Logistics is the management of the flow of resources, not only goods, between the point of origin and the point of destination in order to meet the requirements of customers or corporations. Logistics involves the integration of information, transportation, inventory, warehousing, material handling, and packaging, and often security. Today the complexity of production logistics can be modeled, analyzed, visualized and optimized by plant simulation software, but is constantly changing. This can involve anything from consumer goods such as food, to IT materials, to aerospace and defense equipment.
Given the services performed by logisticians, the main fields of logistics can be broken down as follows:
Procurement Logistics consists of activities such as market research, requirements planning, make or buy decisions, supplier management, ordering, and order controlling. The targets in procurement logistics might be contradictory - maximize the efficiency by concentrating on core competences, outsourcing while maintaining the autonomy of the company, and minimization of procurement costs while maximizing the security within the supply process.
Production Logistics connects procurement to distribution logistics. The main function of production logistics is to use the available production capacities to produce the products needed in distribution logistics. Production logistics activities are related to organizational concepts, layout planning, production planning, and control.
Distribution Logistics has, as main tasks, the delivery of the finished products to the customer. It consists of order processing, warehousing, and transportation. Distribution logistics is necessary because the time, place, and quantity of production differs with the time, place, and quantity of consumption.
Disposal Logistics' main function is to reduce logistics cost(s), enhance service(s), related to the disposal of waste produced during the operation of a business.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logistics