[240610.EN.LOG] After The Crisis : New Demand On Logistics

Dr. Detlef Trefzger, member of Schenker's management board responsible for Contract Logistics & Supply Chain Management, says that the logistics industry faces four new realities that will have a long-term impact on supply chain management.

Addressing attendees at eyefortransport's 8th 3PL Summit in Atlanta, Dr Trefzger commented on the new demands being placed on logistics at the start of the economic upswing.

"There are excellent opportunities for the global logistics industry to benefit from these developments," said Trefzger. In his opinion, one of the new realities is the tremendous growth in new markets and emerging economies.

These regions will have - and will also demand - a more significant role in the global economy. This is expected to result in new business opportunities for the logistics industry, a case in point being the automotive sector. Many manufacturers are now moving parts of their production to these countries.

Another new reality results from the strong fluctuations in world trade, on the commodities markets and in production costs. These changes will lead to fluctuations in global freight flows and the demand for warehousing services. "The result is increasingly less time to plan logistics processes," explained Trefzger.

Permanent change is becoming the order of the day in planning, and Trefzger said that those who miss the boat by not diversifying broadly enough and not adopting a global stance will face difficulties.

Outsourcing is growing considerably. Logistics companies continually assume more of the customer's workload and the associated responsibilities. Increasing expertise is required to handle these tasks and deliver the quality and productivity levels expected. Success very much depends therefore on having qualified employees.

The strong demand for standardised logistics solutions on a global scale is the fourth market reality. "Delivering consistently high standards of service quality will be one of the fundamental requirements in contract logistics. This will apply to all standard solutions, but also increasingly to customer-specific solutions," said Trefzger.

"Yesterday's decisions are today's reality, but by tomorrow they will already be out of date. "

Actively driving change, exploiting talent and innovation; and ensuring continuity in the provision of services and quality to the customer - these are the new post-crisis requirements for logistics service providers," Trefzger concluded.
 
Source : EFT, 22.06.10.