPI tracking, reporting, and business intelligence
- Cross‑stakeholder collaboration across regions, modes, and partners
Logistics Plus delivers this capability through its 4PL Control Tower Solutions, supporting inbound, outbound, domestic, international, and project‑based supply chains worldwide.
How Logistics Plus Control Towers Are Different
Not all control towers are created equally. Logistics Plus combines technology leadership with deep operational execution—ensuring that visibility leads to action, not just reporting.
- A True 4PL Operating Model
Logistics Plus acts as a neutral orchestrator, managing all transportation modes, logistics partners, and suppliers on behalf of the client. The Control Tower team functions as an extension of the customer’s organization—owning planning, coordination, and performance across the full network.
- Dedicated Global Control Tower Teams
Each engagement is supported by dedicated program managers, logistics engineers, analysts, and execution teams operating at the project, regional, and global levels. This structure ensures accountability, scalability, and continuity—whether managing daily flows or peak‑volume events.
- One Integrated Technology Platform
Logistics Plus leverages its proprietary MyLogisticsPlus™ Control Tower platform to deliver secure, 24×7 access to unified shipment views, dashboards, alerts, and analytics. The platform supports API and EDI integrations, real‑time and milestone‑based tracking, and customizable workflows aligned to each customer’s operating model.
End‑to‑End Visibility Across the Entire Supply Chain
Visibility is only valuable if it is comprehensive, timely, and actionable. Logistics Plus Control Towers provide end‑to‑end visibility across all supply chain stages, including:
- Supplier production and shipment readiness
- Domestic and international transportation (parcel, LTL, TL, air, ocean, rail, intermodal)
- Customs clearance and trade compliance milestones
- Warehouse receiving, inventory, and outbound fulfillment
- Jobsite deliveries, gate scheduling, and on‑site coordination
Advanced GPS and IoT tracking capabilities enable real‑time monitoring of shipment location and condition—including temperature, shock, tampering, and route deviation—allowing proactive risk mitigation before disruptions escalate.
Data‑Driven Control Through Business Intelligence
At the core of every Logistics Plus Control Tower is a robust business intelligence framework. Performance metrics are mutually defined during onboarding and tracked continuously to drive accountability and improvement.
Typical KPIs include:
- On‑time pickup and delivery performance
- Average and variance of transit times
- Carrier and supplier compliance
- Damage and claims ratios
- Dwell times at warehouses and job sites
- Critical path performance for complex projects
Custom dashboards and reports transform raw data into actionable insights—supporting better forecasting, cost control, and strategic decision‑making.
Proven Control Tower Success Across Complex Industries
Logistics Plus Control Towers support large‑scale supply chains across many industries such as manufacturing, automotive, energy, infrastructure, technology, aerospace, healthcare, and retail. The model has been successfully deployed for:
- Global inbound networks with Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers
- Major construction and infrastructure projects
- Large‑scale solar and renewable energy developments
- Global FF&E deployments
- High‑volume international distribution programs
In multiple global inbound programs, Logistics Plus has helped clients dramatically improve transit reliability, reduce cycle times, and restore trust across multi‑party networks—by creating transparency, enforcing routing discipline, and driving continuous improvement through data.
Turning Visibility into Competitive Advantage
A well‑executed control tower does more than monitor shipments—it enables organizations to operate with confidence, speed, and precision. By consolidating visibility, execution, and analytics into a single operating framework, Logistics Plus empowers clients to scale faster, control costs, reduce risk, and deliver on customer commitments—no matter how complex the supply chain.
About Logistics Plus
Logistics Plus is a global 3.5PL™, 4PL, and supply chain solutions provider with a proven track record of managing complex, multinational logistics programs. With over 1,400 employees in 55+ countries, proprietary technology platforms, and deep operational expertise, Logistics Plus delivers a single pane of glass for global supply chain execution.
by logisticsplus | Oct 18, 2022 | News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Logistics Plus is Named a Top 50 Leading 3PL by Global Trade Magazine
It’s the third time in the past four years Logistics Plus has been honored.
ERIE, PA (October 18, 2022) – Logistics Plus, Inc. (LP), a leading worldwide provider of transportation, logistics, and supply chain solutions, is proud to announce it has been named one of America’s Top 50 best third-party logistics providers by Global Trade magazine. It is the third time in the past four years Global Trade has recognized Logistics Plus as one of its leading 3PL providers.
The 2022 leading 3PL providers list was announced in the September-October edition of Global Trade magazine. The article states, “Each company recognized on our list has been placed in a specific award category. This is not to suggest that it is the only ability or service that 3PL nails for its customers. For instance, we have Logistics Plus under the 4PL/LLP (Lead Logistics Provider) category this year, but the Erie, Pennsylvania-based company would have fit just as worthy of our E-Commerce or Technology awards.”
“Being recognized as an industry leader by a reputable publication like Global Trade is a tremendous honor,” said Jim Berlin, Founder & CEO of Logistics Plus. “As a twenty-first-century logistics company, staying nimble and providing modern solutions to today’s supply chain challenges is what we do. So, being recognized for that is very gratifying.”
You can read a digital edition of the magazine online at https://globaltrade.mydigitalpublication.com/publication/?m=22029&i=764056&p=1&ver=html5.
About Global Trade
Global Trade magazine is the authority for U.S. companies doing business globally. It educates and entertains its readers on ways to utilize the global marketplace to increase market share and corporate profits, through creative efficiencies in cargo transportation, banking, joint ventures, and outsourcing. Visit www.globaltrademag.com to learn more.
About Logistics Plus, Inc.
Logistics Plus, Inc. is a 21st-century logistics company that provides freight transportation, warehousing, fulfillment, global logistics, business intelligence, and supply chain management solutions through a worldwide network of talented and caring professionals. Jim Berlin founded the company nearly 26 years ago in Erie, PA. Today, Logistics Plus is a highly regarded, fast-growing, and award-winning transportation and logistics company. With its trademark Passion For Excellence™, Logistics Plus employees put the ‘plus’ in logistics by doing the big things properly, plus the countless little things that ensure complete customer satisfaction and success.
The Logistics Plus® network includes offices, warehouses, and agents located in Erie, PA; Aurora, CO; Buffalo, NY; Charlotte, NC; Chicago, IL; Chino, CA; Cincinnati, OH; Cleveland, OH; Colton, CA; Dallas, TX; Dayton, NJ; Des Moines, IA; Haslet TX; Houston, TX; Laredo, TX; Lexington, NC; Los Angeles, CA; Meadville, PA; Miami, FL; New York, NY; Norfolk, VA; Olean, NY; Ontario, CA; Phoenix, AZ; San Francisco, CA; Tulsa, OK; Vancouver, WA; Australia; Belgium; Brazil; Canada; China; Colombia; Czech Republic; Egypt; France; Germany; India; Indonesia; Japan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; Libya; Malaysia; Mexico; Netherlands; Poland; Saudi Arabia; Singapore; Taiwan; Thailand; Turkey; UAE; Uganda; and Vietnam; with additional agents around the world. For more information, visit www.logisticsplus.com or follow @LogisticsPlus on Twitter.
Scott Frederick Comments
Media Contact:
Scott G. Frederick
CMO & LTL Carrier Relations
Logistics Plus, Inc.
(814) 240-6881
[email protected]
Click the image below to download the Logistics Plus logo:
by logisticsplus | Jan 4, 2021 | News
Logistics Plus is being featured with a cover story in the January 2021 edition of Business Magazine, a monthly publication of the Manufacturer & Business Association (MBA). Business Magazine covers the most compelling human resource, legal and legislative issues facing employers today. As the only monthly business-to-business publication in the tri-state region, the Business Magazine serves as a critical information tool for employers located throughout northwest Pennsylvania, Ohio, and New York.
This month MBA is featuring Logistics Plus in an updated follow-up to its past cover stories from September 2018, January 2015, and August 2006. In the article Logistics Plus founder and CEO Jim Berlin discusses 2020 challenges, new successes, and the company’s upcoming 25th anniversary. The article also features interview comments from Logistics Plus COO Yuriy Ostapyak and SVP Gretchen Seth.
You can read the entire magazine online at https://issuu.com/mbabusinessmagazine/docs/businessmagazinejanuary2021/2 as well as a brief introduction online at http://www.mbabizmag.com/2021/01/04/logistics-plus-2/. You can also download or read the Logistics Plus cover story by clicking the image below.
by logisticsplus | May 12, 2020 | News
Shippers are often confused when faced with the choice of partnering with a 3PL or 4PL to tackle their logistics and transportation challenges. Logistics Plus provides both 3PL and 4PL solutions, but we prefer to think of ourselves as the best of both worlds: a 3½PL if you will.
For definition purposes, a 1PL is simply the owner of the cargo who manages the entire distribution process internally. A 2PL is a for-hire air, ground, rail, or ocean carrier that directly provides transportation service to a shipper. A 3PL is a third-party provider that manages a specific aspect of logistics such as transportation, warehousing and/or fulfillment. A 4PL typically acts as a client company’s single point of contact in the supply chain that offers strategic insights and management of the various 3P and 2P, or even 1P, activities.
The reason Logistics Plus often uses the term 3½PL is that we bring very specific outsourced capabilities that include domestic transportation, international freight forwarding, customs brokerage, warehousing, and fulfillment … but we also have the expertise and technology to acts as a client’s single point of contact for all supply chain functions.
As a 3PL, we maintain competitive contracts, agreements, and profiles for thousands of ground, air, ocean, and rail carriers around the world – all supported with world-class transportation management systems (TMS). Our warehouses are well-maintained – all supported with highly-developed warehouse management systems (WMS). All of our 3PL services are delivered by talented logistics specialists who have experience and expertise within their respective transportation and warehousing domains.
As a 4PL, we employ a global control tower approach to supply chain management, with a highly-customizable technology platform that includes powerful analytics and dashboards. Our 4PL solutions typically come with skilled, dedicated logisticians that work as part of your team to look up and down your supply chain to identify the weakest links and repair them.
Logistics Plus clients that engage in our 3½PL solutions get access to both transactional and strategic services that can be applied to either simple or complex supply chains. To learn more, we invite you to view the short presentation below.
What logistics challenges does your supply chain have? Let us know …we’re here to help!
And one final thought …
