TRIESTE – Amazon has announced the launch of Amazon Supply Chain Services (ASCS), opening up its entire logistics infrastructure, until now reserved for its own operations and marketplace sellers, to any business regardless of sector or sales channel.
The service covers freight, distribution, fulfilment and parcel shipping. On the freight transport front, Amazon’s network includes more than 100 cargo aircraft, 24,000 intermodal containers and 80,000 trailers, with coverage by sea, air, road and rail, customs management and last-mile delivery seven days a week.
The model is the one already tested with Amazon Web Services (AWS): an infrastructure developed for internal use, then turned into a commercial product open to the market, which over the years has become the group’s most profitable segment. «Amazon is bringing the intelligence and scale of its supply chain services to all businesses, exactly as AWS did for cloud computing. – said Peter Larsen, vice-president of ASCS – The supply chain is at the heart of the customer shopping experience. We are confident we can give any business access to the same efficiency in terms of costs, reliability and speed».
Among ASCS’s first customers are Procter & Gamble, 3M, American Eagle Outfitters and Lands’ End. The market reaction was immediate: FedEx shares closed down 9.1% and UPS shares fell by more than 10%. Amazon, by contrast, recorded a 1% gain. The global third-party logistics market is now worth 1.3 trillion dollars.
The stated goal is to serve businesses “of all types and all sizes”, with particular pressure on healthcare, automotive, manufacturing and retail, sectors that move huge volumes through the main European maritime gateways. Since 2006, more than 80 billion units have been shipped through Fulfilment by Amazon, with sales increases of close to 20% for those adopting end-to-end solutions.