Location Analysis

In our changing market, we do research to find optimal locations that will position your supply chain for maximum performance.

Map with push pins for locations
Location analysis

What Is Supply Chain Location Analysis?

Location analysis determines the optimal placement of facilities — warehouses, distribution centers, manufacturing plants, and service locations — to minimize costs, reduce transit times, and improve service levels. The right location strategy can be the difference between a supply chain that struggles under demand and one that consistently delivers.

For many businesses, facility locations were chosen decades ago based on outdated cost structures, customer bases, and transportation networks. As those factors shift, a formal location analysis uncovers whether your current footprint still serves you — or whether strategic moves could unlock significant savings and service improvements.

Our Location Analysis Process

We combine quantitative modeling with deep industry knowledge to evaluate every factor that drives location decisions:

  • Demand mapping — Where are your customers today, and where are they growing? We overlay current and projected demand to identify geographic gaps and opportunities.
  • Transportation cost modeling — Freight costs are a primary driver of location decisions. We model inbound and outbound transportation costs across candidate locations to find the lowest total landed cost.
  • Labor market assessment — Workforce availability, wage rates, and turnover patterns vary significantly by region. We evaluate the labor landscape for each candidate site.
  • Facility and real estate analysis — We assess available properties, lease vs. own tradeoffs, and market conditions for each location under consideration.
  • Regulatory and tax environment — State and local tax incentives, zoning requirements, and regulatory compliance factors are folded into the total cost comparison.
  • Risk and resilience — Natural disaster exposure, proximity to key suppliers, and single-point-of-failure risks are evaluated alongside cost factors.

When Do You Need Location Analysis?

Location decisions arise from a number of business triggers:

  • Entering new markets or expanding your customer base geographically
  • Lease expiration creating an opportunity to right-size or reposition
  • Acquisition or merger bringing redundant facilities into your network
  • Distribution cost increases that suggest the current footprint is no longer optimal
  • Service failures pointing to structural gaps in your network coverage

Industries We Serve

Our location analysis work spans food and beverage distribution, consumer products, manufacturing, and retail supply chains. We bring particular depth to temperature-controlled and cold chain networks, where the interaction of facility type, transportation mode, and product requirements creates a complex optimization problem.