The results of the 15th annual 3PL Provider CEO Perspective,”presented at the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals Annual Global Conference in Denver, CO, this week, offered few surprises for trends in the logistics industry. The survey of 39 3PL providers, conducted by Northeastern University’s College of Business Administration and sponsored by Penske Logistics, found that high fuel cost is keeping companies closer to home, “green”is still a hot topic, and the economy is slowing.
 
These are all issues that we here at MDM have been discussing over the past few months. (Read Editor Lindsay Young’s conversation with Dr. Barry Lawrence, director of the industrial distribution program at Texas A&M University, “Mexico or China?” .)
 
As the MDM article also showed, instead of expanding in Eastern Europe and Asia, North American companies are eyeing Latin America, particularly Mexico. (Read about Latin American Market Opportunities here.) European companies are trading Asian expansion for Eastern Europe; Asian companies are also staying closer to home. These markets are still attractive, just not in the same way they were a year ago.
 
It’s also interesting to note that, when it comes to green, 3PL CEOs don’t see environmentally responsible business practices as a significant way to win new business or retain customers. At the same time, most of those CEOs are increasing spending on green initiatives. Why? Those CEOs say it’s a matter of corporate social responsibility.
 
Click here to read the full executive summary of the survey results.