Outsourcing purchasing services by Third Party Logistics providers: a conceptual model

摘要

The international markets of third party logistics (3PL) are quite competitive. Most 3PL providers offer the basic services, but rarely perform value-added activities. The primary focus of this research is on third party purchase as value-added services that can be beneficially offered by 3PL providers. This paper mainly discusses transaction cost theory, third party logistics, and group purchasing organisation. A proposed framework for evaluating third party purchase offered by 3PL providers is given based on transaction cost theory.