Nearly 90% of domestic Fortune 500 companies use third-party logistics providers (3PLs) for logistics and supply chain functions, according to a new report by Armstrong & Associates, West Allis, Mich.
The study, “Trends in 3PL/Customer Relationships – 2017,” quantifies major trends in 3PL customer relationships. The report findings are based on analysis of more than 7,200 current 3PL customer relationships in 41 countries—representing nearly 20,000 services.
Fortune 1,000 3PL revenues, which, at $132.8 billion, account for just under 80% of the U.S. 3PL market, are estimated for nine major industry segments. In 2016, the 3PL revenues for the retailing and technological industries dominated, representing $32.4 billion and $30.6 billion, respectively. Global Fortune 500 3PL revenues, reaching $273.8 billion in 2016, are led by the technological and automotive industries, accounting for $77.2 billion and $52.5 billion, respectively.
In addition, the report details the type and number of 3PL services customers tend to use. For instance, 3PL customers use an average of 2.77 services per 3PL relationship—often a combination of transportation management, warehouse management and/or value-added services. Further analysis shows the most requested services for each of the nine industry segments included.
New to this year’s report is an analysis of 3PL service and industry trends for three major regions—North America, Asia-Pacific and EMEA. Although transportation management services rank high in all regions, 3PLs in the Asia-Pacific region provide shippers with a significant number of international services and serve the greatest proportion of retailing and technological customers. EMEA-based 3PLs provide a greater proportion of warehousing, value-added and integrated solutions, and have a high rate of automotive industry customers.
For the first time, the breadth of data available allowed for a deep-dive into 3PL relationships in seven countries, including China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Mexico and Brazil.
“This year’s analysis of 3PL customer relationships is our best to date, and builds upon our previous reports. It provides insights into customer outsourcing trends and which services are in demand in different geographies. Our analysis includes industry 3PL spend and growth estimates for years 2008 through 2018E for the Fortune 1000 Domestic and 500 Global. We have also expanded our vertical industry sub-segment analysis and 3PL services segmentations and analysis.”