THE ROLE OF LOGISTICS AND PURCHASE IN LOGISTIC NETWORK DEVLOPMENT OF LARGE MANUFACTURERS

The paper deals with general and some specific aspects of business logistics and logistic network as they appear by the global industrial manufacturer. The hypothesis is that experts in purchase and logistics have different roles in shaping and utilization of logistic network, but also that without developed logistic network large manufacturers can not be competitive and fulfill the expectations of customers. Purchase and logistic activities are liable to manufacturing plan adopted by the industrial management thereby their efficiency depend about planning performance. The particular importance of "make-or-buy" decisions and engineering changes are stressed as the main factor affecting the dynamics, shape and trend in the logistic network of industrial manufacturers, and it also stressed the phenomenon of "bullwhip effect" which further burdens the logistics chain. The goal is to usetheoretical contributions to development of business logistics to model one important part of management and operational structure for industrial manufacturers. By analysis of logistic networks, logistics in general and purchaseas business functions of particular importance, the paper seeks to determine their role and delineate its tasks, all aimed at the timely supply of relevant material and nonmaterial resources, taking into account the capacity utilization and total costs. In order to achieve a contribution of merging theory and practice an example of an industrial manufacturer of combine harvesters in Croatia under the control of the management of global corporations SAME DEUTZ-FAHR (SDF) has been used.