The paper was presented at the Polish Logistics Congress “Logistics 2006 – Best practices in logistics”. Poznań, May 10-12, 2006.
1. Characteristics of the modern logistics services market
Analyzing the situation in the TSL (Transport-Forwarding-Logistics) industry, it is worth looking at the economic environment in which companies operated. In 2002, stagnation trends persisted in the economy. The GDP growth rate continued to oscillate around 1%. This was another year when decreasing domestic demand, rising inventories, and growing unemployment created an unfavorable economic climate for enterprises. The low level of inflation, while maintaining a high value of the zloty against the dollar and the euro, did not compensate for the negative climate.
In the TSL industry, the state of the economy was also reflected in the condition of enterprises, although there was a delay in relation to economic indicators. Methods for reducing costs were still being sought, which favored the development of companies with such competencies. Enterprises saw new opportunities in implementing process management and knowledge management. Some companies sought factors of sustainable development – such as care for the environment, employees, and social responsibility. As a result, a process of further stratification occurred between companies with a shaped, distinct culture and values aimed primarily at ethical and partnership-based business activities – aggressive ones with a competitive structure, and companies focused solely on survival.
The first half of 2003 brought some signs of recovery in the economy, noticeable in the environment of logistics company clients. This recovery translated into an increase in trade, and thus an increase in demand for logistics services. At the same time, TSL sector companies began to prepare more intensively for the competitive changes that would occur in the market after Poland’s accession to the EU. One of the trends observed in this area is capital concentration. Mergers of entities took place on the market, which decided to expand their offer or enter previously inaccessible market segments in this way. As a result, new, large entities began to operate in Poland, possessing significant potential for performing comprehensive logistics services with a European or global reach. As a result of such mergers, the courier company Stolica was incorporated into DHL, which is part of the group centered around Deutsche Post, the company P&O merged with the British Wincanton, and part of the shares of Euroad was taken over by the Dutch company VOS Logistics. An important event for the Polish logistics market was the merger in 2004 of the companies Schenker Polska and Spedpol. Spedpol, owned by Schenker, operated on the Polish market, while Schenker operated on the international market. Currently, both operations have been integrated into one company.
In 2003, a 3.6% GDP growth was recorded, and the year 2004 was a breakthrough due to Poland’s entry into the European Union.
Figure 1 shows the dynamics of changes in sales revenue achieved by companies in the years 1997–2004. During this period, the size of the market systematically increased. As a result of the collapse of the general economic situation in 2001, there was a decline in sales dynamics in the industry (the average sales dynamics in 2001 for the surveyed companies amounted to 6%). It is worth emphasizing, however, that in the same period, most sectors of the economy recorded negative sales dynamics. In 2002, this trend was reversed: sales dynamics amounted to 12.4%, which means more than a twofold increase. Currently, a leading trend of the TSL industry in relation to the entire economy is very clearly taking shape. The growth dynamics in the TSL market significantly exceed the GDP dynamics. Maintaining this trend is possible provided that the durability of the supply chain is maintained, achieved through the integration of IT systems of its individual links, which entails the elimination from the market of entities providing transport services in a narrow scope.
Currently, more than 110 enterprises operating in the TSL industry can be identified on the Polish market, whose annual revenue from basic sales amounted to almost 8.5 billion PLN in 2003, and over 9.9 billion PLN in 2004. The analysis presented below is based on the Ranking of transport-forwarding-logistics (TSL) companies in Poland 2004, prepared for several years by H. Brdulak based on survey research and Data Group reports. The enterprises included in the ranking conduct a wide range of logistics activities related mainly to transport, forwarding, and warehousing. There is also growing interest in providing other logistics services, such as: logistics consulting, door-to-door delivery, packaging, or just-in-time deliveries.
Figure 1. Volume of revenue from basic sales achieved by TSL companies in the years 1997–2004 in billion PLN
Source: H. Brdulak: Market of transport-forwarding-logistics (TSL) services in Poland, “Logistyka Transport Spedycja” 2005, no. 2, p. 32.
In the ranking for 2004, 111 TSL industry companies took part, whose TSL basic sales revenues constitute one hundred percent or the vast majority of total sales revenues. 24 companies debuted in the ranking, among which was also the leader of the list, Schenker Sp. z o.o. Among the companies included in the ranking, 54 recorded an advance, and 26 a decline from their previous position. Only 7 companies maintained their rankings from 2003. Due to the failure of the forwarding company Trade Trans Sp. z o.o., the previous leader of the list, to submit the required questionnaire, the company was not included in the 2004 ranking.
Full article in PDF format.