hoping to find the products they need, regardless of whether farmers are 10 or 2,500 miles away.This is the work of logistics: to provide availability of products, where and when needed. Often, this means coordinating the flow of products from multiple suppliers scattered around the country and increasingly dispersed throughout the world, so that they come to the end customers in the most distant regions.A basic question of logistics management is how to structure delivery systems capable of cost effectively meet the markets geographically distant sources of production, offering service levels ever higher in terms of stock availability and service time.In this context, attention turns to the storage facilities and how they can contribute effectively to meet the goals established in service level. The functionality of these facilities will depend on the structure of distribution adopted by the company. We can classify them into two groups: Structures staggered - a typical distribution network spread has one or more central warehouses and a set of warehouses or distribution centers close to the advanced market areas. Structures Direct - are distribution systems where the products are shipped from one or more central warehouses directly to customers.As we shall see, the direct distribution systems can also use facilities in between, not to keep stock, but to allow a rapid flow of products combined with low transportation costs. These are the type installations Transit Point, Cross-Docking and Merge in Transit. Its application is relatively recent, and contrasts with the traditional view of the function of storage facilities.Advanced Distribution CentersThe distribution centers are typical of advanced distribution systems installments, in which the stock is placed in various links of a chain. Your goal is to enable rapid service the needs of customers in a given geographical area far from producing centers. To provide utility over time, stocks move up to a point close to customers and requests are then served by this center advanced from its own stock.Besides seeking a speedy, advanced distribution centers enable the achievement of economies of transport, since these centers operate as cargo consolidators. Instead of meeting a group of customers directly from central stores, which could involve the movement of fractional loads over great distances, the use of advanced distribution centers allows receiving large shipments consolidated and therefore with lower transport costs . Transport to the customer can be done at fractional loads, but this is done in short distance moves.When used by multiple vendors, distribution centers have advanced additional advantages. In addition to getting consolidation in the transport of transfer, you can also do the final delivery of a consolidated basis, when the customer requests to multiple suppliers are combined.For customers the benefits are also great because they receive on a single charge requests that would otherwise be made by several vehicles. This is the typical case of distribution centers or retail chains controlled by logistics operators that serve various industries.Inventory Costs in the tiered systemIt appears then that the staggered distribution structures facilitate cargo consolidation, resulting in lower transport costs. However, its effect on inventory levels and the costs of