Logistics

Several logistics service providers are involved in the handling process at the seaport terminal in Bremerhaven, Germany. This process includes the arrival of the vehicles by vessel from the automotive manufacturer followed by the storage and the technical treatment ending with the transport to the automotive retailer. A cross-company approach of the complete process is necessary in order to improve the qua-lity of services and to enhance the utilization of the terminal as a holistic system. A control centre is used in order to generate information transparency. This is the basis for the development of cross-company planning and scheduling method. The simulation study was used to investigate the effectiveness of the developed method towards process and economic performance indicators of the supply chain.

After many improvements in production through the introduction of production systems, the focus is now shifting towards optimization of the supply side. Agility becomes to a success factor for supply logistics. New challenges arise from the increased demands of the “second lean wave”, from global supply structures and a turbulent environment. The design of the supply logistics begins at the “point of use”, at the workplace. A smoothed value stream takes place not only at the factory; it also requires a tacted supply at the supplier side: the utilization of tact principles at supplier transports is the logical extension of the production system in terms of a synchronous value stream. Prerequisite is logistics performance of the suppliers. An agile supply logistics optimizes proactively supply chain structures and processes.

Sourcing flexibility, i.e., the capability of a company’s procurement processes to respond rapidly to changing supply requirements is one of the building blocks of supply chain agility. In today’s decentralized supply chains, companies increasingly depend on their suppliers for value creation. Hence, understanding the causes and consequences of sourcing flexibility is critical. Based on a survey of 336 companies from Europe and the U.S., we show that sourcing flexibility is curvilinearly (U-shaped) related to supply chain performance. Companies with either low or high levels of sourcing flexibility exhibit high supply chain performance, whereas medium levels of sourcing flexibility reduce a company’s supply chain performance by up to 30%. That is, the “stuck in the middle” phenomenon, which is frequently observed in areas of strategy and organization, is evident in procurement decisions as well.

Logistic Performance has become a key factor for the success of producing companies. As shown by several surveys, it is particularly challenging for small and medium sized enterprises to reach their logistic objectives. This has various reasons. Therefore a new method is required in order to evaluate the level of maturity in production logistics and identify essential adjusting levers. On this basis it is possible to deduce consistent measures to improve the logistic performance.

Today`s complex and dynamic logistic processes are largely addicted to the efficient management of relevant information. Integrated into centralised planning and control structures, the flow and management of information is mostly handled in separate processes or sub processes. This proceeding results in an additional effort for the information processing and in corresponding delays during the process execution. This is especially the case for mobile work processes. Wearable computing systems offer the possibility to use modern information and communication technologies for a direct integration of the information processing and information management into the mobile work process. In this way the mobile user is discharged and able to concentrate on his logistical main task.

An optimized working capital aims to activate tied capital, capital which is frozen in account receivables and payables as well as in inventories. Often the ability to deliver anytime is a top priority for firms so that the tied capital is not optimized which increases the potential of bankruptcy in economic recessions. The potential to release tied capital can only be mastered by a tight company-wide collaboration, including the finance purchasing, production, sales and accounting department. Furthermore a holistic approach taking the whole supply chain into consideration must be realized to achieve a superior working capital performance. We show how firms can benefit from an optimal working capital in order to turn their supply chains into gold veins.

Today, the logistics performance especially of manufacturing companies is becoming a distinctive success factor in the marketplace. Perceiving this development Siemens’ Electronics Manufacturing plant in Amberg (EWA) implemented a comprehensive logistics KPI system supporting the controlling of production processes. The tools used, however, fall short of considering the interdependencies between different logistics KPIs. The article reports on a project conducted in cooperation between EWA and the Institute for Production Systems and Logistics of Leibniz University at Hannover. Presenting the project’s approach, conclusions and resulting experiences, the theoretical background as well as the fundamental impact production operating curves can offer for the competitiveness of a manufacturing company are outlined.

Lean companies naturally use milkruns to improve their internal logistics. Approaches for the design of such milkrun cycles exist, but specific conditions of production are not accounted for. By showing typical development steps of the milkrun design, the correct design-approach for the specific situation becomes clear. Moreover the levers for further optimization and cost reduction are pointed out.

Current changes in market situations may compel companies to adapt their products, manufacturing systems, as well as logistics systems. Required planning procedures are characterized by their complexity and their interdisciplinary nature: A system that has to fulfil future requirements is designed using models, methods, and the knowledge of all involved participants. Therefore, this article aims to discuss procedure models applied in different disciplines in order to assess their usability in logistics planning projects. Furthermore, certain aspects of planning procedures are identified that require formalization of applied knowledge. Thus, an approach to apply knowledge formalization is presented.

Mounting numbers of end customers and simultaneously declining delivery quantities are making more flexible organization of transport chains essential. Reductions of high-volume commercial transport are being demanded particularly in urban areas to cut traffic and CO2 emissions. This is the starting point for a low-volume commercial transport concept based on interchangeable containers that are combined over long distances to take advantage of established infrastructures in which interchangeable trailers are integrated and then separated in the “last mile” as required for pinpoint delivery to end customers. The interchangeable containers are supported by innovative I&C technologies for continuous cargo tracking and tracing and optimized and energy efficient routing. Automated approaches to consigning interchangeable container cargoes are being designed and tested.