| Course | MT434 Logistics and Distribution Management |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 10 |
| Paper type | Distribution plan |
| Length | About 1,110 words, 7 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BS in Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MT434 Unit 10
Two Sites, Four Tiers, One Returns Route: An MT434 Unit 10 Distribution Plan Costed Line by Line
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
MT434: Logistics and Distribution Management
Unit 10 Distribution Plan
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
Petrie Rowing and every cost are composite estimates carried from Units 2 through 9; the Spokane warehouse's own cost is held flat, and the sources cited are real.
Executive Summary
Petrie should run two sites, ship each flow by the mode that suits it, price delivery tiers from cost and route returns to the nearer site. Together these decisions save about $951,805 a year and cut average consumer delivery time from about four business days to about two and a third. The largest saving comes from shorter parcel distances; the largest new costs are the trailers that restock Indianapolis and the provider that runs it. The plan takes six months to put in place.
Network
Spokane keeps its own two regions in the West, while the provider-run Indianapolis building takes every order east of the Plains, about 27,300 rowers a year. About 139 trailers a year restock Indianapolis from the Spokane plant, at about $6,500 each.
Modes by Flow
Each flow has its own rule. Consumer orders ship by ground parcel from the nearer site, with packaging redesigned after the Unit 1 failure. Commercial orders to studios, hotels and campuses ship through the broker selected in Unit 3, under a named-carrier clause. Dealer orders are consolidated for Tuesday and Friday pickups, as Unit 5 found. Large commercial orders, such as the 36 rowers in Unit 2, ship palletized by less-than-truckload unless a deadline requires truckload. Transfers between sites move by truckload.
Service
The four tiers from Unit 8 replace today's two options: free standard ground with a region-specific date, expedited two-day at $189, scheduled in-home delivery with assembly at $179 and a $690 annual parts plan for fitness studios.
Returns
Returns travel to the nearer site, with box kits sent ahead for cartonless returns, and are graded on arrival into four outcomes, as Unit 9 set out.
Costs: Current Against Planned
Each line is shown both ways, so it is clear which decision earns what. Spokane's own warehouse cost is the same under both and is left out.
Consumer outbound parcel falls from $5,938,200 to $4,058,400, a saving of $1,879,800 from shipping eastern orders from Indianapolis.
Inbound trailers to Indianapolis are new, at $903,630.
The Indianapolis site's operation is new, at $563,924 in provider fees.
Inventory carrying cost rises from $788,480 to $951,808, because two sites need more safety stock than one.
Commercial freight falls from $286,579 with the current national carrier to $235,044 with the broker.
Dealer freight and waiting cost fall from $226,169 to $214,160.
Priced delivery tiers move from a net cost of $192,204 to a net contribution of $198,920, shown as a negative cost.
The net cost of returns falls from $1,539,043 to $1,290,824.
The current total is about $8,970,675 and the planned total about $8,018,870.
The new site's trailers and provider fees cost about $1.47 million; the parcel miles it saves are worth about $1.88 million, and the plan's other decisions add the rest.
Avoiding Double Counting
Three overlaps were checked. The tier line counts only the incremental cost and revenue of priced tiers, so the ground parcel cost of every order stays in the outbound line and is not counted again. The returns line uses the two-site inbound cost and the same recovery figures as Unit 9, so the network saving on returns is not also counted in outbound parcel. And the provider's fees replace the $640,000 fixed cost assumed for the new site in Unit 4; that figure is not added as well.
What Each Decision Contributes
Read line by line, the savings come from four decisions. The network saves about $248,918 net once trailers, the provider and the extra inventory are counted against the parcel saving. The service tiers contribute about $391,124 by repricing a loss-making option and adding two that cover their cost. Two-site returns save about $248,219. The broker and dealer consolidation together save about $63,544. No single decision carries the plan; each would be worth making on its own.
What Stays the Same
Some things do not change. Spokane's plant and warehouse keep their staff and their cost. The consumer's standard delivery stays free. The dealer agreement's two-day promise stays in place. And the rower itself does not change, except for its carton, which matters more to these costs than any other single detail of the product.
Timeline
Month 1: sign the provider and broker contracts with their measures, credits and exit terms, and approve the new carton. Month 2: the provider sets up the site and the first trailers position stock. Month 3: Indianapolis begins serving the Midwest. Month 4: it adds the South and Northeast, and the four tiers launch at checkout. Month 5: returns routing to Indianapolis begins and dealer consolidation starts. Month 6: the first full review of costs and measures.
Measures
Five measures track whether the plan works: cost per consumer order shipped, share of orders delivered on the promised date, damage rate per thousand shipments, average recovery per returned rower and dealer orders shipped within two business days. Each has a target and a monthly report. Stock and Lambert (2001) argue that logistics should be managed on total cost and service together, and Christopher (2016) that a distribution network is only as good as its measurement, since the plan's savings come from decisions that each could drift.
Risks
The network saving is sensitive to the cost of restocking Indianapolis, as Unit 4 showed, and the provider contract's exit terms exist for that reason. The tier contributions depend on uptake, which the Unit 8 review point will test. Chopra and Meindl (2019) note that network and service decisions interact, so the six-month review should weigh the site, the tiers and the returns route as one set.
What Would Make the Plan Fail
The plan's weakest point is the trailer cost between the two sites. If freight rates on the Spokane to Indianapolis lane rose by a fifth, the network's net saving would shrink by about $180,700, most of it. A second weak point is the provider's performance, which the Unit 7 contract protects against with credits and a termination right. A third is buyer response to the new fees. Each has a measure that will show it within the first quarter of operation, and each can be corrected without unwinding the whole plan.
Recommendation
Approve the plan, begin the provider and broker contracts in month one, and review the full set of decisions at month six against the five measures.
References
Chopra, S., & Meindl, P. (2019). Supply chain management: Strategy, planning, and operation (7th ed.). Pearson.
Christopher, M. (2016). Logistics and supply chain management (5th ed.). Pearson.
Stock, J. R., & Lambert, D. M. (2001). Strategic logistics management (4th ed.). McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
MT434 Unit 10 instructions, in plain terms
MT434 closes by joining the term's separate logistics decisions into one distribution plan. Instructors expect each earlier decision summarized with its key figure, then reconciled with the others so the plan reads as one design rather than stapled assignments. Costs should appear both ways, current and planned, line by line, so it is clear which decision earns what. Double counting is common once tiers and returns are added, so the overlaps should be checked and explained. A timeline in monthly steps should show what must happen first. A small set of measures with targets should show whether the plan works. Risks and the review point should be named. An executive summary, decision sections, a cost table and a timeline are the expected structure.
Inside the MT434 Unit 10 example
An executive summary opens the plan with the saving and the faster delivery. Short sections cover the network, modes by flow, service tiers and returns, each pointing to the unit where it was decided. The cost section lists eight lines current and planned, under a highlighted line on the network's costs against its saving. A section shows what each decision contributes and another what stays the same. A double-counting section names three overlaps and how each was handled. A six-month timeline follows, then five measures, citing Stock and Lambert and Christopher. A risks section names the trailer lane, the provider and fee response, with Chopra and Meindl on reviewing decisions together. The recommendation sets a month-six review.
Where the points sit in the MT434 Unit 10 rubric
Integration usually earns more credit in a distribution plan than any single decision, and papers stitching earlier assignments together without reconciling them show why. Costs need to appear both ways, current and planned, line by line; a single planned total cannot show which decision earns what. Double counting is common once service tiers are added, since a removed loss and a new contribution can easily be booked twice. Rubrics reward a timeline that puts dependent steps in order. Credit goes to a small set of measures with targets. Naming the plan's weakest assumption and how it will be watched shows judgment. A summary page the owner can decide from, and a cost table whose lines trace back to earlier units, complete the expectations.
MT434 Unit 10 help: mistakes that cost points
The most frequent weak final plan repeats each earlier assignment in turn, so the network, tiers and returns never meet. Another common error reports only a planned total, leaving the reader unable to see which decision saves what. Students often count the tier contribution and the removed expedited loss separately, booking the same improvement twice. Timelines are frequently a list of tasks with no order. Measures are vague or missing. Before submitting, add your line-by-line savings and confirm they equal the difference between your current and planned totals. Then check each line against the unit where it was worked out. Any figure that has changed since that unit needs a sentence explaining why.
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MT434 Unit 10 questions, answered
Should the Unit 10 plan repeat the analysis from earlier units?
Usually no. Summarize each earlier decision with its key figure and point to where it was worked out, then spend the space on how the pieces fit and what they cost together. Many sections expect the final plan to show integration rather than new calculations. If your earlier work changed after feedback, use the corrected figures and note the change.
How detailed should the implementation timeline be?
Monthly steps are typically enough for a course plan. What matters is order: which changes must happen before others can work, such as stocking a new site before promising faster delivery from it. Name an owner for each step if your prompt asks for one, and keep the timeline consistent with the costs and savings you report.
What measures belong in a distribution plan?
Pick a small set tied to the plan's goals, commonly cost per order, on-time delivery, damage rate and a returns measure, each with a current value and a target. Say how often each is reviewed and by whom. Measures without targets tend to read as a list rather than a management tool, and instructors often mark them that way.
Where can I find a free MT434 Unit 10 sample paper?
The complete MT434 Unit 10 plan is on this page, joining a two-site network, freight modes, delivery tiers and returns into one costed design.
Which decision saves the most in the MT434 Unit 10 sample?
The delivery tiers, about $391,124 a year, followed by the network at about $248,918 net and two-site returns at about $248,219.