Logistic Engineering

How would you define logistics engineering?

Logistics engineering is a field of engineering dedicated to the scientific organization of the purchase, transport, storage, distribution, and warehousing of materials and finished goods. Logistics engineering is a complex science that considers trade-offs in component/system design, repair capability, training, spare inventory, demand history, storage and distribution points, transportation methods, etc., to ensure the "thing" is where it's needed when it's needed, and operating the way it's needed all at an acceptable cost (Cho, 2019).

What is the role of Logistics Engineering in Marketing?

Logistics is generally concerned with cost center service activities but provides value via improved efficiency and customer satisfaction. It can quickly lose that value if the customer becomes dissatisfied. The end customer can include another process or work center inside of the manufacturing facility, a warehouse where items are stocked, or the final customer who will use the product. Another approach that has appeared in recent years is supply chain management (Valtakoski, 2020). The supply chain also looks at efficient chaining of the supply/purchase and distribution sides of an organization. While logistics looks at single echelons with the immediate supply and distribution linked up, the supply chain looks at multiple echelons/stages, right from procurement of the raw materials to the final distribution of finished goods up to the customer. It is based on the basic premise that the supply and distribution activities if integrated with the manufacturing / logistic activities, can result in better profitability for the organization. The local minimum total cost of the manufacturing operation is getting replaced by the global minimum total cost of the whole chain, resulting in better profitability for the chain members and hence lower costs for the products (Zhang, Wang, and Yang, 2022).

What is the study of Logistics Engineering in Marketing?

The Division of Logistics Engineering and Management focuses on modeling and optimizing logistics and supply chain systems, conducting research in areas such as smart supply chain, intelligent transportation, intelligent warehousing, logistics robots, port operations, and the logistics industry. The division has undertaken various programs supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), National Key R&D programs, International (Regional) Joint Research Programs, as well as projects funded by the Shenzhen Municipality and Guangdong province. In terms of industry cooperation, the division has established relationships with Huawei Hisilicon Co. Ltd., SF Express, China Southern Power Grid, VIPS, CIMC, and other well-known companies, and has been providing these companies with technology services such as algorithms, software, solutions and consulting (Cho, 2019).

The Research Center for Modern Logistics has an annual per capita research fund of around 600,000 RMB. In the past five years, the Division of Logistics Engineering and Management has published 72 papers, including 33 SCI papers, 10 SSCI papers, 26 EI papers, and 3 CSSCI papers. The division has won prizes in the Sichuan Science and Technology Progress Awards and China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing (CFLP) Science and Technology Progress Awards. The division has also built several experimental platforms, such as the Shenzhen Logistics Engineering & Simulation Laboratory, the Logistics Robots Teaching Laboratory, and the Development and Reform Commission of Shenzhen Municipality Semantic Mining Laboratory, which provides strong support for scientific research and teaching (Zhang, Wang, and Yang, 2022).

The Professional Master’s Degree Program in Logistics Engineering started to recruit students in 2009. By 2020, the program has admitted a total of 236 students with 151 graduates. The division has won 37 Outstanding Papers of Tsinghua University, with 12 Outstanding Graduates of Tsinghua University and 6 Outstanding Graduates of Beijing. The Division is composed of experts in the field of logistics and cultivates high-quality research talents. The division currently has 1 professor, 6 associate professors, 1 lecturer, 3 experimenters, and postdocs (Valtakoski, 2020).

The Division cultivates outstanding graduate students and is devoted to scientific research and applications based on its technology advantages in the fields of logistics, such as engineering technology simulation, logistics system planning, and logistics and supply chain management. The division promotes scientific research and technological innovation activities in traffic planning and management, intelligent traffic system design, vehicle-road collaboration, intelligent perception and control, high-precision positioning, unmanned driving, and so on. With established relationships with top universities in the United States, Singapore, Japan, and Australia, they provide international cooperation and exchange opportunities for our students. The division also has relations with more than ten leading enterprises in Shenzhen and Guangzhou to provide practical experimental bases for postgraduate training. The Division of Logistics Engineering and Management will continue to maintain its leading position in the industry and will cultivate more innovative scientific and managerial talents with international competitiveness for society (Cho, 2019).

What is the main field of logistics engineering?

Logistics engineering is a field of engineering dedicated to the scientific organization of the purchase, transport, storage, distribution, and warehousing of materials and finished goods. Logistics engineering is a complex science that considers trade-offs in component/system design, repair capability, training, spare inventory, demand history, storage and distribution points, transportation methods, etc., to ensure the "thing" is where it's needed when it's needed, and operating the way it's needed all at an acceptable cost. Logistics is generally concerned with cost center service activities but provides value via improved efficiency and customer satisfaction. It can quickly lose that value if the customer becomes dissatisfied. The end customer can include another process or work center inside of the manufacturing facility, a warehouse where items are stocked, or the final customer who will use the product (Cho, 2019). Another approach that has appeared in recent years is supply chain management. The supply chain also looks at efficient chaining of the supply/purchase and distribution sides of an organization. While logistics looks at single echelons with the immediate supply and distribution linked up, the supply chain looks at multiple echelons/stages, right from procurement of the raw materials to the final distribution of finished goods up to the customer. It is based on the basic premise that the supply and distribution activities if integrated with the manufacturing / logistic activities, can result in better profitability for the organization. The local minimum total cost of the manufacturing operation is getting replaced by the global minimum the total cost of the whole chain, resulting in better profitability for the chain members and hence lower costs for the products (Michlowicz and Mindur, 2018).

Explain an Example of logistics engineering.

Logistics Engineering is an emerging engineering field dedicated to the optimal design and operations of a logistics system that involves the forecast, procurement, transport, production, storage, distribution, and warehousing of materials and finished goods (Lombardo and Mai, 2018).