Review carrier service maps, published transit times to primary consumption hubs and ports, and historical on-time delivery metrics. Request sample routing scenarios, run pilot shipments, and validate last-mile partners to ensure promised SLAs match real-world transit performance and cost-to-serve.

Prioritize dock door density, pallet racking, secure yards, climate control when needed, and scalable labor. Confirm WMS functionality, real-time inventory visibility, API/EDI integrations, barcode scanning, and reporting to support omnichannel order flow and accurate billing.

Industrial land and hourly labor rates are often lower than major metros, which can reduce fixed costs. However, skill availability and seasonal labor variability require investing in training and productivity controls. Total costs should account for transport distances to demand centers.

Verify regular road freight lanes, scheduled rail services for palletized freight, and reliable trunk connections to nominated export ports. Confirm carrier frequencies, container handling options, transload capabilities, and customs handling experience to avoid bottlenecks.

Include order-to-ship lead times, on-time-in-full (OTIF) targets, inventory accuracy, order accuracy, dwell-time limits, chargeback clauses, claims procedures, and periodic performance reviews with defined remediation steps and cost transparency.