Planning and Optimization Methods for Advanced Urban Logistics Systems at Tactical Level - Sustainable Urban Logistics: Concepts, Methods and Information Systems - page 155

The facilitators are the conditions and situations that have a positive impact on
the daily operations of a multi-echelon transportation scheme. They are similar to
those of collaboration and logistics partnerships (Lambert 2008 ). These factors are
not only related to logistics organization but also to the evolution of the strategic
planning relationships between partners. The boundary between motivators and
facilitators is not always clear but, according to Gonzalez-Feliu ( 2012b ), these two
categories can be distinguished by the fact that motivators appear in strategic
planning and facilitators at tactical and operational levels. Closely related to the
facilitators are the limitations and obstacles that can impede the successful
development of strategies concerning multi-stage transport systems (Gonzalez-
Feliu and Morana 2011 ). Both facilitators and limitations can be couples and
summarized as follows:
• Commercial strategies. Each enterprise has its own commercial interests, which
are not the same for loaders and for transport operators. Although they are not a
major source of conflict among producers, retailers and logistics operators, they
can become an major handicap for transport operators. In fact, aggressive
strategies and disregard for transport plans to help ''friends'' or customers have
been identified by many transport operators as a brake on the development of
collaborative multi-echelon networks.
• Ownership and savings management issues. Although at a strategic level the
investment costs can be easily shared by partners, the benefits resulting from the
tactical and operational management of the system are less easy to share if no
solid contracts and agreements have been signed. Moreover, the ownership of
the system of some of its parts (facilities, vehicles, crews) can be a factor of
success or a main brake to the system's deployment.
• Logistics strategies of each stakeholder. More precisely, the potential or real
changes that an organization based on a multi-stage system may introduce are a
source of obstacles to its development, but can also be a catalyser in case of
good adaptation of crews. A special attention has to be given to the acceptability
of organizational changes, because it can lead to malfunctions, delays or
employees' strikes and complaints liable to harm the image and reputation of the
multi-echelon system.
• Physical and organizational conditions for freight compatibility. Some char-
acteristics and conditions related to commodity like dimensions, freight, type of
packaging, loading unit and the main characteristics of loading operations are
important. These are not only related to legislation but also to organizational
issues, equipment and habit.
• Acceptability of organizational changes, which also has to be taken into account
when defining the main characteristics of a multi-echelon system. This can lead
to malfunctions, delays or employees' strikes and complaints liable to harm the
image and reputation of the multi-echelon system.
• Responsibility and confidentiality. The main transactions in freight transporta-
tion are regulated by several commercial contracts. Moreover, confidentiality
can become an obstacle to multi-stage systems. Indeed, since information is the