Third Party Logistics Study 2005 & 2006

A study of third party logistics providers carried out by John Langley Jr., Ph.D., of the Georgia Institute of Technology, with Capgemini, DHL, and SAP, conducted an extensive study about using 3PL services in North America, Western Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, South Africa, and the Middle East to examine critical trends and issues among key markets and key customers in the 3PL industry. You can peruse the executive summary of the study here.
The key takeaways from the above study are:

• 3PL users continue to view a collaborative partnership approach with their 3PL providers as key to improving the user-company 3PL performance. However, unlike in past surveys, pricing has become the most important attribute in selecting a 3PL provider. This is different from last year's study where value-added services was ranked first. In fact, this year the proficiency of a 3PL provider's core services was considered more important than the provider's ability to deliver value-added services.


• 88% of those surveyed view their relationship with their service provider as successful. Although users are generally satisfied with their 3PL providers


• Implementing IT ranked third behind cost pressures and improving supply chain management as a leading factor affecting 3PL user organizations

• Disappointment with the 3PL provider's abilities to develop advanced services.


• Need for relationship reinvention, mechanisms for continual improvement, and solution innovation.


• Increasing importance on repeatable and leveraged solutions.


• Emerging role of supply chain integration.


• Global evolution of 3PL usage.

posted by AJ @ 12:47 PM