Spot the difference

摘要

The global economic recession of the past five years has had a profound impact on business right around the world. And the response of producers and blenders of liquid products has had a knock-on effect on their logistics providers, especially as shippers have looked closely at their supply chains in an attempt to minimise delivery costs and inventory in the chain. At the same time, there is a need to ensure the greatest possible flexibility, given the uncertainty over demand patterns. One response, especially in the US, has been growing use of outsourced logistics provision through fourth-party logistics (4PL) operators, which can shift costs off the balance sheet while also providing a more responsive level of capacity.