Improving logistics by interconnecting services in a Physical Internet: Potential benefits, barriers and developments

Eric Ballot, Fernando Liesa and Rod Franklin

Journal of Supply Chain Management, Logistics and Procurement, 2018, vol. 1, issue 2, 178-192

Abstract: Sustainability and efficiency of logistics operation in a world with fast-evolving demand from mass distribution to ecommerce and home delivery raise significant challenges. Among solutions, collaboration is often cited but remains marginal. To overcome current limits a new concept was introduced several years ago: the Physical Internet (PI) — in other words, the universal interconnection of logistics services. Initial research has shown a large potential for improvement by switching from current organisations to more interconnected ones. The concept attracted attention from researchers and professionals and several results, industry roadmaps and first applications are now available. This paper reviews the main contributions on the subject by detailing impact levels, examines the potential of new technologies in the PI framework and identifies avenues for further research efforts to overcome current barriers, particularly from business models.

Keywords: logistic services; Physical Internet (PI); sustainability; routing; pricing; roadmap (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: L23 M11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:aza:jscm00:y:2018:v:1:i:2:p:178-192

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