Benefits of Converting Supply Chain Documents to PDFs

Logistics is a serious business. This statement can’t be truer than it is now in the post-COVID world. We have seen in the past few years how important it is to have your supply chain intact and undisturbed. But inevitably disruptions occur. This is why it is important to maintain and organize your supply chains as best as possible. There are a myriad of ways to do this, but the most important way is probably by maintaining the best tools for your business when it comes to managing documents and logistics. There are many tools for this but one of the most ubiquitous is the humble PDF. While PDFs may not be as sexy as AI, they are the backbone of most businesses. If you have the chance to maintain supply chain documents, it is a good idea to keep them in PDF form, but why is that exactly?

The first reason you might want to keep your supply chain and logistics documents in PDF form is the notion of accessibility. Being able to have access to your documents is the best way to stay organized and make sure that nothing goes wrong. It is important for your employees, for example, to have the data on a potential shipper in an easy-to-access form in case of some sort of emergency. This is why access to a safe PDF document can be paramount to a business that relies on logistics. In addition to making things easier to access, it can also make sharing information easier. If for example, you have a PDF that needs to be sent to someone in a hurry it would be beneficial if it could be shared not just through an email but through some sort of live service. If you are using Lumin PDF, this is easy since they have a feature that lets you share live with Google Drive. Saving time and making things more efficient is the core of logistics. Lastly, there is the simple fact that it cuts down on the usage of paper, as more and more businesses go paperless, PDFs are a great way to augment this process and make your business more efficient.

Types of Supply Chain Documents Suitable for PDF Conversion

Now that we know it is a good idea to use PDFs and why it is a good idea to use them, let us look at some of the types of documents that can be made into PDFs. Some common supply chain documents that you will work with could be invoices that need to be sent to businesses, purchase orders, and even manifests. There are many more besides these, but these are some good examples of some of the types of documents you will work with. You can even find premade PDF templates for many of these types of documents. Sometimes though when working with documents they won’t be in PDF form. This is okay though! PDF editors can usually convert most files into PDFs. If you have a series of supply chain documents that are saved as a Word file (why would you do that?), you can easily convert them to a more versatile PDF that can be easily shared throughout your company.

Converting Supply Chain Documents to PDFs

So how can we convert a supply chain document to a PDF? The answer is pretty easy and straightforward. If it is a Word file or some other common file type, then most PDF editors will do this automatically when you open the document, otherwise, you can simply go to the tools and select convert then choose the file. All PDF editors are different, but they will have a similar tool. When you convert a file to a PDF, make sure that it has the correct dimensions, or it could potentially become blurry or get stretched but this is usually not an issue since most modern PDF editors can fix things like this automatically.

Distribution and Sharing of PDF Supply Chain Documents

Supply chains are as much about communication as they are about logistics, if the right people do not have the right information at the right time, then there could be potential issues that cause logjams or other pain points. With PDFs, this can be fixed easily. By having a way to share information quickly and effectively, everyone will be able to get what they and when they need it. This can be done through having a common sharing place such as with Google Drive and Lumin PDF or by having your own storage system. Regardless of your system, the most important part will be to have a system set and then stick to it. This can be improved by following industry standards and best practices.

Although many people do not see PDFs as the go-to tool to maximize effectiveness but in logistics, the ability to share and access information in a timely manner is the only way to avoid disaster. This is why if you are working in a company that uses logistics (almost all do at some point), then you will need a PDF editor to assist to edit PDFs creating documents that can improve the supply chain of your company. There are many different PDF editors available, just find the one with the tools you need and you will be able to look after your business and improve its logistics.