Logistic centers are enterprises engaged in the processing and storage of goods, as well as their customs clearance, if necessary. In addition, they can provide information services, as well as offer universal freight solutions. Such centers have many features, which will be discussed below.
Description
Logistic centers are whole complexes. Separate plots are allocated for them, on which various buildings are located, as well as equipment designed to provide relevant services.
The opening of such enterprises is one of the modern directions in the development of warehouse infrastructure. Various companies are engaged in their launch. For example, it could be:
- Retail chain stores.
- Production companies.
- Freight forwarding organizations.
- Distributors
Jobs in the logistics center are mainly focused on qualified specialists. That is why such enterprises often face a shortage of personnel, which makes this type of business as a whole less attractive to potential entrepreneurs.
Tasks
Logistic centers are enterprises thanks to which it is possible to reduce the number of participants in the supply chain, which means, ultimately, reduce the cost of the product for the final consumer and at the same time increase the speed of deliveries.
These companies perform several basic tasks at once:
- Reduction of material costs for transportation of goods.
- Improving the efficiency of business processes.
- Optimization of information flows.
In fact, logistics centers are enterprises that allow delivering goods from manufacturers and distributing them to retail outlets with minimal costs in accordance with the level of demand. The maximum effect is created by combining individual companies into entire networks.
Features
The logistics centers of the region are an association of several companies engaged in the field of cargo transportation, on a territorial basis. At the same time, outwardly they may look like a single terminal, and not like disparate companies, united by only one common feature.
The logistics centers of the world may differ in structure or other features. However, they all perform the same function, which is to deliver goods as quickly as possible from producers to consumers at the lowest possible cost.
The construction of logistics centers should take into account some features at the planning stage:
- Which transport will be used.
- What features will be processed goods.
- What volumes of commodity flows can the logistics center handle?
- How many points will the enterprise serve and where will they be located.
Given the above features, it will be possible to competently design a logistics center. Oddly enough, the main difficulty that can be encountered in this matter is the shortage of qualified personnel. Depending on the structure and scale of the enterprise, even a couple of qualified employees can cope with it, if you can find such specialists among hundreds of resumes. However, when it comes to a large logistics center, there will be many more people on the staff. At the same time, working computers of employees are usually combined into a local network for easy interaction.
Industry Centers
Despite the fact that in transport science there is still no unified classification of logistics centers depending on the structure and purpose, however, there are still some conditional divisions. For example, some centers may be industry or regional. The former are usually created for enterprises united by a common activity. The second - for companies located within the same region.
Industry centers are larger and often perform purchasing and distribution functions. A quantitative advantage is also on the side of industry centers. They are created by enterprises that have taken a fairly stable position in the market and plan to further develop their own business. Their main advantages are low maintenance costs combined with high profitability, since the same center can be opened in the interests of several enterprises at once.
Regional centers
They differ from industry in that they are created not for their own needs, but for the provision of commercial services to other enterprises. Usually they can boast a fairly wide range of services, which is quite justified. After all, the greater the number of services provided on a paid basis, the higher the potential profit of the enterprise.
Regional centers focus on the number of operations performed. The more of them, the lower the cost of each individual operation, which is why ultimately this reduces the cost of goods for consumers. In addition, they are usually located close to large manufacturers or consumers, which reduces transport costs.
Some wholesale companies do not open their own logistics units, but conclude contracts with specialized enterprises.
Kinds
There is a more global classification, according to which the following types of centers are distinguished:
- Transport and logistics.
- Wholesale and logistics.
- Multifunctional.
Let's talk about each of them in more detail.
Transport and logistics
Such enterprises provide a range of various services, the need for which arises during the transportation of goods. The transport and logistics center allows you to optimize cargo flows and, as a result, reduce the cost of transporting goods.
An important function of this enterprise is to process transit freight flows. In addition, his tasks include the development, organization, as well as the implementation of the most rational scheme of movement of goods.
The main functions of the transport and logistics center:
- cargo preparation for further transportation;
- cargo loading;
- execution of documents required for transportation, including cargo insurance;
- escorting cargo or ensuring its safety in other ways.
Wholesale and Logistic
They specialize in large batches of consumer and other goods that are sold through retail chains. The second name of such enterprises is trade and logistics centers.
They are created with the aim of increasing the efficiency of sales of goods due to the accelerated pace of trade, as well as improving the speed and quality of service.
In contrast to the transport, the wholesale and logistics center provides services related mainly to the processing and not storage of goods. The company complements consignments in the directions of transportation.
Due to the expanded scope of services in the territory belonging to the center, trading and transport companies can be concentrated.
Wholesale and logistics centers show high efficiency, which is achieved through an expanded range of services. In particular, their creation is facilitated by an increase in household incomes, which, in turn, increases consumer demand.
Functions performed:
- processing bulk consignments;
- improvement of warehouse infrastructure;
- development of new software products that can simplify and accelerate inventory accounting;
- quality tracking of goods, etc.
Multifunctional
Such enterprises are created with the aim of operating distribution networks. Such centers allow the provision of trade, customs, as well as information services. Thus, it is possible to manage several areas at once in the provision of relevant services.
Functions
Like any enterprise, the logistics center performs several important functions. In many respects they depend on the specialization of the company. In particular, the transport and logistics center provides sites and parking lots for trucks for other enterprises. In addition, logistics companies provide additional services related to vehicle repair, customs clearance of goods, etc.
If we talk more globally about the functions of such centers, let's imagine what a tremendous path this or that product takes before reaching the final consumer. First, it is produced at the enterprise, then there is a quality check, packaging, packaging and shipment. Further, goods, as a rule, go through a whole chain of distributors, each of which lays its own profit in the final cost of the goods. Only after that he goes to retail chains, where the consumer can buy it.
Logistic centers can significantly reduce the number of intermediaries and at the same time accelerate the flow of goods from producers to consumers. This not only improves the quality of service, but also reduces the final cost of production. Only intermediary distributors who were able to earn money acting as a liaison between the producer and the consumer remain dissatisfied in this situation.