Information Systems for Freight Forwarders

· The ability to offer attractive trade-off in terms of price and performance: Public transportation such as train, subway, bus, or airplane can give

Rajib, S. U., Alam, S., & Arefin, S. (n.d.). A case study on integrating logistics information systems with the corporate resources. Retrieved from http://www.academia.edu/1213764/A_Case_Study_on_Integrating_Logistics_Information_Systems_with_the_Corporate_Resources

Currently, the company is a global giant, in terms of its ability to move goods. Also, the company is highly visible and easily recognized. Over the years, it has become the world’s biggest package delivery company. However, it has also evolved to offer many other offerings and services. On a daily basis, the company operates and manages how goods and information are shipped throughout the world.

The two authors follow the story from the conception of the idea of "packet switching" in the early 1960s to the creation and development of the Internet. We see how one idea led to another and how the intelligent people around the circumstances influenced the developments.

If there is a delay with the delivery of a parcel, it is difficult to track it without the help of a computer network providing real-time information. As the company expands, the volume of paperwork will increase, and the current system will not be able to cope.

The evolution of the express mail industry had become a quick on-time shipping and delivery of packages. The service had become effective, reliable, and prompt, which most of the top companies could deliver on these guaranteed promises 96-99% of the time. But, delivery services were only a portion of the services being offered to their customers. Carriers had mastered information management that they shared with their customers. Customers were now able to fill out labels, track the route of their package, and assisted in billing using both via carrier provided software or the Internet.

Today the air express industry is faced with a technology that will force express companies to change organizational structure and basic operations. This technology is electronic commerce, or better known as

Customer analysis – Who needs CP? How large is the market? Is CP an economically viable product? Can FedEx do 6000 CPs a day?

Trends and opportunities of the parcel service industry include globalization, e-commerce, and supply-chain management. Internet logistics was FedEx and UPS’s fastest growing business. The internet enabled customers to link directly to retailers and their manufacturers. In 2001, parcel carriers served almost all of the online market. They were able to provide information on packages to customers through tracking systems on the web. This allowed customers to plan ahead and decrease delays in deliveries. It also allowed for faster transactions and lower communication costs. Parcel companies created partnerships with large Internet retailers. These partnerships allowed parcel service companies to expand its overall delivery volume. Parcel companies improved tracking by implementing several technological innovations. These included “laser scanners and bar codes, state of the art software programs, satellite and cell phone communication equipment, electronic information interchanges, and the Internet.”

The traditional express industry is threatened by facsimile and electronic mails, which have zero cost. Competition between FedEx and UPS has caused a lower price and more innovations. The industry is quite consolidated and has a very high barrier to

Delivering goods such as gifts, files, and documents has always been essential for businesses and personal purposes. Before internet marketing and technological innovations, sending parcels to another location wasn 't so simple. However now days, there is a constant increase of internet users which according to The World Bank, around 38.1 billion people surf on the cyberspace. This boosts online shopping and services increasing companies to aim to send their products to different places. Because sending packages, nationally or internationally, have been a consumption of great time and money, both enterprises and clients hope for faster and affordable ways which lead to the popularity of courier

SCM can be divided into three main groups: purchase, manufacture, and transport (Thomas et al., 1996). The focus is on transportation. There are different modes of transportation. These modes of transportation fall under three basic types and they are: land (road, rail and pipelines), water (shipping) and air. Transportation plays a connective role among the several steps that result in the conversion of resources into useful goods for the ultimate consumer. It is the planning of all these functions and sub-functions into a system of goods movement in order to minimize cost and maximize service to the customers that constitutes the concept of business logistics. The system, once it’s put in place, must be effectively managed (Fair & Williams, 1981). What are the advantages and disadvantages of these modes of transportation in logistics?

Another factor Service refers to fast processing of documents, bill of lading and prompt loading and movement of containers etc. It is rather difficult for customers to get better quality of service than getting competitive freight rates. In this world of technology every company is trying to adapt to new technology in their day to day businesses like e-processing of documents and fastest data entry to name a few. Maersk is so technologically advanced in this field that all its data processing is being done electronically by back office and customers are able to access all information relevant to shipment though dedicated space available on company website. Examples electronic processes are shipping bills, vessel certificates, freight invoices and bill of lading in encrypted format once the payment is done by customer either electronically or at Maersk local office. Companies like APL and MSC do have electronic processing systems but are not fully fledged and as a result much of the work is still being done manually.

Information systems have become a major part of the almost all industries including the air cargo industry. Information systems have helped the air cargo industry remain competitive, provide customers and other with an efficient and easy to use service, and has kept the industry up to date. In 2003, Cargo Patrol Services (CPS) opened for business as the air cargo industry’s first full-service Internet portal that provided the industry with an electronic booking and shipment management system. Without this new system, the air cargo industry would have suffered, especially after the September 11th terrorist attacks when investments in airline declined.

Forward logistics (or conventional logistics) is the regular distribution channel followed by the manufactures from time immemorial. Forward logistics concentrates on the products (goods or services) reaching the consumer end and deals with the line of flow from the manufacturer’s end to the consumer’s end. It deals with the very essence of Supply Chain Management and logistical activities of an organization. It has a significant impact on the primary operations carried out, which act as the basic revenue generating aspect of a business. In this logistical system, the flow is a “one-to-many” type and the forecasting or traceability is quite simple.