Introduction
Source: Leeway Logistics, 2015
Logistics is considered as an operational process which includes activities such as storing, transporting and distribution of physical goods. E- Commerce has made a big change in logistics and distribution processes. Due to introduction of online purchases, way of handling materials have also been changed. Online retail industry is being expanded year to year. According to Goldman Sachs, Online Sales will reach $750B mark by 2016 with annual growth rate of 20%.
There was a need of new logistics processes to successfully manage this growing industry. In early days purchased materials were usually delivered via postal, freight network or parcel. Nowadays in the era of E-commerce the ways of operating logistics functions have been changed with introduction of Mega e-fulfilment centres, parcel hubs centres and parcel delivery centres. In first two centres the orders are sorted by post codes so that they can be dispatched to the correct delivery centres for final delivery at customer’s home. Primary advantage of E-commerce logistics system is real time tracking of materials as organizations can track current status of transit goods such as quantity, location and variety. This helps to improve the efficiency and also helps to operate logistics operations with low cost. Below graph shows the growth of online sales against In-store sales. In the era of online retail industry, logistics and supply chain management are key factors to
An organization focuses on many aspects and strategies that address customers’ needs and wants. The organization develops a product that includes many steps such as, product life cycle, type of brand, packaging and labeling, but the final step is how to have their product accessible to the consumer, which is distribution. A distribution channel is the path where products, including their ownership, flow from producer to consumer. There are many paths an organization can choose to send their product. Physical distribution is the actual movement of products from a producer to consumers.
This report provides modern infrastructure of logistic via Qube case, analysis of current problems of logistic in NSW and in the world and resolutions about related problems in NSW and in the world. Also, Australia government’s activities and resolutions to help to develop logistics network. Result of the analysis shows that current
The way products are moved today has changed dramatically compared to the slow manual process in the past. Initially products were mainly moved on ships. Once rail became available products were able to be moved more quickly on land. Then came trucking and air planes that could be used to move cargo even quicker. These changes occurred slowly over time and each of them still have play an important part in transportation and the supply chain. (http://amhistory.si.edu/onthemove/, n.d.)
Today global retailers are managing thousands of vendors and potential millions of individual customer across the world through efficient supply chain network. With worldwide sourcing, diverse merchandise and varied selling formats, supply chain is becoming complex every day. Retailers are wishing to take position in fast moving hugely competitive market must find the right supply chain solutions that will able them to deliver their products to customer at right place and a right time. Retailers always aim for broader product variety , best profitable selling price and lower cost (Hubner and Kuhn, 2012) and are growing vertically by encompassing more logistical functions (Fernie et al., 2010). In this volatile economic environment, retail industries are experiencing with some supply chain issues such as complexity in supply chain network, less practice of effective CSR, waste management, technology upturns and sustainable supply issue etc. These issues are being considering solemnly in order to bring more efficiency in supply chain. Because of inability to get the right products to right place at right time, retailers still losing big amount of revenue though they heavy invested on IT.( e.g. Friend and Walker, 2001; Gruen et al., 2002)
With global operations, becoming more complex, companies in manufacturing, retail and technology and the consulting firms that service them, they are scrambling to hire people with Supply Chain expertise, but these experts are hard to come by. Supply Chain Management has moved from a "necessary evil" to a "core competency" at companies across industries.
Minor Logistics Operations Presentatie titel MIRBSLM114OP N.J. Osentoski-Monsma & A. Nielsen-de Vries Lecturers Logistics Room D2.173 osenj@hr.nl / vriad@hr.nl Rotterdam, 00 januari 2007 6-1 Corporate strategy Business strategy Operations Strategy Mission Objectives (cost, quality, flexibility, delivery) Functional strategies in marketing, finance, engineering, human resources, and information systems Strategic Decisions (process, quality system, capacity, and inventory)
Logistics is a process by which an item is moved from its point of creation or production to the point at which it is used as planned by a company, a government or similar institutions. The items moved within a network could be Dangerous Goods, foodstuffs, ammunition, electronics, building cranes and whole host of other products. Time and financial considerations are considered when making these plans as are government regulations that guide the movement of items within a network.
The e-commerce in many industries added more pressure to the physical distributors and dealers of goods and services since it became more user friendly and convenient to order these goods and services online from various resources while comparing the prices at the same time.
Logistics is an important part of the supply chain process as it is the phase where products that are manufactured are packed, stored in warehouse, and transported to the end users when an order is placed. Logistics deals with lot of data/information about different products, resource, transport, and warehouse management. With the growth of technology, many devices like RFID, barcode, sensors, GPS, Telematics etc. have found its use in Logistics resulting in huge amount of data/information generated from these devices. Information ranging from products available in warehouse to real time information like where the product is in delivery truck are available which makes Logistics an ideal place for big data applications. DHL is one such
Modern logistics is more intelligent and integrative than traditional logistics, there are various techniques in the field of logistics such as RFID Technology (Radio Frequency Identification), ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and RF WMS (Radio Frequency Warehouse Management System). These techniques put forward 20 years ago, but it seems to be unrealistic at that time. Thus, these original ideas were realized and continuously perfect. Until now, the people of logistics still try to improve these techniques. Traditional warehouse has simplex function and low ability of services, it is not suit
E-commerce brings changes in the distribution system, having more flexibility on products transaction and transaction between businesses, suppliers and customers. Online businesses cover the gap between the costumers and the distribution centres.
The primary aim of logistics is to co-ordinate the transportation, storage and handling of products as they move from the source of raw materials, through the manufacturing system to their final point of sale in a way that it meets customer requirements at minimum cost. In the past this cost has been defined in purely monetary terms. Recently the world has witnessed an increasing awareness about environmental and sustainability issues. This growing concern for the environment has a created pressure on companies to reduce their negative environmental impact. As defined by ISO14001, the environmental impact is “a modification of the environment, negative or beneficial, resulting wholly or partially from environmental aspects of an organization “. Since the transportation of goods leads to air and noise pollution, leads to fatal accidents sometimes and has significant impact on global warming, firms have been trying to render their supply chains and logistics operations more environmental friendly. That this why many Green logistics strategies have been devised in order to achieve an efficient and environmentally friendly distribution and transportation system.
Nowadays, logistics are constantly developing for meeting the growing requirements of international business. The innovations in logistics are crucial, which can not only stimulate the emergence of international business around the world, but also further promote its efficiency and scale.
Deal with the management of the flow of goods or materials from point of origin to point of consumption, and in some cases even to the point of disposal. Logistics is not confined to manufacturing operations alone. It is relevant to all enterprises, including government institutions such as hospitals and schools, service organization such as retailers, banks and financial service organizations. Logistics is dependent upon natural, human, financial and information resources for inputs. Suppliers provide raw materials, in process inventory and finished goods. Management actions provide the framework for logistics activities through the process of planning, implementation and control. The outputs of the logistics system are