Logistics service providers offering efficient and flexible supply chain solutions can actually do well in times of financial crisis, as Dr. Detlef Trefzger, member of the Board of Management of Schenker AG Essen, and responsible for Contract Logistics and Supply Chain Management, pointed out today at the WHU-Otto Beisheim School of Management in Vallendar. In his closing speech at the sixth Campus for Supply Chain Management, Dr. Trefzger outlined the effects of the economic crisis on logistics service providers to some 300 representatives from the fields of industry and research.
"What we are currently experiencing is a perfect storm of unprecedented strength and the logistics sector has to navigate safely through it. At the same time the familiar market framework conditions are changing," said Dr. Trefzger. It is not only that the already dwindling freight business is increasingly being transferred to cheaper carriers; from air to ocean transportation, for example. Free capacities can also become a fixed cost risk. At the same time, demand structures on the market are changing. "Whereas yesterday consumers were buying new products, today they are happy with just a repair. This also means that manufacturers require different services from providers; no longer the transportation of new products, but spare parts logistics," explained Dr. Trefzger. But he added that the crisis was not hitting every manufacturer equally hard. There were big differences between the sectors, regions and companies.
"The ability to offer flexible and tailored solutions along the entire supply chain is now becoming a strategic advantage," continued Dr. Trefzger. The customer should go for the logistics service provider who is adaptable and who can offer the entire chain of services from one single source, as well as having an efficient network. "Benefits for the customer must be the prime concern. New solutions must prove efficient in difficult times, too", concluded Dr. Trefzger.
At this year's WHU-Campus, the latest developments in supply chain management were explored in presentations and at workshops, and the potential for a more efficient management of the value added chain highlighted. The congress is organized entirely by students of the university.
