Selection Of Third-party Logistics Providers Research Articles

Enhancing third-party logistics providers partnerships: An approach through the D.L.A.R.C.S supply chain paradigm

The effective selection of third-party logistics providers (3PLs) is crucial for achieving optimal supply chain performance. This study addresses the challenge of 3PL selection by adopting the comprehensive Digital, Lean, Agile, Resilient, Circular, and Sustainable (D.L.A.R.C.S) supply chain paradigm, which encompasses dimensions vital for managing modern supply chains, including digital, lean, agile, resilient, circular, and sustainable aspects. Recognising the interconnectedness of these dimensions, this paradigm emphasises their collective importance in enhancing supply chain operations. Utilising fuzzy SWARA (Step-wise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis) and BWM (Best Worst Method) techniques, the study evaluates and ranks 3PLs based on their performance within these dimensions. The analysis reveals pivotal criteria such as purchasing price, transportation cost, removal of wastes, service costs, reduction in costs, and crisis and risk management as paramount considerations in the 3PL selection process. These criteria not only provide specific insights but also serve as a foundation for a data-driven approach to decision-making. This research, beyond offering strategic alignment insights for outsourcing, contributes substantively to the broader discourse on supply chain management. The methodology employed in this study integrates diverse dimensions, offering a robust framework for 3PL selection, thereby enhancing operational efficiency and sustainability across industries. The findings offer valuable insights for tyre manufacturers seeking to optimise their logistics operations within the D.L.A.R.C.S. framework, contributing to the advancement of supply chain management in the tyre industry and beyond.

Third-Party Logistics Provider Selection in the Industry 4.0 Era by Using a Fuzzy AHP and Fuzzy MARCOS Methodology

Third-Party Logistics Provider Selection in the Industry 4.0 Era by Using a Fuzzy AHP and Fuzzy MARCOS Methodology

Third-Party Logistics Provider Selection for Sustainable Last-Mile Delivery: A Case Study of E-Shop in Belgrade

Last-mile delivery (LMD) is one of the crucial phases of the shipping process. Since e-commerce rapidly evolves, there are many issues that should be addressed in city logistics. This paper specifically tackles the issue of Third-Party Logistics (3PL) provider selection for sustainable last-mile delivery. The 3PL selection problem has been solved for the e-shop company from Belgrade, which has online sales. The management of the e-shop company has identified five possible 3PL providers. Those five 3PL providers have been evaluated according to six criteria such as distribution cost, on-time delivery, flexibility of distribution, IT capability, good cultural fit, and customer satisfaction index. To evaluate and rank the 3PL providers, two multi-criteria decision-making methods were coupled. The first one is a Best-Worst Method (BWM) used to find the criteria weights, while the second one is a Combined Compromised Solution (CoCoSo) method utilized to rank the 3PL providers from best to worst one. To check the stability as well as the robustness of the applied methods, sensitivity and comparative analyses are performed. The results show high confidence in the applied methods.

Optimal selection of third-party logistics providers using integer programming: a case study of a furniture company storage and distribution

This paper investigates the selection of third-party logistics providers (3PLs) based on the best prices offered by them. The focus is on outbound logistics where 3PLs must have their own distribution centres for storage and picking activities. They must also have suitable trucks for distribution to different small-scale customers. The motivation for this paper is a case study from Germany in which a furniture company with hundreds of small customers in ten zones is seeking one or more 3PLs to do the distribution. A mathematical programming model was built based on integer programming where demand per order can be expressed using exponential distribution in each customer zone. The main contribution of this paper is that it finds the best 3PLs based on the different pricing methods of the various providers; this means including the location problem indirectly using the new integer programming model. The model takes into consideration three different methods of pricing based on the offers of five 3PLs. These different methods make it difficult for the decision makers to choose the best solution, especially if specific trends in demand are expected in the future for some customer zones. The results show that future increases in demand in terms of the number of orders or order size could affect the optimal solution. The best pricing method with the lowest variability in cost over time is selected.

An Interactive Decision-Making Method for Third-Party Logistics Provider Selection under Hybrid Multi-Criteria

Due to the complexity and uncertainty of third-party logistics (3PL) provider selection circumstances, the research on the hybrid multi-criteria decision-making (HMCDM) method with fuzzy hesitation information is becoming more and more important. Based on symmetry principles, both the objectivity of the decision information and the subjectivity of decision makers’ (DMs) preferences should be considered in the HMCDM method. In this paper, a novel interactive decision-making method to deal with the 3PL provider selection problem of hesitant fuzzy sets, intuitionistic fuzzy sets and real numbers is developed. We first investigate the positive and negative ideal solutions of the alternative and the satisfaction degree of the DMs under hybrid multi-criteria circumstances. Then, the interactive HMCDM models based on satisfaction degrees are established, which can use objective decision information to rank alternatives and, symmetrically, the preference information of the DMs is also taken into account. DMs can modify their preference information using the models and thus make the most reasonable selection of 3PL provider. Finally, the case analysis and sensitivity analysis show that the change of parameter and the setting of the satisfaction lower limit will not affect the optimal rank of alternatives, and the feasibility of the proposed method is confirmed.

Z-MABAC Method for the Selection of Third-Party Logistics Suppliers in Fuzzy Environment

As third-party logistics providers occupy an increasingly important position in the operation strategies of various enterprises, choosing a partner that suits them and can bring benefits to them has become an important decision-making issue for each enterprise. A lot of studies have been done with classical fuzzy methods, but there are relatively few studies that consider information reliability. The emergence of Z-numbers makes up for this deficiency, including the restriction on the evaluation object and the corresponding degree of confidence. In this article, making decisions based on Z-numbers can better transform language values into fuzzy numbers. By integrating the existing Multi-Attributive Border Approximation area Comparison (MABAC) method and Z-numbers, a new method for the selection of third-party logistics providers is provided. Finally, the feasibility and effectiveness of the approach are verified by comparing with the classical Multi Criteria Decision Making methods. The Z-number is a relatively new concept that can flexibly represent the confidence of information, which will be a relatively important research direction in the future.

Evaluation and selection of third-party logistics providers using an integrated multi-criteria decision making approach

Today with business globalisation, the use of third-party logistics service providers (3PLSPs) is becoming prevalent. With the worldwide increasing use of 3PL services, the need for carefully evaluating and selecting the best 3PL is becoming much more critical. Supply chain managers always face the dilemma of selecting the right 3PL. The current study presents an efficient data envelopment analysis (DEA) and analytic hierarchy process (AHP)-based decision framework for 3PL evaluation and selection for an outsourcing arrangement. The analysis results demonstrate the effectiveness of the integrated DEA-AHP model as a simple and flexible decision analysis tool for 3PL evaluation and selection. Further, the application of decision framework has been demonstrated with a real case situation. Finally, the study discusses the implications of the results in a real-life context and concludes with the managerial insights identifying a few inherent limitations of the approach utilised.

Evaluation and selection of third-party logistics providers using an integrated multi-criteria decision making approach

Today with business globalisation, the use of third-party logistics service providers (3PLSPs) is becoming prevalent. With the worldwide increasing use of 3PL services, the need for carefully evaluating and selecting the best 3PL is becoming much more critical. Supply chain managers always face the dilemma of selecting the right 3PL. The current study presents an efficient data envelopment analysis (DEA) and analytic hierarchy process (AHP)-based decision framework for 3PL evaluation and selection for an outsourcing arrangement. The analysis results demonstrate the effectiveness of the integrated DEA-AHP model as a simple and flexible decision analysis tool for 3PL evaluation and selection. Further, the application of decision framework has been demonstrated with a real case situation. Finally, the study discusses the implications of the results in a real-life context and concludes with the managerial insights identifying a few inherent limitations of the approach utilised.

Assessment of criteria for the selection of third party logistics provider: a case from India

In today's business world, it is very difficult for an industry any to be competitive without working in close collaboration with external partners. Third party logistics provider (TLP) is an important partner to provide the proper logistic service. Selection of proper logistics suppliers endeavours and enhances the intensity of the hiring organisation. To select the appropriate TLP is a tough task for manager based on the criteria. Evaluating the criteria for the selection of TLP is an essential task for industries. This paper sensibly assesses the selection criteria and determines the weight of each indicator using analytic hierarchy process (AHP). This study was focused on 43 different industries across India as the survey object, and every endeavour was given two questionnaires. A variable cost criterion is acting as an important criterion for the selection of TLP.

Integration of DEMATEL, ANP and DEA methods for third party logistics providers’ selection

Article history: Received October 28, 2015 Received in revised format November 28, 2015 Accepted March 22, 2016 Available online March 24, 2016 In a competitive environment many companies usually outsource their logistics functions to the Third Party Logistics (TPL) providers to focus on their core businesses. However, the selection of proper TPL provider is not an easy task because of conflicting quantitative and qualitative criteria. This study presents an integrated model based on three well-known methods Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL), Analytical Network Process (ANP) and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) for the evaluation and selection of TPL providers. DEMATEL computes the effects between selection criteria while ANP derives the weights of each criterion related with TPL providers’ selection problem. Finally DEA presents a mathematical model for ranking TPL providers alternatives with respect to various criteria. The application of integrated model is demonstrated with a case study. The novelty of this study comes from the fact that there is no research in the literature integrating DEMATEL, ANP and DEA for the TPL selection problems. © 2016 Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Research on the Evaluation and Selection of Third-Party Logistics Providers in B2C E-Commerce Mode

For B2C e-commerce enterprises, it is of great importance to select the third-party logistics (3PL) providers. The paper, focused on the concept of “logistics capability”, took full account of the characteristics of B2C e-commerce and its logistics service and referred to the research findings of scholars. As a result, on six dimensions, the evaluation indexes of 3PL providers' logistics capability in the mode of B2C e-commerce were identified. Besides, Case studies were conducted with multi-index decision and evaluation methods based on Relative Approximation, showing that the final results are reliable.