Logistics is the management of the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of destination in order

to meet the requirements of customers or corporations. Logistics involves the integration of: Information Transportation, Inventory, Warehousing, Material handling Packaging and often security. The mediums of logistics services in India can be categorized in the following ways:Airways Land Transport Railways Waterways

Importance in the economy One such study indicated that about 30 per cent of the working population in the UK are associated with work that is related to logistics. Another study undertaken by Armstrong and Associates (2007) found that, for the main European and North American economies, logistics represents between about 8 per cent and 11 per cent of the gross domestic product of each country. For developing countries this range is higher at around 12 per cent to 21 per cent with India at about 17 per cent and China at 21 per cent. It is to be expected that the logistics costs of developing countries will decrease over the next few years. The breakdown of the costs of the different elements within logistics has also been addressed in various surveys. One survey of US logistics costs undertaken by Establish/Herbert Davis (2008) indicated that transport was the most important element at 50 per cent, followed by inventory carrying cost (20 per cent), storage/warehousing (also at 20 per cent) customer service/order entry (7 per cent) and administration (3 per cent).This survey also produced a panEuropean cost breakdown. This placed transport at about 40 per cent, warehousing at about 32 per cent, inventory carrying cost at about 18 per cent, customer service/order entry at about 5 per cent and administration at about 5 per cent of overall costs. In both studies the transport cost element of distribution was the major constituent part, particularly due to high fuel costs. US transport costs are especially affected by this due to long distances travelled. Features of logistics industry in Indian economy A number of small-integrated players Transportation costs account for nearly 40%of production costs. Logistics costs around 13% of GDP, compared to 8% in the US. Growth in Indian economy is the major driving factor for the demand in logistics industry Chemicals, metals, FMCG, cement and textiles have been identified as the top five contributors to logistics revenues

Key logistics processes Order fulfillment: probably the most common that is quoted. Order fulfillment is concerned with the ability to turn a customers specified requirements into an actual delivered order. Thus, it embraces many of the traditional functions usually recognized as being a part of the logistics operation. Order fulfillment will involve the information elements of receiving and documenting an order through to the physical means of selecting and delivering the goods. New product introduction: This is an area where many companies find they have problems. There are many logistics issues related to the introduction of new products into the marketplace. Very oft en existing, standard logistics structures and processes are insufficient to enable a satisfactory launch of a new product. One of the main problems is the inability to respond sufficiently quickly. Standard processes are designed to deal with known products. There are two likely consequences of introducing new products using existing processes. The first is that the product takes off very quickly and very well but there is insufficient flexibility in the supply chain to ratchet up supply to the required levels. The second is that demand is lower than initially expected and so there is an oversupply of stock, which eventually leads to products being sold off at discount rates or becoming obsolete New product development: This example the idea is to design the product so that it can reach the market as quickly as possible from the initial design plan through to availability. The aim is to link the development of the product with the logistical requirements so that all secondary developments (of which there are normally very many) can be identified and re-engineered in the shortest possible time. Product returns: There is a growing requirement in many businesses to provide an effective process for the return of products. This may be for returns that come back through the existing distribution network or through a new one that is specifically set up. It may also be for product returns that will be reworked or repackaged to go into stock, product returns for subsequent disposal, or packaging returns that may be reused or scrapped. In the light of developments in environmental legislation, this is a very important area for process design or redesign Aftermarket or service parts logistics: For many companies the supply of a product or series of products is inextricably linked to the subsequent provision of service parts to support the continuous use of the initial products. For many logistics operations, neither the physical structure nor the associated processes for the original equipment are really capable of providing a suitable support mechanism for the spare parts as well. This is another example of the need for the development of processes specifically designed to undertake a particular task. Information management: Advances in information technology have enabled a vast amount of detailed data and information to be available and manipulated very easily. This

has led some companies to recognize the need to devise suit able processes to ensure that data are collected, collated and used in a positive and organized way. For logistics, this means detailed information can be made available for individual customers, concerning not just their product preferences but also any customer service requirements that are distribution-specific (delivery time preference, order size preference, invoicing requirements, etc). This enables a much more positive, proactive approach to be adopted when considering particular customer relationships

Some of the core functions of logistics

Positioning of Logistics in the Organisation Value Chain Logistics has always been changing with time, previously logistics was not involved in organizational value chain, but with time people started realizing the value of logistics in organization structure, given below are the two figures showing the traditional organizational structure, where it is self explanatory that logistics is not particularly defined, second figure shows a well defined logistics structure, in core organizational structure

 Relationship With Other Corporate Functions With Production Production schedule Production control Plant warehouse design Raw material stocks With Marketing Customer services Packaging Distribution centre location Inventory levels Order processing With Finance Stock-holding Stock-control Equipment financing Distribution cost control

Role Of The Logistics Or Distribution Manager Contribution to corporate strategic planning An understanding of the functional interfaces An understanding of distributions activities Familiarity with the external environment as it relates to distribution Insights regarding competitor distribution strategies Familiarity with customers distribution needs Familiarity with channels of distribution Distribution area

 Advantages of contributing to corporate plan Understanding of impact of corporate strategy on distribution activities increased physical distribution responsiveness Increased sensitivity to the distribution environment Identifying distribution opportunities Improving communication

Preparing for strategic planning Know the company Develop a broader perspective of distribution Know the distribution environment Develop rapport/liaison with others Improve communication skills Traditionally, the three main operational areas of responsibility are related to; Transport: Primary transport, delivery operations, vehicle routing , and scheduling, vehicle procurement, etc Warehousing: Goods inward, bulk storage, order picking, marshalling, materials handling equipment, Information: Stock location, stock control, order processing , budgeting,, monitoring, and control From the point of view of supply chain planning, the key roles for logistics manager with a broad remit might summarized as To lead the design, creation, configuration and parmanent setting of the entire supply chain To create the framework and the dialogue that determine the perfomance taegets along the whole chain To drive the system and monitor and report the entire logistics operation performance against agreed targets

To review how problem can be solved and performance improvement A Flow Chart Of Logistics Planning