Jun 20, 2002 12:00 PM

Logistics experts speaking at the Leaders in Logistics Annual Forum at the Logistics Institute at Georgia Tech University say that shipping is an art made easier by technology, but controlled in such a way that it should not be classified a science. Speakers at the forum said that personal interaction between shippers and carriers remains the strongest factor in profitable relationships. The strongest relationships are forged when carrier sales personnel uncover and understand customer needs. Technology is a tool for this understanding, not a solution, they said. In fact, technology often is the simplest part of the logistics equation, speakers said. The key to successful logistics services is to have information that provides the ability to anticipate problems while limiting total information flow to avoid being overwhelmed by the sheer volume of data that modern information systems can generate. Speakers at the forum said that logistics costs have increased for the past five years and will continue to escalate for the foreseeable future.