Logistics and Supply Chain Management, 4th Edition

Preface

When the first edition of this book was published in 1992, supply chain management

as an idea was still in its infancy and relatively few companies had made it a priority.

The same was true for logistics management, although its precursor, distribution

management, was increasingly being recognised as important both in terms of cost

and for its potential impact on sales.

In the intervening years from the first to the fourth edition, many things have hap-

pened. Firstly, there is now a much greater understanding of the role that supply

chain management plays in creating competitive advantage. Whereas previously

the focus was primarily tactical with a concern for optimising costs, now there is

much more of a strategic focus ...