Patricija Bajec

Do ISO standards favour logistics provider efficiency, competitiveness and sustainability? A Slovenian perspective

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the prevalence of the application of standards and their positive influence on the efficiency and competitiveness of Slovenian logistics service providers. Moreover, an analysis was also done on the relationship between the adoption of the environmental standard and greater concern for the environment. Design/methodology/approach – A small sample analysis was done using a combination of statistical methods and an abductive approach. A χ2 analysis was utilized to test the hypotheses. Findings – Many benefits were indicated. However, a positive relationship between quality standards and efficiency, as well as competitiveness, was not confirmed. In addition, the implementation of ISO 14001 quality standards was found to have no effect on the higher investment in environmental protection. Research limitations/implications – This study is limited by its local aspect (Slovenia), small sample size and its focus on just quality standards and their external fac...

The possibility of developing intelligent logistics outsourcing in Slovenia

AbstractTraditional outsourcing of logistics services has become an important tool for the Slovenian logistics and business market. It not only brings many benefits mainly in terms of cost reduction and focuses on core competencies, but also many shortcomings regarding business flexibility improvement and innovation development. As an increasingly competitive environment increases shippers expectations, more innovative ways of outsourcing are needed, which would improve their flexibility and level of differentiation in order to capture greater market share. This indeed represents a departure from standard solutions and requires implementation of intelligent logistics solutions. Therefore, Slovenian logistics service providers face new challenges. The aim of this study is to examine the possibility of developing intelligent logistics outsourcing in Slovenia, and propose a method of planning and carrying out outsourcing, which will be advanced, and will bring benefits to both sides. For this reason, a gene...

EXTERNAL COSTS OF TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS ON SLOVENIAN ROADS

Traffic safety can be viewed from different perspectives. In this study, we assess traffic safety in Slovenia from the point of view of costs. Slovenia is a small country at a crossroads of important European routes that provides good developmental possibilities, but at the same time faces potential threats to traffic safety because the inland infrastructure does not seem ready to accommodate the increasingly high traffic flows. We have created a time series for several traffic safety and workload indicators, and have analysed them using simple descriptive statistics. We have then provided an assessment of the costs arising from road accidents. We discovered that despite a large improvement in traffic safety records, it seems that such trends could soon come to an end because of the heterogenisation and growth of traffic flows, as well as the deterioration of national and municipal roads.

Identification of Environmental Criteria for Selecting a Logistics Service Provider: A Step Forward towards Green Supply Chain Management

Green environmental performance increases the competitiveness of the supply chain. However, the greening of the supply chain depends on the manufacturer who drives the green initiative, as well as on all the members of the supply chain who take part in the process. The manufacturer’s attention has been largely focused on the environmental performance of the supplier and retailer, whereas logistics service providers have been somehow neglected. It is, in fact, the case is that logistics service providers have begun to play a critical role in supply chain management and could therefore significantly improve environmental sustainability. They have already undertaken a green initiative that unfortunately has rarely, if at all, been required by the manufacturer. The lack of requirements for logistics providers hinders the progress of a green initiative. To take a step forward towards green supply chain management, this chapter aims to introduce all the necessary criteria for the selection of a logistics service provider (LP), with an emphasis on environmental criteria. The environmental selection criteria, with all related subcriteria, were achieved on the basis of a systematic literature review. It has been found that buyers of logistics services still strive to minimize costs, expect quality logistics services, a wellpositioned LP, all the while overlooking environmental issues. The most frequently applied environmental selection criteria are value-added reverse logistics services, followed by environmental expenditures, pollutants released, energy consumption, clean materials and energy use. The findings presented here are useful particularly for researchers, as issues regarding sustainable LP selection and its limitations are highlight‐ ed, related to selection criteria identification. These findings may be of less use to managers. However, future phases of this study, richer for the evaluation of logistics experts, will be much more applicable to buyers and providers of logistics services.

The current status of the Slovenian logistics outsourcing market, its ability and potential measures to improve the pursuit of global trends

Traditionally, logistics outsourcing was able to bring benefits to outsourcing partners, users and logistics providers. However, due to pressure from an increasingly global environment, user requirements have become ever more complex. Consequently, logistics providers have been forced to offer a higher level of logistics outsourcing while still providing lower cost and higher profit. Obviously, all logistics providers were not and still are not able to meet this challenge. As we wanted to know whether Slovenian logistics providers have been able to meet market challenges, a survey focused only on the Slovenian logistics market was performed. Research has shown that the current level of Slovenian logistics outsourcing is far below international standards. Therefore, we propose some suggestions within the scope of implementation methodology and building a trusted partnership in order to ease the providers’ transition to the next level which would in turn ensure their existence and greater competitiveness.