Menlo Worldwide announced two days ago a contract with Siemens Ltd.'s Communications Group, a global manufacturer of telecommunications and telephony products, to provide warehousing, product configuration and fulfillment services in Australia.

With the Siemens contract, Menlo expands its dedicated operations in Australia and has opened a new multi-client Logistics Center in Sydney serving the South Pacific. For Siemens, which becomes the anchor client for the new center, Menlo will oversee a variety of inventory management and customer fulfillment activities.

The work scope includes management of receiving and warehousing operations that supply standard and wireless ADSL modems and accessories to local and regional Internet service providers as well as telecom carriers; and other value-added logistics services such as product postponement, inventory control, fulfillment and shipping of finished goods to customers. Menlo also will provide cost management, trend analysis and business metrics reporting.

The assignment is Menlo's second outsourcing project for Siemens, and follows a similar program in Texas supporting Siemens in the US market. It was the success of this operation that convinced Siemens to bring Menlo on in Australia, noted Kjell Andersson, General Manager, Services, Siemens Ltd. Communications in Sydney.

"With Menlo we had the advantage of being able to replicate a process and an operation that proved successful for our colleagues in the U.S.," said Andersson. "This outsourcing program is strategic," he added. "It supports our business objectives, which are to optimize our logistics and service capability and manage our inventories better against demand; while responding to our customer's needs for faster and more flexible service. This is particularly important where the bill of materials calls for specialised products based on the customer's specific configuration and packing format."

The company is employing RF (radio frequency) and web-capable warehouse management software, as well as other logistics and transportation management technology applications to support the operation.

"This is a significant win for Menlo that expands our relationship with a respected, successful global enterprise, and enables us to re-establish our own operations in Australia," said Robert L. Bianco, Jr., president of Menlo Worldwide. "It is another example of our proven capabilities and resources providing efficient, value-driven logistics management services for the high-tech industry."