13.8 Glossary

Back office services – interoffice services involving personnel who do not interact directly with clients.

Break-of-bulk point – point of transfer from one form of transport to another.

Bulk reducing – industrial activity that produces a product that weighs less than the inputs.

Bulk gaining – industrial activity that produces a product that weighs more than the inputs.

Commodification – The process of transforming a cultural activity into a saleable product.

Containerization – transport system using standardized shipping containers.

Deindustrialization – process of shifting from a manufacturing based economy to one based on other economic activities.

Economies of scale – efficiencies in production gained from operating at a larger scale.

Fordism – rational form of mass production for standardizing and simplifying production.

Gig economy – a labor market characterized by freelance work.

Globalization – the state in which economic and cultural systems have become global in scale.

Intermodal – transportation system using more than one of transport.

Just in time delivery – manufacturing system in which components are delivered just before they are need in order to reduce inventory and storage costs.

Locational criteria – factors determining whether an economic activity will occur in a place.

Logistics – the coordination of complex operations.

Outsourcing – shifting the production of a good or the provision of a service from within a company to an externals source.

Offshoring – shifting the production of a good or the provision of a service to another country.

Supply chain – all products and process involved in the production of goods.