the Distributor Focus session, panelists will detail how FDC participants are creating processes and procedures that improve product data consistency and system integration so that information can better move through today’s increasingly connected business platforms.
The discussion will draw on the work of the FDC Product Data Standards & Integration (PDSI) Subcommittee. This group has spent the first half of the year uncovering how inaccurate or disconnected information creates downstream challenges involving quoting, logistics, delivery coordination, and customer communication. As organizations invest more heavily in operational visibility and system integration, many companies are realizing that more complete data and greater consistency spanning the order lifecycle are increasingly important to both operational efficiency and customer experience. For this reason, the PDSI Subcommittee’s work will be especially beneficial to the FEDA Data Portal, the database of industry-owned product information that is managed by FEDA. One of the group’s objectives is to identify potential challenges to entering and maintaining information in priority data fields, then find ways to make that process more efficient and easier. Additionally, the PDSI will continually refine the FEDA Data Portal’s standards for uniform data and recommend new specification fields to further expand the depth of product information in the database.
Transportation Management
Systems (TMS) Subcommittee Product information is not the only kind of data that distributors and manufacturers need to take their operations to the next level. An improved technology backend can also deliver the transportation visibility and operational transparency companies need to support more effective communications, reporting, and decision-making across increasingly complex freight operations. The Distributor Focus panel will highlight the Transportation
SESSION INFORMATION Distributor Focus
Sept. 16, 9:20 a.m. — 10:10 a.m. MT
JASON BOOMER VICE PRESIDENT OF TECHNOLOGY BURKETT RESTAURANT EQUIPMENT & SUPPLIES
RORY CLARKE PRESIDENT AVANTI RESTAURANT SOLUTIONS
J SCHNEIDER
MANAGING DIRECTOR DORN GROUP
Management Systems (TMS) Subcommittee’s development of case- study-based resources that will help distributors better understand how transportation management systems are being used in real-world environments and the practical considerations involved in implementation.
The subcommittee is finding that the benefits of a fully featured TMS extend beyond freight cost savings. Participants identified improved visibility, enhanced customer communication, historical lead- time tracking, shipment consolidation opportunities, and better internal transparency as meaningful operational advantages tied to transportation data management. Conferencegoers will gain practical insight into how companies from all over the industry are approaching transportation visibility and operational modernization. One issue that has stood out to Clarke, a member of the TMS Subcommittee, is the growing difficulty of estimating inbound freight costs for equipment on projects. Five years ago, he explained, the industry’s existing quoting and freight systems were able to estimate freight costs for a project with one click. That is no longer true as the freight industry has adjusted how it calculates shipping costs. “Since then, shipping companies have widely adopted technology to calculate freight density on every pallet,” Clarke said. “The freight estimates being generated
can be significantly off because we aren’t doing perfect calculations. The freight industry is constantly evolving, so you really need a good management platform, visibility, and ownership of your data to keep up.”
A More Connected Industry While the FDC’s initiatives focus
on specific issues — freight damage, product data accuracy, and transportation visibility — they collectively point toward something larger: a more connected, transparent, and efficient foodservice equipment supply chain. Viewing the challenges through this common lens is useful as Boomer believes they all boil down to the same root issue. “If your systems don’t agree on what
a product is, what an order looks like, or where a shipment actually is, none of the downstream improvements really stick,” he said. “Distributors who treat data as an asset and invest in clean integration between ERP, e-commerce, transportation, and finance systems are going to have a much easier time adapting to whatever comes next.” The FDC’s progress demonstrates that the industry is eager to move forward. The Distributor Focus session will offer a glimpse into what this next generation of distribution looks like — and the steps companies can take today to help shape it.
Summer 2026 25
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