Towards Overall Optimization in Logistics ~What the Bottlenecks Are~

Hello, this is Ichiki from Sync Logistics.

Today, I’d like to talk about the important theme of “Towards Overall Optimization in Logistics” in two parts.

In logistics, everyone—warehouse staff, drivers, customs officers—is working hard to optimize their own area. Their efforts are admirable, yet they don’t always add up to the best result for the system as a whole. This is not a matter of effort, but a structural problem between local optimization and overall optimization.

In this two-part series, I’d first explain the background and challenges, then share how Sync Logistics is addressing them and our vision for the future.

■ The Rise of Specialization in Logistics

As Japan’s economy grew, so did the logistics industry, and the volume of goods handled increased rapidly. Managing logistics with the existing workforce became difficult, so companies expanded staff and introduced a detailed division of labor to improve efficiency.

This system has made sense. Teams handling transportation, goods movement, and warehouse management each focused on their area of expertise, allowing large volumes of shipments to be handled effectively. Over time, responsibilities became even more specialized—for example, managing shipments from point A to B, and separately from B to C.

As the expertise deepened, individuals naturally focused on their immediate responsibilities.

■ Challenges Arising from Local Optimization

As a result of the division of labor, many people in logistics focus primarily on optimizing their own area of responsibility. This is a natural progression and reflects a strong sense of responsibility.

However, as attention became concentrated on individual tasks, the broader view of the entire logistics flow gradually diminished. At the same time, further specialization led to local optimization: even when handling the same information, each team managed it in its own format, suited to their needs, which caused information to become scattered.

This has led to small frictions—extra effort in communication between teams, duplicate checks on the same shipments, and other inefficiencies. Despite everyone’s hard work, these efforts often fail to fully translate into overall results.

■ Towards Overall Optimization

Facing this situation, I believe that relying solely on individual efficiency is not enough; we need initiatives that consider the entire logistics flow. How can the efforts of each team contribute to the overall outcome? At Sync Logistics, we are exploring solutions through our own initiatives.

In the second part, I will share our specific approaches and future outlook. In the meantime, consider whether similar frictions or inefficiencies occur in your own operations—you might discover something new.

Thank you for reading through this somewhat technical discussion. I hope you will continue with us for part two.