A 70's standard dictionary defined it as, "The branch of military science concerned with procurement, equipment, maintenance and transportation, as of personnel, facilities and materiel." Yet another in the IWLA Library, same vintage, adds, "evacuation and hospitalization" to the definition, but the essence is still the same.

Contrast this to the definition in a recent study: "Logistics is that part of the supply chain process that plans, implements and controls the efficient flow and storage of goods, services and related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption, in order to meet the customers' requirements."

A bit broader and certainly not limited to the military? Absolutely, and the definition no doubt will continue to evolve as the breadth of services logistics providers offer does.

Still others focus on relationships between manufacturers or marketers and their logistics suppliers. The impact of two vital trends in the new economy is also factored in. These are a general trend toward outsourcing and the previously unprecedented growth spurred by e-commerce. Finally, the importance of the partnership aspect of the manufacturer/marketer-logistics provider relationship cannot be overstated.

Perhaps a simple, contemporary definition of logistics can be the management of inventory in motion or at rest (motion during transportation, at rest awaiting production into finished goods or in distribution at the final point of sale).

One thing is certain: no matter how broadly or specifically we choose to define logistics, it accounts for 9.9% of the total U.S. GNP ($921 billion) in 1999. It is growing dramatically in terms not just of services provided and outsourced but in terms of volume. For example, the 3PL (third-party logistics provider, the element most closely served by IWLA) accounts for over $40 billion and is estimated to be growing by 15-20% per year. Its benefits include: