Logistics outsourcing and the role of logistics service providers: A study about steel pipe production enterprises in Turkey

Outsorcing can be defined as getting the outsider firms to do some certain parts or the whole of the firm?s secondary activities except for the core businesses of the firm. Evidently ?logistics activities? constitute an important part in the outsourced business activities. Business firms choose to work with the logistics service providers owing to some reasons such as; gaining competitive advantage in the global world, focusing on the major activities, reducing the costs etc.The study reviews, the companies? point of view about logistics, their outsourcing ratio in logistics, logistics function which they receive from outsourcing, kind of problems which enterprises face related to outsourcing service providers and the association level of the companies and the logistics firms have been analyzed. In this study, interviews were conducted with the managers from Turkey's steel pipe production enterprises who have knowledge of logistics management. Fourteen steel pipe enterprises were included in the study. The collected data were analyzed by using quantitative methods. The results indicated that inbound and outbound logistics are the logistics functions most commonly outsourced. Furthermore, service quality, reliability and price are the most important factors in the selection of the logistics service providers. And its understood that the enterprises are using logistics outsourcing since the establishment of businesses. Key Words: Logistics, Logistics Service Providers, Outsourcing, 3PL