Most of the firms are very lenient to their clients as they listen to their client's needs and requirements, complaints along the way, implementing long-term marketing programs as well as short-term. Companies also make use of their resources in order to acquire competitive edge over their rivals in the marketplace which leads to satisfactory profits (Sakchutchawan, 2011)
, 1999), choose methods of shipment and manage the cost of distribution (Mentzer et al., 1999), Stalk concluded that time was the only factor which mattered in gaining competitive edge, due to the fact that companies delivering right on time had tendency to follow protocols of quality, adjusting to client's needs, step in new markets around the world, startups, devising new ideas and using them in their business (Stalk et al
In the present aviation logistic climate, the competition is tight and companies need to step up their game, build and create value in the industry (Brewer and Hensher 2001). It has become a boundary spanning function in supply chain, excellence in logistics is now a symbol of competence and a prime ingredient for competitive edge in the market (Stank, et
Apart from that, the tendency of technology to fit in well with company's processes is also important in deciding the relevant competence (Tornatzky & Fleischer, 1990). Similarly, technological innovation has a certain technological model as well (Teece, 1996)
Transferability of technology is decided by technology's explicitness. Apart from that, the tendency of technology to fit in well with company's processes is also important in deciding the relevant competence (Tornatzky & Fleischer, 1990)
In essence, process improvement helps in ensuring that a business' or company's functional segments work together seamlessly to constantly provide outcome-centered service. Process improvement needs that logistics department and personnel to be flexible to an extent that they look beyond the operations of logistics and supply chain (Biondo, 2013)
Therefore, there is need for reconstruction of companies in the current business world for future success and financial survival. The situations in this competitive business environment have contributed to the development of process improvement philosophies and methodologies (Rodrigues, Alexandrino, Carvalho, 2013, p
Still at the volume of goods it can be said that bulk raw materials are quite expensive to transport in relation to their value. The manufacturing process normally takes up a considerable amount of resources, such as raw material, energy and labor (Trunick, 2011)
A second example is a manufacturing company whereby the rate of production is dependent the supply of raw materials. If there are no raw materials then the production can not go on (Aitelli, & Deckro, 2004)
The supply chain involves how things get from the manufacturer to the end user, but it also involves how the raw materials that are needed in manufacturing get to the manufacturer (Lenzini, 2002). When looked at this way, whoever creates or collects the raw materials is the manufacturer, and the manufacturing company that makes goods from them is the end user of that particular supply chain (Cast, 2002)
This paper will look at the reasons that anticipatory logistics can work in the corporate world and provide information indicative of this through the use of references that allude to this idea. Anticipatory logistics are used to predict what a customer is going to need and help to prioritize these needs so that a certain level of product or other needed item can be maintained (Lenzini, 2002)
This balance can be easily upset, but when it works extremely well. This is much of the reason that the Army is considering it for some of what they do (Taylor, 2004)
The Role of Logistics Logistics serves to maintain the dynamic balance between the minute and the main elements of a product. In order to make full use of logistics, a firm has to develop a clear logistics strategy on the basis of its customers' requirements, as well as its own strategic direction (Bookbinder & Prentice, 2012)
Types of Logistics There are four fundamental types of logistics; reverse logistics, military logistics, third party logistics, and fourth party logistics (Bookbinder & Prentice, 2012). Reverse Logistics This collectively covers the activities and processes surrounding the incorporation of recalled goods into the logistical systems network (Hawks, 2006)
These could include asset recovery programs, disposition of obsolete equipment, hazardous material programs, recycling programs, salvage and restock programs, to name but a few (Hawks, 2006). Military Logistics Military logistics collectively refers to the activities, processes, and resources "involved in generating, transporting, sustaining, and redeploying or reallocating materials" and military personnel (Smith, 2014)
The concept of total quality management is born when the quality imperative is integrated into a logistics system. It can, therefore, be defined as a concept "supported by a managerial system focused on meeting customer expectations with respect to all needs, from all departments or functions of an organization" (Bowersox, Closs, Cooper & Bowersox, year)
Quality ought to be a fundamental concern for any organization that wishes to, at the very least, survive in the marketplace today. In a logistics system, quality entails ensuring that customer needs and expectations are met by delivering the right products, for the right cost, in the right condition and quantities, and at the right time and place (Korinek & Sourdin, 2011)
¶ … supply chains continue to gain in importance as a core attribute of current and future business models across nearly every industry, the need for using IT resources more effectively in orchestrating each transportation mode becomes essential. Orchestrating supply chain processes from transaction to fulfillment provides third party logistics providers (3PLs) with the opportunity to manage and modify manual processes to gain greater performance on a consistent basis (Gilmore, 2002)
Orchestrating supply chain processes from transaction to fulfillment provides third party logistics providers (3PLs) with the opportunity to manage and modify manual processes to gain greater performance on a consistent basis (Gilmore, 2002). In the article Global logistics solutions: A Guide to the problems Shippers face (MacDonald, 2007) the author provides an overview of how supply chains need to be managed as a strategic series of process and system assets, with specific attention paid to the orchestration of transportation modes
Four critical problems supply chains face are also discussed including a lack of supply chain visibility and forecasting, the need for continual quality improvement at the process level, more optimization of transportation network designs, and selecting the best possible analytics and metrics to measure global performance. These four problems taken together are often the impetus for many corporations who have a high reliance on their supply chain systems to create and expand a technology platform to support and strengthen suppliers, buyers and their supplier network (Milmo, 2002)