Purpose – The objective of the study is to examine the extent to which quality management practices, tools and methods are employed and adopted in Australian companies. Design/methodology/approach – To address the aim of the study, a survey instrument was developed and data were collected from a field research on a sample of manufacturing, retail, and logistics companies. Findings – T…
The purpose of this paper is to explore how the performance management (PM) process may be affected by the design and contents of logistics service performance (LSP) contracts between customer and supplier.
This paper aims to describe how research literature and logistics practitioners respectively describe the link between logistics and corporate social responsibility, focusing on the link between strategic logistics change (location, capacity and number of facilities as well as the design of supplier and customer network) and labor rights.
The purpose of this paper is to present a framework to manage product returns for reverse logistics by focusing on estimation of returns for select categories of products in the Indian context.
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the issues pertinent to sourcing internationally from low-cost countries (LCCs) and to understand which issues are associated most strongly with a firm’s logistics performance.
In this paper, the management of variety in automobile manufacturing is broadened from simply considering the choice of models, options and parts to include strategic issues in sourcing and logistics systems. Some of the major cost elements associated with varietal increase are identified, leading into a discussion of how logistics system redesign can reduce or, indeed, eliminate the unwanted i…
Europe today represents one of the world's fastest developing market‐places for both goods and services. Rapid changes in the business, political and regulatory environments are placing considerable stress on companies in Europe, whether national or international in their orientation. For many companies, these events are coincidental with the process of evolving into global businesses, which …
The completion of the Single European Market in 1992 has major implications for logistics throughout the 1990s and beyond. However, as logistics has come under the spotlight, many managers and academics have come to realize that their understanding of the field is limited. In particular, both the differences in practice between countries and the future directions for innovation in logistics rem…
In terms of logistics, manufacturers located in peripheral areas are generally considered to be at a disadvantage. Surveys of Scottish manufacturers suggest that any logistical disadvantage is likely to stem more from inadequacies in the quality of transport services than from higher movement costs. The paper attempts to explain why manufacturers in peripheral areas do not incur a significant t…
The decade of the 1980s has been witness to a long period of stable, sustained economic growth in the American economy, with moderate inflation, favourable interest rates, and steady growth in GNP. The decade has been remarkably free of the economic turmoil that marred the 1970s ‐ double digit inflation, double digit prime interest rates, the energy crisis. Nevertheless, the last nine years h…
Despite the proven benefits of high‐performing spare parts logistics, recommendations on how to organize spare parts logistics in China are rather rare. The absence of spare parts logistics concepts for China is surprising, since the spare part business is the profit pool of the capital goods industry: spare parts create about 17 percent of the industry's total revenue. The margins involved i…
Benchmarking has become more commonplace in recent years as managers sought to improve their firms' operations by examining strategic practices of leading companies. The focus of the current research is the benchmarking of logistics among United States manufacturers. The researchers explore the relationships between benchmarking practices and selected organizational variables. Benchmarking rela…
In logistics strategy, it is now being recognized that revenue generation is as important as cost reduction. Although it has long been known that logistics customer service has a positive effect on customer satisfaction, little research has been conducted to determine precisely the degree to which logistics customer service affects sales and generates the revenues for the firm. The purpose of t…
The purpose of this paper is to report on research undertaken to investigate whether current reverse logistics theories and models can be totally applied in developing countries like China using the electronic industry as a case study.
The primary objective of this paper is to show how mathematical modeling can be for solving a third party logistics (3PL) allocation problem.
To provide practitioners of knowledge management with a sense of the importance of reverse logistics as an important part of today’s company policies, especially throughout the product life cycle, with the accompanying technology that supports it and the effects on customer relation management (CRM) and satisfaction.
This study aims to provide a model for designing logistics networks with multiple products. In such a design model, it is important to determine the operation-related parameters accurately.
To succeed in an uncertain environment, firms must respond to changing customer needs, and logistics flexibility is an important part of the response. This paper defines logistics flexibility, creates a framework to understand it, and shows how it relates to customer satisfaction.
This paper examines the diversification of services and activities by freight forwarders in the UK. Following similar studies conducted in the USA, the paper analyses the trends towards service and revenue diversification that has been observed in this sector.
The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the level of logistics information systems (LIS) adoption in manufacturing companies is influenced by organizational profile variables, such as the company’s size, the nature of its operations and their subsectors.
This article deals with the evolution of customer service practices in grocery products distribution in Brazil (1994‐2001), based on a longitudinal survey of grocery retailers. Data were collected on retailers’ expectations on four relevant dimensions of customer logistics service provided by manufacturers, as well as on their perceptions of logistics service performance of the typical supp…
To present a multi-attribute approach for the selection and ranking of the most suitable 3PL service provider.
British retailers have been at the forefront of logistical changes. By taking control of distribution channels they have transformed their operations. Much of the process by which this has been achieved is well covered in the literature. This paper looks at the macro issues involved and the under‐pinning concepts in logistical transformation in retailing, and attempts to synthesize and provid…
To review the development of software applications and their functionalities/benefits in relation to supply chain management and present scenarios on future development.
The purpose of this paper is to develop a model of logistics innovation based on previous studies in the logistics literature and recommend opportunities for further research.
The purpose of this paper is to develop a model of logistics innovation based on previous studies in the logistics literature and recommend opportunities for further research.
The purpose of this paper is to develop and validate a basic scale for general logistics complexity that allows researchers to control for this issue in their studies.
Despite the increased importance and corporate visibility of logistics – and its concomitant opportunities – the demand for college educated entry-level logisticians continues to greatly exceed their supply. The current study, which responds to this persistent shortfall of talented students, was designed to investigate three primary issues: student familiarity with logistics vis-a`-vis othe…
This article provides an overview of the practical application of modeling to the business logistics network design problem. Various location models are categorized and selected ones are illustrated that represent an example of the class and/or that have been used extensively in practice. Suggestions are made as to how data can be aggregated to facilitate the modeling process. Numerous examples…
This paper aims to derive and verify a collaborative framework that specifies the role of different parties in contemporary logistics setups.
Many traditional retailers use the internet as a complementary business channel while “pure player” retailers only sell products via the internet. The question of who is better at offering electronic physical distribution service quality (e-PDSQ) is open to debate. But, despite e-PDSQ’s importance there are few empirical studies and most have focused on general service quality of internet…
Logisticians have always viewed standards as solutions for improving operational compatibility and coordination. This paper aims to contribute to a greater understanding of how standards, uponwhich logistics systems are designed, developed and coordinated, interactwith each other and with other resources in a logistics network for the purpose of improving efficiency and effectiveness.
A “world class” organization must provide high levels of logistics service quality to customers. Knowledge of customer expectations and an understanding of the firm's performance on logistics service attributes relative to competitors are vital to achieving service excellence. Research studies in four industries identify the most important logistics service attributes in business‐to‐bus…
The pressure on logistics companies to embrace green processes has increased significantly in the last few years. Within the broad concept of green supply chain management, a review of the existing literature has highlighted a need to understand how green supply chain practices (GSCP) can contribute to improving company performance from an environmental point of view, as well as economic and op…
This paper aims to develop a framework that rationalises transport flexibility into different types. In this way the role of the flexibility types in delivering specific strategic logistics outcomes can be determined.
Logisticians must make strategic level decisions in order to manage uncertainty, customer service and cost. This research explores the relationships between three strategic level decisions and selected product, operational and demand variables. The three strategic decisions are: make to order vs make to stock; push vs pull inventory deployment; and inventory centralization vs decentralization. …
To examine the strategic posture of third-party logistics (3PLs) providers in mainland China
The purpose of this paper is to examine current practices of logistics cost management (LCM) in Mainland China and identify factors impacting on the effectiveness of LCM.
The market for logistics services in Europe is undergoing unprecedented change. Not only is it being affected by world‐ scale developments, such as the globalization of manufacturing industry and the genesis of internationalisation in retailing, but there are major impacts within Europe itself. Numbered amongst these are; the effects of 1992 and the Single European Market on logistics users (…
Organizations realize that a strong supporting logistics or electronic logistics (e-logistics) function is an important organizational offering from both the commercial and the consumer perspective. The implications of e-logistics models and practices cover the forward and reverse logistics functions of organizations. They also have a direct and profound impact from an environmental perspective…
Logistics has become an essential service for synchronous companies. Many companies have recognized the potential benefits gained through a high quality system of logistics services, which are provided either internally or externally by a third party logistics company (3PL). The 3PL is positioned between the company and its customers, in a new-shaped logistics triad, having a crucial role in ha…
The role of business logistics for a water distribution company in Central Asia has become a major concern. As the marketing environment is getting more and more competitive, the company is forced to focus on the efficiency of its supply chain management operations both by improving customer service, increasing its profitability and productivity. The purpose of this paper is to report upon the …
In the logistics literature, it is stated that research results are produced almost entirely within a positivistic paradigm. As a consequence, there is only one school in logistics research, and it is based on the positivistic approach. It also means that the research questions are derived from the same methodological approach, which tends to produce similar questions and answers. In this paper…
The purpose of this paper is to provide a paradigmatic reflection on theoretical approaches recently identified in logistics and supply chain management (SCM); namely complex adaptive systems and complexity thinking, and to compare it to the dominant approach in logistics and SCM research, namely the systems approach. By analyzing the basic assumptions of the three approaches, SCM and logistics…
There presently is no comprehensive review which systematizes and summarizes the burgeoning body of logistics educational literature. The purpose of this paper is to provide a guide for both educators and practitioners to assess the history, current status, and future trends in logistics education in order to nurture advancement in logistics education.
The purpose of this paper is to report the results of a comparative study of order lead times for firms operating in the UK and Greek food retail markets with the UK one being regarded at the forefront in terms of logistics efficiency.
CAPARO India Ltd., a leading player in the automotive components industry in India, has multiple logistics providers for export-import logistics at its five manufacturing locations in north India. Dealing with multiple logistics provider restricts negotiation power, service commitments, customer satisfaction and leads to higher transportation cost and time delays due to multiple points of conta…
The purpose of this paper is to present findings concerning what logistics managers perceive as being difficult and challenging, and what implications this may have for further advances in the logistics discipline
How can a third-party logistics (3PL) provider decide whether or not there is a viable opportunity to serve the needs and desires of potential clients? To answer this question, a tool is needed that can help determine if there are problems, inefficiencies, or needed improvements in a client’s, or a potential client’s, supply chain that the 3PL can effectively address. Most diagnostic tools …
It is not surprising that proper implementation of reverse logistics systems can result in better customer loyalty and reduction in operational costs due to reuse or remanufacturing of some parts. This is particularly important for those industries with a short product life cycle, like the mobile phone industry. The major objective of this paper is to present the results of a pilot survey with …