Logistike

Logistike, often rendered as logistics in English, is the discipline and practice of coordinating the acquisition, movement, and storage of goods, services, and information from origin to consumption to meet requirements. It encompasses planning, implementation, and control of the efficient flow and storage of resources within a network.

The term has roots in military and organizational contexts and derives from French logistique and Greek logistikos, meaning skilled in calculating. Over the 20th century it broadened from military support to broad commercial, humanitarian, and public-sector applications.

Core activities of logistike include transportation management, warehousing, inventory control, order fulfillment, procurement, packaging, handling of customs and regulatory compliance, and the information flows that connect these functions. It seeks to optimize cost, speed, reliability, and quality across the supply chain.

In practice, logistike is a component of supply chain management, which covers end-to-end networks and value creation. While SCM focuses on overall network design and strategic collaborations, logistike concentrates on the movement, storage, and handling of goods and related information within the network.

Applications span manufacturing, retail, e-commerce, healthcare, defense, and disaster relief. Key challenges include last-mile delivery, demand variability, regulatory requirements, and environmental impact. Recent developments emphasize digital tools, data analytics, automation, and sustainable, resilient systems to cope with global disruptions.