Looking Back – Looking Forward with David Tu
David Tu is an original founder of DCL. He is President as well as the Chief Operating Officer of the Company.
Can you give us a high level recap of how 2008 was for DCL?
Obviously, 2008 was a tough year for everyone including DCL especially in the fourth quarter. Consumer demand continues to be soft and this is reflected with the majority of our customers. With the current state of the economy, we expect 2009 to get worse before it gets better. That being said, we have a handful of customers that are bucking the trend and doing quite well, growing actually, but the majority of our customer’s volumes appear to be down.
We’ve continued to diversify our customer base into the medical arena and some niche consumer goods areas such as apparel. We have to be careful because we still want to be focused at the crossroads of assembly and fulfillment, where we can continue to add more value.
You sound pessimistic about DCL’s prospects for 2009. What are some things to look forward to for DCL in 2009?
I’m not pessimistic at all. It’s reality. This is the third economic downturn that I’ve experienced here and we’ve come out of all of them fine and this time will be no different. Since our philosophy is one of conservative fiscal growth and low risk, we’re geared to weather these types of storms, bunker down and actually come out ahead.
There are programs that we are focused on internally for 2009 that will only be a benefit to our customers: continued cost control without price increases, distribution process improvements to move towards a more paperless environment, and emphasis on green initiatives.
Green initiatives appear to be an important them at DCL. Can you give us more specifics about your program?
Well, I think everyone knows that we are probably the only logistics company to have solar panels installed at our facilities. We just finished the second part of our installation. Quite honestly, we embarked on this project with the primary goal of being cost savings but we’ve really had a warm reception for this endeavor from our customers and the overall community in general. For 2009, we have implemented an overall green program to reduce our overall waste and water reduction as well as sustainability solutions for consumer print and packaging materials. Our customers are becoming more conscious on eco-friendly solutions and the costs of green packaging are now becoming more viable, so we are starting to see more movement in this area now. It’s only going to continue to be a point of emphasis in 2009.
Is now an inopportune time for companies to consider outsourcing?
Actually, the opposite; right now is the best time for companies to consider outsourcing. There is so much uncertainty in the market and companies may be burdened with fixed costs and lower than expected volume fulfilled. It’s at times like now where it makes sense for companies to look at a variable cost model. I know in speaking to Dave (Director of Business Development), his team is as busy as ever responding to proposals especially with companies evaluating the outsourcing model.
About DCL:
DCL is a leading provider of outsourced manufacturing and logistics services for
technology industries. Its customers include software companies and hardware and
medical device manufacturers. DCL's business-to-business services include turnkey
manufacturing, packaging and assembly, fulfillment and distribution, call centers,
warehousing and returns management. In providing these services, DCL has developed
superior information technology allowing customers real-time access to production,
inventory and shipping information. In addition, DCL offers its business-to-consumer
services through its sister company, Online
Copy Corp.
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