It is difficult to determine when a formal definition of the term first appeared. The 1916 Webster’s Dictionary defined logistics as ‘that branch of the military art which embraces the details of the transport, quartering and supply of troops’.
Logistics means different things to different people. To some, logistics is managing the flow and stock of materials.
Council of Logistics Management defined logistics management is part of supply chain management that plans, implements, and controls the efficient, effective forward and reverses flow and storage of goods, services and related information between the point of origin and the point of consumption in order to meet customers’ requirements.
The Chartered institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) in the United Kingdom describes logistics as involving: Getting the right product to the right place in the right quantity at the right time, in the best condition and at an acceptable cost.
Many definition of logistics suggests that supply chains may be more than the linear links of three or four companies, and also that the buyer-supplier or seller-buyer interface is of critical importance to improvement of the flow of goods and information.
Definition of logistics
