The fourth side of logistics

According to M.A. Research, in 2015 the services of carriers in the field of road and rail transport continued to dominate the Russian market of TLS. The share of 3PL-services in its structure took only 8% in monetary terms, while the same figure for the EU countries and China was 20%. As for the services of 4PL, experts believe that providers that are able to provide services of this level in Russia are practically not represented.


When determining the level of logistical services 3PL and 4PL, confusion often arises, which is caused not only by a lack of understanding of the theoretical basis, but also by the lack of accurate information about the parameters of actually existing services. The fact is that the logistics providers themselves usually claim the fact of 4PL-services presentation. Russian producers, in turn, are very reluctant to disclose information and do not like to devote others to their kitchen. As a result, ignorant market participants are left to believe providers on the floor. For example, Gefco, which as an example 4PL leads cooperation with the company "Ferronordic Machines" - the official dealer of Volvo Construction Equipment in Russia.

In M.A. Research believes that in the group of 3PL-providers in the Russian Federation can be called about 60 Russian and about 40 Western companies. As for the service providers 4PL, then, according to the partner M.A. Research and Deputy Chairman of the RF CCI Logistics Committee Lyudmila Simonova, for example, FM Logistic, operating in Russia with French retailers Auchan, Leroy Merlin and L'Oreal, as it not only provides integrated logistics services, but also distributes internal commodity flows of companies and, importantly, works in one IT-system of management of transport and warehouse operations. "The degree and depth of Gefco's involvement in the work of car assembly enterprises on the territory of Russia is not entirely understandable, and I think it's too early to attribute it to 4PL," L. Simonova said. "Talking about services within the framework of the Russian Railways holding, that is, in fact, the parent company, is somehow incorrect."

Reasoning about the different levels of logistics services is easier to reduce to an explanation of their essence by examples. So, at 1PL, the cargo owner carries his own cargo, 2PL provides interaction with the carrier, which has its own ships, planes, cars or wagons, 3PL - combining the services of several carriers into a service "from door to door". A simple example is transshipment of a container from the sea to a railway or from a car to a warehouse, more complex - a complex movement from door to door with transshipment, warehousing, customs services and paperwork.

Level 4PL - this is already management of the transport and customer flow of goods. "Under him, the logistics operator not only delivers the goods, but also determines what, when and in what quantities should be delivered," explains CEO of STS Logistics Kirill Vlasov. - For example, if your customer is a coal consumer, the logistics operator decides how many tons of coal should be ordered today, so that the customer receives the right amount of cargo at a certain time and place in the light of the port's load, and, for example, how to correlate the volumes of delivery, if time transportation increases. " Simply put, the essence of 4PL is the traffic management, in which the provider decides how much the product should be ordered and how to do it.

At the same time, the integration of the IT systems of the customer and the logistics company should not be considered a sign of 4PL. So, STS Logistics has solutions, where the level of integration of IT systems of the company and the customer is very deep. "For example, for one of the customers - the manufacturer of refrigeration equipment for the sale of carbonated beverages, we fully control the movement of commercial refrigeration units during the removal and installation of the store, repair, storage and delivery: we take them from the points, we take them to the central warehouse and after the repair we deliver in Russia, - says K. Vlasov. - We use four IT systems, integrated among themselves, three of them (WMS, routing, accounting of the installation or removal of equipment from the point of sale) and one (ERP) of the customer. " In another service of STS Logistics for the client of the DIY sector are connected warehouse management systems, cargo yard, selection and consolidation of pallets, routing with reference to the checkpoint of the logistics center and ERP of the customer. "Both solutions are 3PL services at the advanced level, since the determination of the delivery volumes by quantity and assortment remains the prerogative of the customer," notes Vlasov.

As for the provision of 4PL services for large commodity companies with the participation of railway transport, here, in the opinion of the expert, the market niche, and hence the opportunities for growth, are open. "The assortment of the goods is quite simple, the 3PL functions are only in the supply of empty cars and the control of the rolling stock movement, that is basically 2PL-service," the expert explains. - However, taking into account the uneven movement of goods by rail, the detailed knowledge of which the owners