WHAT IS LOGISTICS?

Logistics is about moving materials, information and funds

from one business to another or from a business to the consumer. It is
a vital part of the business economic system and is a major global
economic activity. In fact 10-15 per cent of product costs are logistics
related. Worldwide, logistics constitutes about $2 trillion a year. For
any country, the logistics cost is estimated between 9 and 20 per cent
of its GDP.
Logistics is the management of the flow of goods, information and
other resources, including energy and people, between the point of
origin and the point of consumption in order to meet the requirements
of consumers (frequently, and originally). Logistics involve the
integration of information, transportation, inventory, warehousing,
material-handling, and packaging Every company dreams of achieving
the seven R's - delivering the right product in the right quantity and
the right condition, at the right place, at the right time, for the right
customer at the right cost. Effective logistics management alone can
make this possible.
Logistics is one of the oldest and also the newest activities of business
management.
In the past, quality of products and services was the key
differentiating factor for companies operating in the same market. In
due course, quality and low cost became the winning combination.
Today, responsiveness to the customers' needs is the determining
factor. An enterprise that caters instantly to the needs of the customer
is the winner. Integrated logistics can serve as a potent tool for
success in today's competitive business environment.
Logistics is an organized process of managing the flow of
merchandise from the source of supply - the vendor, wholesaler or
distributor - through internal processing functions like warehousing
and transportation, until the merchandise is sold and delivered to the
end customer.
Logistics management aims to reduce inventory-holding
costs and improve profits, while enhancing customer satisfaction.
Anything can be ordered online, but receiving a tangible product is
impossible. The difference between e-business success and failure lies
in a company's ability to manage the logistics.
A recent US study found that logistics costs account for almost 10% of
the gross domestic product.

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TRANSPORTATION:

Transport or transportation is the movement of people and goods from

one location to another. Modes of transport include air, rail, road,
water, cable, pipeline, and space. The field can be divided into
infrastructure, vehicles, and operations.

Transport infrastructure consists of the fixed installations necessary for

transport, and may be roads, railways, airways, waterways, canals and
pipelines, and terminals such as airports, railway stations, bus
stations, warehouses, trucking terminals, refueling depots (including
fueling docks and fuel stations), and seaports. Terminals may be used
both for interchange of passengers and cargo and for maintenance.

Vehicles traveling on these networks may include automobiles,

bicycles, buses, trains, trucks, people, helicopters, and aircraft.
Operations deal with the way the vehicles are operated, and the
procedures set for this purpose including financing, legalities and
policies. In the transport industry, operations and ownership of
infrastructure can be either public or private, depending on the country
and mode.

Passenger transport may be public, where operators provide scheduled

services, or private. Freight transport has become focused on
containerization, although bulk transport is used for large volumes of
durable items. Transport plays an important part in economic growth
and globalization, but most types cause air pollution and use large
amounts of land. While it is heavily subsidized by governments, good
planning of transport is essential to make traffic flow, and restrain
urban sprawl.

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HISTORY:

Transportation forms the backbone of a society these days.

Transportation in terms of both, human beings as well as goods makes
everyday life much simpler. Can you imagine the consequences of
human beings not knowing what transportation is? Well! that is an
impossible idea. Scroll down to learn how transportation has evolved
through centuries.

The history of transportation goes back to the pre-historic ages when

man learned to live in groups and traveled extensively in search
of food and shelter. The pre-historic method of transportation
mostly consisted of walking and swimming (when required).
Gradually man learned to use animals to carry himself as well as
his belongings. Use of animals as means of transportation was
revolutionized by the invention of the wheel. The wheel can be
given the credit for changing the whole concept of traveling and
transportation.

With time, man wanted speed as well as capacity in his

transportation. This need as well as the man's curious nature
subsequently led to the invention of various machines like steam
engines and aircrafts. The evolution of transportation can be
broadly divided into 4 categories based on their medium.

Humans' first means of transport were walking and swimming.

The domestication of animals introduces a new way to lay the
burden of transport on more powerful creatures, allowing heavier
loads to be hauled, or humans to ride the animals for higher
speed and duration. Inventions such as the wheel and sled helped
make animal transport more efficient through the introduction of
vehicles.

The first forms of road transport were horses, oxen or even humans
carrying goods over dirt tracks that often followed game trails. Paved
roads were built by many early civilizations, including Mesopotamia
and the Indus Valley Civilization. The Persian and Roman empires built
stone-paved roads to allow armies to travel quickly. The medieval
Caliphate later built tar-paved roads. The first watercraft were canoes

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cut out from tree trunks. Early water transport was accomplished with
ships that were either rowed or used the wind for propulsion, or a
combination of the two. Until the Industrial Revolution, transport
remained slow and costly, and production and consumption were
located as close to each other as feasible.

CURRENT STATUS OF MODES OF TRANSPORT:

In the recent years, Indian transportation has been playing a pivotal

role in shaping the nation’s economic growth and development. The
time and cost involved in the movement of people and goods from one
part of the country to another is essentially the determinant of the
efficiency of the existing transportation system in India. Though the
current levels of efficiency are much below when compared with other
developed nations, the government has plans for improvement
through infrastructure development.

The cargo transportation market in India is in a growth phase with

increasing globalisation and active participation of India in global
supply chains. Transportation of cargo in India comes with a lot of
challenges to be tackled as well as presents the players with immense
potential for growth in the future. Growth of retail and automotive
sectors opens up growth opportunities for transporters across all
modes.

INDIAN TRANSPORTATION SCENARIO:

The Indian transportation market is in the developing and growing

phase. The market for transportation of cargo is influenced by
government policies, varying needs and demands of the end users,
race to achieve low cost and high efficiency and infrastructural
developments. The transportation of cargo however, differs with the
various modes such air, rail, road and sea. These four modes of
transportation together constitute the total transportation market in
India.

The logistics cost in India is around 13.0 percent of the GDP, and has
transportation as the single major contributor towards the cost. The
transportation function contributes to nearly 40.0 percent of the total
logistics cost. This is primarily because of inefficiencies that are
prevalent in the system. The roads in India are not completely paved.
With only 50.0 percent of the roads that are paved, the transporters
find it difficult to access the rural areas and thereby increase the time

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and cost involved. The bureaucratic laws and regulations also limit the
transport service providers when transporting goods from one state to
another. The non-uniform taxation system adds to the
underdevelopment of road transport in India.

The rail transport in India is in a stage of high growth and

transformation and is expected to play an important role in the future
of Indian trade and economy. The aviation market in India has just
begun to grow with the increase in the number of airlines operating in
the market.

MODES OF TRANSPORTATION:

A mode of transport is a solution that makes use of a particular type of

vehicle, infrastructure and operation. The transport of a person or of
cargo may involve one mode or several modes, with the latter case
being called intermodal or multimodal transport. Each mode has its
advantages and disadvantages, and will be chosen for a trip on the
basis of cost, capability, route, and speed.Human-powered transport
remains common in developing countries.

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Human-powered

Human-powered transport is the transport of people and/or

goods using human muscle-power, in the form of walking,
running and swimming. Modern technology has allowed
machines to enhance human-power. Human-powered
transport remains popular for reasons of cost-saving,
leisure, physical exercise and environmentalism.
Human-powered transport is sometimes the only type
available, especially in underdeveloped or inaccessible
regions. It is considered an ideal form of sustainable
transportation. Although humans are able to walk without
infrastructure, the transport can be enhanced through the
use of roads, especially when enforcing the human power
with vehicles, such as bicycles and inline skates. Human-
powered vehicles have also been developed for difficult
environments, such as snow and water, by watercraft
rowing and skiing; even the air can be entered with
human-powered aircraft.

Animal-powered

Animal-powered transport is the use of working animals for the

movement of people and goods. Humans may ride some of the
animals directly, use them as pack animals for carrying goods, or
harness them, alone or in teams, to pull sleds or wheeled vehicles.
Animals are superior to people in their speed, endurance and carrying
capacity; prior to the Industrial Revolution they were used for all land
transport impracticable for people, and they remain an important
mode of transport in less developed areas of the world.

Air

A fixed-wing aircraft, commonly called airplane, is a heavier-than-air

craft where movement of the air in relation to the wings is used to
generate lift. The term is used to distinguish from rotary-wing aircraft,
where the movement of the lift surfaces relative to the air generates
lift. A gyroplane is both fixed-wing and rotary-wing. Fixed-wing aircraft
range from small trainers and recreational aircraft to large airliners
and military cargo aircraft.

Two things necessary for aircraft are air flow over the wings for lift and
an area for landing. The majority of aircraft also need an airport with

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the infrastructure to receive maintenance, restocking, refueling and for
the loading and unloading of crew, cargo and passengers. While the
vast majority of aircraft land and take off on land, some are capable of
take off and landing on ice, snow and calm water.

The aircraft is the second fastest method of transport, after the rocket.
Commercial jets can reach up to 875 kilometres per hour (544 mph),
single-engine aircraft 175 kilometres per hour (109 mph). Aviation is
able to quickly transport people and limited amounts of cargo over
longer distances, but incur high costs and energy use; for short
distances or in inaccessible places helicopters can be used. WHO
estimates that up to 500,000 people are on planes at any time.

Rail

Rail transport is where a train runs along a set of two parallel steel
rails, known as a railway or railroad. The rails are anchored
perpendicular to ties (or sleepers) of timber, concrete or steel, to
maintain a consistent distance apart, or gauge. The rails and
perpendicular beams are placed on a foundation made of concrete, or
compressed earth and gravel in a bed of ballast. Alternative methods
include monorail and maglev.

A train consists of one or more connected vehicles that run on the

rails. Propulsion is commonly provided by a locomotive, that hauls a
series of unpowered cars, that can carry passengers or freight. The
locomotive can be powered by steam, diesel or by electricity supplied
by trackside systems. Alternatively, some or all the cars can be
powered, known as a multiple unit. Also, a train can be powered by
horses, cables, gravity, pneumatics and gas turbines. Railed vehicles
move with much less friction than rubber tires on paved roads, making
trains more energy efficient, though not as efficient as ships.

Road

A road is an identifiable route, way or path between two or more

places. Roads are typically smoothed, paved, or otherwise prepared to
allow easy travel; though they need not be, and historically many
roads were simply recognizable routes without any formal construction
or maintenance. In urban areas, roads may pass through a city or
village and be named as streets, serving a dual function as urban
space easement and route.

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The most common road vehicle is the automobile; a wheeled
passenger vehicle that carries its own motor. Other users of roads
include buses, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians. As of
2002, there were 590 million automobiles worldwide.

Automobiles offer high flexibility and with low capacity, but are
deemed with high energy and area use, and the main source of noise
and air pollution in cities; buses allow for more efficient travel at the
cost of reduced flexibility. Road transport by truck is often the initial
and final stage of freight transport.

Water
Water transport is the process of transport a watercraft, such as a
barge, boat, ship or sailboat, makes over a body of water, such as a
sea, ocean, lake, canal or river. The need for buoyancy unites
watercraft, and makes the hull a dominant aspect of its construction,
maintenance and appearance.

In the 1800s the first steam ships were developed, using a steam
engine to drive a paddle wheel or propeller to move the ship. The

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steam was produced using wood or coal. Now most ships have an
engine using a slightly refined type of petroleum called bunker fuel.
Some ships, such as submarines, use nuclear power to produce the
steam. Recreational or educational craft still use wind power, while
some smaller craft use internal combustion engines to drive one or
more propellers, or in the case of jet boats, an inboard water jet. In
shallow draft areas, hovercraft are propelled by large pusher-prop
fans.

Although slow, modern sea transport is a highly effective method of

transporting large quantities of non-perishable goods. Commercial
vessels, nearly 35,000 in number, carried 7.4 billion tons of cargo in
2007. Transport by water is significantly less costly than air transport
for trans-continental shipping; short sea shipping and ferries remain
viable in coastal areas.

Other

Pipeline transport sends goods through a pipe, most commonly

liquid and gases are sent, but pneumatic tubes can also send
solid capsules using compressed air. For liquids/gases, any
chemically stable liquid or gas can be sent through a pipeline.
Short-distance systems exist for sewage, slurry, water and
beer, while long-distance networks are used for petroleum and
natural gas.

Cable transport is a broad mode where vehicles are pulled by cables

instead of an internal power source. It is most commonly used at steep
gradient. Typical solutions include aerial tramway, elevators, escalator
and ski lifts; some of these are also categorized as conveyor transport.

Spaceflight is transport out of Earth's atmosphere into outer space by

means of a spacecraft. While large amounts of research have gone into
technology, it is rarely used except to put satellites into orbit, and
conduct scientific experiments. However, man has landed on the
moon, and probes have been sent to all the planets of the Solar
System.

Suborbital spaceflight is the fastest of the existing and planned

transport systems from a place on Earth to a distant other place on
Earth. Faster transport could be achieved through part of a Low Earth
orbit, or following that trajectory even faster using the propulsion of
the rocket to steer it.

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Freight

Freight transport, or shipping, is a key in the value chain in

manufacturing. With increased specialization and globalization,
production is being located further away from consumption, rapidly
increasing the demand for transport. While all modes of transport are
used for cargo transport, there is high differentiation between the
nature of the cargo transport, in which mode is chosen. Logistics refers
to the entire process of transferring products from producer to
consumer, including storage, transport, transshipment, warehousing,
material-handling and packaging, with associated exchange of
information. Incoterm deals with the handling of payment and
responsibility of risk during transport.

Containerization, with the standardization of ISO containers on all

vehicles and at all ports, has revolutionized international and domestic
trade, offering huge reduction in transshipment costs. Traditionally, all
cargo had to be manually loaded and unloaded into the haul of any
ship or car; containerization allows for automated handling and
transfer between modes, and the standardized sizes allow for gains in
economy of scale in vehicle operation. This has been one of the key
driving factors in international trade and globalization since the 1950s.

Bulk transport is common with cargo that can be handled roughly

without deterioration; typical examples are ore, coal, cereals and
petroleum. Because of the uniformity of the product, mechanical
handling can allow enormous quantities to be handled quickly and
efficiently. The low value of the cargo combined with high volume also
means that economies of scale become essential in transport, and
gigantic ships and whole trains are commonly used to transport bulk.
Liquid products with sufficient volume may also be transported by
pipeline.

Air freight has become more common for products of high value; while
less than one percent of world transport by volume is by airline, it
amounts to forty percent of the value. Time has become especially
important in regards to principles such as postponement and just-in-
time within the value chain, resulting in a high willingness to pay for
quick delivery of key components or items of high value-to-weight
ratio.[22] In addition to mail, common items send by air include
electronics and fashion clothing.

IMPACT OF TRANSPORTATION:
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Economic

Transport is a key necessity for specialization—allowing production

and consumption of products to occur at different locations.
Transport has throughout history been a spur to expansion;
better transport allows more trade and a greater spread of
people. Economic growth has always been dependent on
increasing the capacity and rationality of transport. But the
infrastructure and operation of transport has a great impact on
the land and is the largest drainer of energy, making transport
sustainability a major issue.

Modern society dictates a physical distinction between home and work,

forcing people to transport themselves to places of work or study, as
well as to temporarily relocate for other daily activities. Passenger
transport is also the essence of tourism, a major part of recreational
transport. Commerce requires the transport of people to conduct
business, either to allow face-to-face communication for important
decisions or to move specialists from their regular place of work to
sites where they are needed.

Planning

Transport planning allows for high utilization and less impact regarding
new infrastructure. Using models of transport forecasting, planners are
able to predict future transport patterns. On the operative level,
logistics allows owners of cargo to plan transport as part of the supply
chain. Transport as a field is studied through transport economics, the
backbone for the creation of regulation policy by authorities. Transport
engineering, a sub-discipline of civil engineering, and must take into
account trip generation, trip distribution, mode choice and route
assignment, while the operative level is handles through traffic
engineering.

Because of the negative impacts made, transport often becomes the

subject of controversy related to choice of mode, as well as increased
capacity. Automotive transport can be seen as a tragedy of the
commons, where the flexibility and comfort for the individual
deteriorate the natural and urban environment for all. Density of
development depends on mode of transport, with public transport
allowing for better spacial utilization. Good land use keeps common
activities close to peoples homes and places higher-density
development closer to transport lines and hubs; minimize the need for
transport. There are economies of agglomeration. Beyond

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transportation some land uses are more efficient when clustered.
Transportation facilities consume land, and in cities, pavement
(devoted to streets and parking) can easily exceed 20 percent of the
total land use. An efficient transport system can reduce land waste.

Too much infrastructure and too much smoothing for maximum vehicle
throughput means that in many cities there is too much traffic and
many—if not all—of the negative impacts that come with it. It is only
in recent years that traditional practices have started to be questioned
in many places, and as a result of new types of analysis which bring in
a much broader range of skills than those traditionally relied on—
spanning such areas as environmental impact analysis, public health,
sociologists as well as economists who increasingly are questioning the
viability of the old mobility solutions. European cities are leading this
transition.

Environment

Transport is a major use of energy, and burns most of the world's

petroleum. This creates air pollution, including nitrous oxides and
particulates, and is a significant contributor to global warming through
emission of carbon dioxide, for which transport is the fastest-growing
emission sector. By subsector, road transport is the largest contributor
to global warming. Environmental regulations in developed countries
have reduced the individual vehicles emission; however, this has been
offset by an increase in the number of vehicles, and more use of each
vehicle. Some pathways to reduce the carbon emissions of road
vehicles considerably have been studied.

Blue Dart Express Limited is India's leading express company with a

38% share in the domestic market. Blue Dart today offers a
comprehensive range of services and products for both international
and domestic shippers. Blue Dart's continuous commitment towards
understanding the needs and concerns of the customer has enabled it
to provide unmatched standards of service quality of 99.95% reliability
levels in the express industry. Blue Dart is one of the largest Global
Service Participants of FedEx, the world's largest air express
transportation company.

Blue Dart, pioneer of the jet cargo network in India, offers a capacity
of 16 tonnes each on its two Boeing 737 freighters, and assures timely
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delivery of goods to its five hubs, and distribution to 11,588 locations
around the country.

OBJECTIVES
The objective was to have a complete knowledge the logistics of
goods, information and other resources, including energy and people.
Alongside this, the objective was to study the functioning of BLUE
DART as an example of typical logistics company.
The study was done primarily with the following objective in mind:-
The main objective of the study to learn about the logistics along with
the functioning of BLUE DART .
To know about the policies and procedure followed by the BLUE DART
while transporting the goods and services.
To know about the need and importance of a logistics company in
today’s scenario.

 ABOUT BLUE DART :

BLUE DART is South Asia's leading integrated air express carrier and
premium logistics-services provider. It has the most extensive
domestic network covering over 13,880 locations, and service more
than 220 countries and territories worldwide through its Sales alliance
with DHL, the premier global brand name in express distribution
services.
BLUEDART’S vision is to establish continuing excellence in delivery
capabilities focused on the individual customer. In pursuit of
sustainable leadership in quality services, they have evolved an
infrastructure unique in the country today.
Blue Dart was selected a Business Superbrand for the fourth time
consecutively from over 1,699 brands and received the Readers
Digest's Most Trusted Brand Gold Award, three years in a row. It has
been listed twice in the Dun & Bradstreet top 500 companies in India.
Blue Dart has been awarded the NDTV Business Leadership Award
2008 and the Asia Brand Congress Brand Leadership Award 2008. It
has also been listed as one of the Forbes 'Best under Billion'
companies.

The Blue Dart team drives market leadership through its motivated
people force, dedicated air capacity, cutting-edge technology,
innovation, and value-added services to deliver unmatched standards
of service quality to its customers.
Warehouses at 14 locations across the country as well as bonded
warehouses at the 6 major metros of Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi,
Mumbai, Kolkata and Hyderabad.

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ISO 9001 - 2000 countrywide certification by Lloyd's Register Quality
Assurance for their entire operations, products and services.

ITS COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE:

Blue dart’s vast and unparalleled Domestic Network Linked by some of
the most advanced communications systems and positioned to offer a
consistent, premium, standardized quality of service. A spectrum of
services to provide customized solutions. Blue dart is the only express
carrier in the country today which offers an entire range of services
that extend from a document to a charter-load of shipments. Its
services are relentlessly monitored to deliver a net service level of
99.96% (as on February, 2005).

It’s Customs and Regulatory expertise :

Company had a dedicated team of specialists who provide the
expertise for customs as well as regulatory clearances at all States
within the country, to support seamless service to the customer.
It’s Technology Designed to enhance the reliability of our operations
and process efficiency, and add value to the customer through time
and cost savings. It’s Air Network The only one of its kind in the
country today, that is focused on carriage of packages as its prime
business, rather than as a by-product of a passenger airline. A
dedicated aviation system to support Blue Dart's services is self-
sustaining, with its own bonded warehouses, ground handling and
maintenance capability.
ICRA Ltd. has assigned the highest "A1+" (pronounced A one plus)
Rating for their Commercial Paper Programme of Rs. 25 crores.
Its People force Committed, diverse and over 4,000 strong are
company’s most valued asset. All company’s achievements have been
possible because they have a team who believes in themselves and
their company, a team with a winning

MILESTONES ATTITUDE:
Blue dart is a learning organization, valuing self-development, and
most of company’s managers are homegrown.
Blue Dart Aviation is registered as a public limited company and
becomes the first private company to receive government permission
for operation of cargo aircraft in India.
Blue Dart Express Ltd. is awarded the "Global Service Participant Sales
Award" by FedEx for outstanding sales performance.
Blue Dart Express Ltd. is the first express company in India to receive
an ISO 9001 certification, and post its website on the internet. Blue

14
Dart Express Ltd., FedEx and the Heart-to-Heart Foundation, U.S.A.,
co- operate in bringing the world's largest airlift of charity to Kolkata.
With a thrust on strengthening infrastructure, Blue Dart establishes
twelve of its own offices in the South, delivering to an additional 198
locations, expands its hub at Bhiwandi and sets up a bonded
warehouse in Mumbai. The company is selected a Super brand from
over 700 brands across 98 categories by a jury of eminent marketing
and advertising professionals.
Blue Dart offers Express Pallet: The world's most Economical,
Convenient and Flexible way to send heavy goods abroad, from DHL.
· Ideal for heavier shipments: 50kgs, 75kgs, 100kgs
· Same box foldable in three dimensions to accommodate
shipments from 50kgs to 75kgs to100 kgs
· Reinforced in-built cardboard pallet base for easy transport
· Corrugated, weather-resistant material
· Shrink-wrapped to provide additional protection against water
· Economical, flat pricing
· For example, savings of approx. 40% on normal freight to the US

Blue Dart, South Asia's premier number one express air and integrated
transportation, distribution and logistics Company, in collaboration
with DHL, has extended to its international customers, an innovative
packaging solution - Express Pallet.

Express Pallet is a unique, weather-resistant, safe, secure and

affordable door-to-door packaging solution for heavier shipments,
worldwide through a single partner, DHL, with proven customs
expertise.

COMPANY’S VISION & FUTURE PLANS:

Company’s Vision: "To be the best and set the pace in the air express
integrated transportation and distribution industry, with a business and
human conscience. We commit to develop, reward and recognize our
people who, through high quality and professional service and use of
sophisticated technology, will meet and exceed customer and
stakeholder expectations profitably."
Company’s future plans: Focus on our core domestic products to
expand our market share and consolidate our unique and premium
position in the Indian market, and expansion into the near Mid-East
and Far East markets and the SAARC (South Asian Association of
Regional Co-operation) countries. Blue Dart would also leverage its

15
vast customer base for global distribution through its alliance with
DHL.

LOGISTICS IN BLUE DART :

The Information Technology industry is, perhaps, typical of the
changing and escalating logistic demands of various industries today,
irrespective of their category as 'old' or 'new' economy. In the IT
industry, the difference between success and failure is closely linked to
the supply/value chain integration, of which there are two distinct
processes:
1. The delivery of goods to the customer in the most reliable transit
period (and preferably the shortest) possible. 'Reliable' alludes to a
certain guaranteed transit time for packages to reach customers or the
response that organisations need in the event of any exceptions.
2. The reverse flow of acknowledged signed delivery records without
which, in many cases, recovery of bills are virtually impossible. In
most IT companies, the role of 'logistics' or 'fulfillment' is key. Blue
Dart Express Limited applied and found solutions to these critical
demands much before other players could even recognize their need.
Through its exceptional people processes, superior technology, and
stress on quality systems over the last, almost two decades now, Blue
Dart was quick to fulfill these needs:
The country's only express airline with a fleet of three Boeing 737s
ensured that packages were flown to their destinations overnight.
Another tremendous advantage was that the individual size of
packages that could be carried multiplied manifold. Retrieval of signed
delivery records posed the industry's most intriguing problem. Blue
Dart was quick to understand this requirement and put in place a
100% retrieval system.

7 STEPS TO TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT EXCELLENCE:

Here are seven steps to help identify the potential for transportation
management excellence and communicate your improvement project’s
potential to top management by helping to “size the prize,” design the
moving parts of the solution, and articulate the path forward.

1) Assess your transportation management capabilities.

2) Identify your “target state” of transportation operations
performance.
3) Size the prize.
4) Determine the appropriate moving parts to move forward to the
target state.

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5) Determine the appropriate solution deployment strategy to move to
the target state.
6) Plot the course.
7) Keep score for continuous improvement. Approaching the
transportation management business process in this manner provides
a series of facts and insights that guide improvement and can instruct
top management on the value and importance of the transportation
management discipline. To achieve these goals, people, process, and
technology will be important. All three dimensions are central to
progression toward transportation management excellence.

SERVICES OF BLUE DART:

 REGIONAL SERVICES :
1) IN SAARC AREA Between India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal.
Blue Dart offers the fastest, most reliable, door-to- door express
deliveries for your documents and packages to countries in the SAARC
region through Regional Priority. The service offers access to over
13,700 locations in India, and over 800 locations in Bangladesh,
Bhutan and Nepal, providing the widest coverage in the region through
a quality network, an integrated air and ground infrastructure
dedicated to express transportation and innovative technology
support.
Regional Priority: Documents (RPDX) The most dependable and secure
delivery for non-dutiable, critical and important shipments such as
legal documents and tenders. The Blue Dart Envelope provides secure
and attractive packaging for your documents, brochures and reports
up to 500gms.
Regional Priority: Non-Documents (RPDT) Fast reliable and safe door
deliveries for samples and non-commerical shipments. Currently
available between India and Nepal only.

REGIONAL SERVICES DOMESTIC PRIORITY The fastest, most reliable,

door-to- door delivery service within India and to Bangladesh, Nepal
and Bhutan for documents and small shipments under 32kgs per
package. The special benefits of this service are:
Delivery to over 13,700 locations in India
Free pick-up from your location
Real-time Tracking
Regulatory Clearances
Free Computerized Proof of Delivery

DART APEX :

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Dart Apex is a door-to-door delivery service within India for shipments
weighing 10kgs. And above. It is the fastest, most efficient delivery
solution for commercial shipments that are time-bound and are
required to undergo regulatory clearances, or require special handling.
Dart Apex offers you an economical option of an Airport-to-Door
service from the major airports of Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi,
Kolkata and Hyderabad to all the Dart Apex locations serviced. A
customer may book space for their shipments through company’s
Customer Service and deliver customer shipments to Blue Dart
Aviation Office at the related airport.
Dart Apex also offers a further economical option of a Door-to- Airport
service. A customer may book their shipments at any of company’s
locations serviced for this product to any of the major airports.
Consignee would be required to collect the shipment from the Blue
Dart Aviation office at the concerned airport.
Dart Apex offers the following benefits:
Wide Market Reach
Single-window Clearance
Real-time Information
Time-Definite Delivery
Free Proof of Delivery on Demand
Speed
Flexibility
Economical

DART SURFACELINE:
Dart Surfaceline is an economical, door-to-door, ground distribution
service within India for shipments weighing 10 kgs and above. It offers
a cost-effective logistics option for your less time-sensitive shipments,
with the following value-added benefits:
Time-bound Delivery
Track your Shipment
Regulatory Clearances
Pick-up Convenience
Secure Shipments
Economical Tariff

SMART BOX:
Smart Box is a convenient, economic, packaging unit priced to include
a door-to-door delivery service within India. The units come in 2
sizes,10kgs and 25 kgs, and are designed to accommodate a variety of
products. The special benefits of using Smart Box are:
A wide market reach
Speedy Delivery

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Free pick-up
Real-time Tracking
Proof of Delivery
Trouble Free Service

 INTERNATIONAL SERVICES:
International services of Blue dart are taken over DHL EXPRESS in
2002. Blue Dart Express Limited, through its International Sales
alliance with DHL, the premier global brand name in express
distribution services, offers DHL Document Express (DOX), DHL
Worldwide Package Express (WPX) and the Jumbo Box (Jumbo Box -
25 kgs. and Jumbo Junior - 10 kgs.), a one-stop shipping process for
reliable, time-definite, door to door delivery of international documents
and packages. The service offers access to 220 countries and
territories worldwide and the extensive, quality network of Blue Dart
and DHL.
The special benefits of the International Services are:
1) A Convenient Solution for Urgent, International Documents &
Shipments.
2) Documents and packages will be picked-up from location, cleared
through customs and delivered to consignee.
3)Customs Clearance Expertise Specialists conversant with customs
formalities in India as well as in 228 countries worldwide, and pre-
clearance for shipments in transit available for most destinations,
ensure efficient delivery.
4)Real-time Tracking.
5) A Cost-effective Option.
6) Packaging

BD INITIATES CUSTOMER SATISFACTION BENCHMARK:

As a business entity customer have dispatched an important package
that contains some confidential business documents. Customers do not
know the status of the documents shipped. Customer’s end up making
endless calls to the courier service office asking them when the 'Proof
of Delivery' (POD) will come their way since company need to be
assured that everything that was sent has reached the destination.
Now, Blue Dart Express Ltd promises to cure customer’s conventional
woes.
Termed 'net service levels', the initiative is all internal benchmarking
exercise by which the organisation evolves an action plan to examine
the areas where the customer satisfaction levels have not matched up
to the standards that have been established internally by the

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enterprise. The company also evolves marketing strategic that can
enable its business to effectively retain customers.
Blue Dart Express Ltd senior vice-president (marketing & projects)
Tulsi Mirchandaney says that- "The express service Industry does not
have any external benchmark to look up to. Company’s therefore,
decided to look into some of the operations that successfully
institutionalised internally, and use those as benchmark to efficiently
address various customer needs."
This implies that every day professionals from Blue Dart will monitor
the exact status of various shipments of its clients, especially air cargo
services which is one of the core offerings where the company
generates substantial business volumes. In this business, the company
may encounter imperatives like flight delays to bad weather conditions
or some other peculiar circumstances which may lead to considerable
worry and anxiety for the target customers. This is more so because
the delivery of these shipments would be crucial to effectively run their
own independent end- businesses. The team within the company, in
such instances will track the specific geographical areas where the
problem persists through Internal technology tool and other aligned
systems that have been initiated by the enterprise. The company will
also personally interact with customers and explain to them the exact
reasons for the delay along with the time when the cargo will be
delivered.
Further, the moment the company discovers that there are certain
areas where customer service delivery is not in sync with the
standards that have been set by the organisation, the entire team gets
down to analysing the problem. This is done to determine where
exactly the company needs to gear up further.

RESULT & ANALYSIS:

A recent US study found that logistics costs account for almost 10% of
the gross domestic product. The process itself covers a diverse number
of functional areas. Involved in logistics are transportation and traffic,
as well as shipping and receiving. It also covers storage and
import/export operations.
The issue is not the transportation itself, but to streamline and control
the flow through the value adding processes and eliminates non-value
adding ones.
As a technology leader in the business of supply-chain management in
the country, Blue Dart Express Limited recognised the far-reaching
scope of logistics in the country as well as outside the country.
The techniques and procedure used by the Blue Dart are very effective
that is keeping pace with time and requirement of the customers. The
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company will also personally interact with customers and explain to
them the exact reasons for the delay along with the time when the
cargo will be delivered.
Though it always try to fulfill all the requirement of its customers but it
is lacking in the case of domestic services. It must pay equal attention
on the domestic services so that more and more people can take the
advantages of its ultimate services.

FINDINGS :
On the basis of study conducted, it is evident that BLUE DART is
following most of pre-requisites of an efficient logistics (supply-chain
management) company.
However there are some areas, which need further attention for
increasing
the quality of services.
Blue Dart express ltd. is fully aware of the basic need of customers
than its competitors.
It has more than 100 branches spread all over India at 13000
locations.
The delivery of goods to the customer in the most reliable transit
period (and preferably the shortest) possible.
The reverse flow of acknowledged, signed delivery records is trust
worthy.
 The country's most reliable air and surface network offers a pre-
determined delivery schedule with close to 100% accuracy.
Blue Dart offers the country's most comprehensive and customer
software to support critical supply-chain distribution demands.
Blue Dart does not have very well connection with the national
airports.
Blue Dart not only handles large volumes and oversize packages
overnight - it also provides the industry with status of their shipments
and retrieves such records as are necessary for billing.
The national airport services are limited to certain airports and are
very expensive
Parcels are differentiated on the basis of THREE LETTER codes and
tracks allotted to each.
Goods are tallied and reloaded at all the stages-office, warehouse,
main hub, and also the shipment area. Approx. 17 times.
80-85% goods are hardware goods from the it sector.

As said and answered by the ASSISTANT MANAGER IN

OPERATIONS-MR. RAJESH GUNDETI.

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RECOMMENDATIONS :
The following are the recommendation based on the study:-
Since Blue Dart is mainly focuses on the international services so it
must pay attention in the domestic services.
Blue Dart does not have very well connection with the national
airports so Blue Dart must make good connection with the national
airports.
At national level transportation of goods is done via road that makes
delay in the service so the national airport services must be spread to
every airport so it will be resulted into quick service.
The national airport services are limited to certain airports and are
very expensive. Spreading to the every airport will also result into the
reasonable service.

CONCLUSION:
The process of planning, implementing, and controlling the efficient,
cost effective flow and storage of raw materials, in-process inventory,
finished goods and related information from point of origin to point of
consumption for the purpose of meeting customer requirements.
A recent US study found that logistics costs account for almost 10% of
the gross domestic product. The process itself covers a diverse number
of functional areas. Involved in logistics are transportation and traffic,
as well as shipping and receiving. It also covers storage and
import/export operations.
The Blue Dart fulfill all the necessary and regulatory requirements of
the logistics of goods and service as a renowned ‘supply – chain
management company’, it sincerely concentrate on all the area of its
quality services.

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The country's most reliable air and surface network offer a pre-
determined delivery schedule with close to 100% accuracy. The IT
industry could plan its production with precision and avoid expensive
inventory build-up.
Blue Dart offers the country's most comprehensive communications
technology. Much before the internet was prevalent; Blue Dart
customers could dial into the network through Power Dart 2000 and
track their packages. As an added option, Fax dart could fax a copy of
the delivery record the minute the Blue Dart system was updated.

Though it always try to fulfill all the requirement of its customers but it
is lacking in the case of domestic services. It must pay equal attention
on the domestic services so that more and more people can take the
advantages of its ultimate services.

“WE OPERATE ON A SECOND TO SECOND & MINUTE TO MINUTE

BASIS. EVEN ONE SHIPMENT GETTING MESSED UP IS A CRIME IN
BLUE DART.”
- BLUE DART’S MANTRA

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

www.google.com
www.bluedart.com

BLUE DART EXPRESS LIMITED

Unit no. 19/20, top class enclave,
Bhoipada road,
Sativali road,
Vasai (east)-401208

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