Fulfillment Plus (FFP), based in Waltham, Mass., is a third-party logistics provider (3PL) of fulfillment services and more. With just 65,000 square feet of warehousing space, FFP is not a high-volume operation, observes Bill Zwemke, vice president of strategic initiatives. But on a busy day it has shipped as many as 25,000 items to customers for clients of FFP (877-337-7587, www.fulfillmentplus.com).

Those clients include companies implementing e-commerce initiatives. 'We're a niche player,' Zwemke says. FFP also specializes in 3PL services 'where human intervention is necessary. We add a high level of the human touch.'

Roughly 75% of the orders shipped by this 3PL come from the Web, he adds. There's a wide range of clients, moreover.

Client needs are as diverse as the businesses of just these two firms using FFP's services over the last year or so: The Dirt Devil subsidiary of Royal Appliance Mfg. Co. and the Ellis Island Foundation. FFP provides fulfillment for Dirt Devil new product launches, such as the Spot Scrubber. Meantime, FFP also fills orders for the Foundation's customers for computer and multimedia technology and related materials for those searching their family roots.

'No two of our clients,' emphasizes Jim Compton, warehouse manager, 'require the same services from FFP.'

To manage these complexities, FFP has a powerful and scaleable order management system (OMS) in front of and integrated with its warehouse management system (WMS). The OMS, says Compton, enables him to track product by unique order types. He also can preview incoming orders and manipulate their release so that they can be processed in the most efficient manner.

'We have customization from the OMS,' says Compton, 'and automation from the WMS.' Radio frequency scanners tracking bar-coded products throughout this pick/pack/ship operation and linked to the WMS add to productivity.

But why use FFP's 3PL capabilities when you're already established and shipping products in retail channels? Companies may not have their existing distribution system set up for direct-to-consumer shipments from Web orders, as Zwemke points out. They may wish to test markets and establish pricing levels for new products. And do so before asking for shelf space in retail stores.

For Dirt Devil's Spot Scrubber product, this kind of strategic approach has worked very well. The company credits FFP for helping generate a 38% increase in Web sales. FFP processed all Web orders and also handled all telephone calls and Internet queries about the product.