Prioritize carrier connectivity (rail and road lanes), demonstrated customs and bonded handling, WMS and EDI integration capabilities, dock and yard throughput, flexible labor models for peaks, SLA clarity on lead times and error rates, and reporting on KPIs like OTIF, pick accuracy, and inventory velocity.

Xining's connections to national rail arteries and trunk highways enable rail-to-truck transshipment that can lower long-haul road costs and stabilize transit times. Multimodal routing reduces fuel-sensitive road miles, improves predictability for bulk B2B lanes, and can materially lower landed cost for regional destinations.

Look for bonded and temperature-controlled storage, high-bay racking for density, cross-dock and consolidation lanes, automation for pick-and-pack efficiency, value-added services (kitting, labeling), robust returns processing, and integrated WMS with client portals and inventory visibility.

Adopt a segmented inventory strategy: hold safety stock for fast movers near demand clusters, use bonded facilities to defer duties for cross-border sales, stage seasonal inventory in high-throughput facilities, and leverage cross-dock nodes to minimize storage costs while maintaining short lead times to final destinations.