Assessment of technological innovations in patenting for 3rd party logistics providers

Purpose - To analyse logistical innovations from 1984 to 2003. Design/methodology/approach - The approach concerned analysing the use of patents retrieved from major patent databases to create a picture of logistical innovations. Findings - Confirmation that the use of patent statistics can depict an overall picture of technological innovation in the logistics sector. Logistics firms can be innovative by making good use of patent data. Research limitations/implications - Logistics researchers and practitioners take advantage of recent improvements in the quality and availability of patent statistics rather seriously; in other fields many do not see the relevance. Practical implications - Customers will begin to rely on 3PL service providers beyond distribution services for more technological innovation as they successfully expand capabilities into these areas, as well as provide end-to-end integration and visibility. Originality/value - This is a novel and useful approach for examining innovations.