Logistics and Supply Chain Management Vocabulary

Vocabulary-style flashcards derived from lecture notes covering key terms in supply chain, global logistics, customs regulations, and warehouse management.

Freight Forwarder

An agency that oversees and manages the movement of freight, helping prepare and submit customs declarations on behalf of an importer or exporter.

Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA)

An international law that focuses on harmonizing customs procedures throughout the world.

Kyoto Customs Convention

An international customs convention aimed at making customs procedures more predictable and serving as a blueprint for contemporary customs procedures.

Commodity Code

A classification factor that helps define and categorize customs tariff rates.

Bill of Lading

An essential transport document required for maritime cargo.

Logistics Network Design

A logistics design element that focuses on the structure of the physical network, such as the placement of warehouses.

Vendor-Managed Inventory (VMI)

A system where the vendor is responsible for managing stock levels for the customer.

Pull System

A production and inventory management system that produces goods against known customer orders rather than expected demand.

Distribution Center

A logistics facility used for holding inventory and decoupling customer demand requirements from production capabilities.

Reverse Logistics

A type of logistics focused on moving products from customers or destinations back to the seller or for disposal and value recapture.

ISO 14000

A international certification standards family related to Environmental Management Systems in logistics.

Inbound Logistics

The operational process of managing the receipt and movement of materials into a business.

Distributed Order Management (DOM)

Systems that analyze every transaction to determine the most efficient shipping location across a fulfillment network.

Consignment Factors

The component of the modal selection process that involves understanding a product's physical nature.

Direct System

An inventory distribution system involving centralized stock from which customers are supplied directly.

Tariff Quotas

Trade regulations that allow importers to benefit from temporarily lower tariff rates for specified quantities.

Incoterms

Standardized trade terms used to define obligations, risks, and costs between buyers and sellers in international trade.

WCO SAFE Framework of Standards

A framework established by the World Customs Organization aimed at safeguarding supply chain security without disrupting global trade.

Bullwhip Effect

The phenomenon where small changes in consumer demand are amplified as they move backward through the supply chain.

Balanced Scorecard

A strategic management framework that translates a company's mission into objectives across Financial, Customer, Internal, and Innovation & Learning perspectives.

SCOR® Model

The Supply Chain Operations Reference model used to monitor cost, operational performance, and efficiency across supply chains.

Activity-Based Costing (ABC)

An accounting method that identifies and attributes costs to specific customer ordering, storage, and delivery requirements.

Triple Bottom Line (TBL)

A performance measurement framework evaluated through three dimensions: Environmental, Social, and Economic.

Computer-Integrated Manufacturing Systems (CIMs)

Logistics and manufacturing systems used to automate and control production activities.

Computer-Aided Design (CAD)

Engineering software that allows users to design and test products prior to physical production.

Border Enforcement Security Task Force (BEST)

An agency designed to improve safety and security in international trade and supply chains.

Moving Average

A quantitative forecasting technique that estimates future product demand by averaging actual demand from previous periods.

In-process Stock

Partially finished inventory held at an accessible location to ensure quick completion and immediate shipment to customers.

Cycle Stock

Inventory held to cover predicted, routine demand requirements over a specific operating period.

Echelon Distribution

A distribution strategy that moves products sequentially through production facilities, main warehouses, local distribution centers, and end customers.

Benchmarking

The practice of comparing organizational operating processes and metrics against world-class industry standards to eliminate performance gaps.

Digital Freight Exchange Software

An online logistics trading platform hosted by a third party used to contract freight transportation services.

Quality Function Deployment

A formal benchmarking methodology that captures customer requirements to guide supplier performance improvement.

Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award

A U.S. quality and performance excellence framework used by organizations as a benchmark for operational quality.

Gainsharing-Based Activity Incentive

A contract model where a third-party provider earns a percentage of generated profits upon surpassing agreed performance targets.

Automated Storage/Retrieval System (AS/RS)

A high-density automated racking system that optimizes warehouse space utilization and throughput without manual picking.

Cantilevered Racking

A racking design optimized for storing long items, such as turbine blades, with minimal capital expense.

Geofencing

A location-based technology used in warehouse yards to track vehicle movements across geographic boundaries and automate dock bay assignments.

Put-away Cycle Time

The time required from the physical receipt of stock at a facility to its placement into its designated storage location.

Bunker Adjustment Factor (BAF)

A specialized maritime shipping surcharge applied to adjust for variations in vessel fuel costs.

Break-bulk Operation

A facility operation that receives large bulk shipments from plants and divides them into smaller orders for client delivery.

Total Logistics Concept (TLC)

A holistic management approach that treats all individual elements of logistics as a single integrated system.

Sub-optimization

The condition occurring when one component of a logistics system is optimized at the detriment of overall system efficiency.

TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit)

A standardized unit of measurement used to quantify container transport capacity in maritime logistics.

Intermodal Transport

The transportation of goods using multiple successive modes without directly handling the goods during mode changes.

Single Window Concept

A system enabling traders to submit standardized cross-border documentation through a single interface to satisfy all agency regulations.

Pipeline Stock

Inventory currently moving through the distribution channel en route to the ultimate customer.

Lead-time Gap

The time difference between the total logistics lead time and the customer's order cycle requirement.

Batch Picking

A warehouse picking strategy where all units for multiple orders are picked in a single pass and sorted into individual orders afterward.

Waveless Picking

A continuous order release system managed by software that dynamically assigns picking tasks based on real-time process workloads.

Labor Management System (LMS)

An IT system that assists warehouse management in planning workloads, monitoring productivity, and allocating labor resources.