What is procurement? What is its relevance to logistics?

Procurement is the branch of a business that deals with getting materials/merchandise/tools/other goods to where they are needed in the business, when they are needed.

Even though purchasing is an important part of the process, procurement is not just the act of buying the goods.

Instead, it consists of all the steps that are required to acquire the goods and have them ready to be used, including:

• specifying the company’s needs
• conducting market research
• supplier qualification
• negotiating and agreeing upon contractual obligations
• ordering
• making sure that suppliers are paid on time
• monitoring the delivery process
• reception and review of the goods
• supplier relationship and performance management
• forecasting
• keeping records

Procurement and logistics are closely tied because sourcing the necessary goods (e.Ad esempio, trovare un fornitore economico ma di alta qualità dall'estero) e farli arrivare alla tua azienda in un lasso di tempo fattibile richiede molta pianificazione logistica. I tempi di approvvigionamento (i tempi di consegna dei tuoi fornitori) hanno anche un effetto su quando la tua azienda può consegnare le merci ai tuoi clienti, influenzando così anche la logistica.