Introduction: According to an essay by John Mentzer et al published in the Journal of Business Logistics (2001), companies compete today on the basis of on time delivery, quality, value and total cost of ownership. Getting products to customers faster and more reliably than competitors is now seen as a requirement rather than as a competitive advantage. Buyers demand products that are delivered on time and as ordered. Acomplishing these tasks requires close coordination across the supply chain from raw materials suppliers all the way through to the common carrier or parcel delivery service responsible for delivering the finished product to the end user. This necessitates more robust, and in many cases automated supply chain relationships.
Supply chain management can be thought of as the organizational structure and management function that includes all aspects of the acquisition and delivery of material from the supplier to the final customer. SCM is the process of managing relationships, information, and materials flow across company borders to deliver enhanced customer service and economic value through synchronized management of the flow of physical goods and associated information. The purpose of this structure is to eliminate inefficiencies, facilitate rapid communication, to minimize cost, inventory on hand, and to minimize delivery time throughout the structure.
Supply chain management (SCM) often involves the coordination and integration of channel partners including suppliers, the distributor, and their customer or end userÆs logistics requirements into one cohesive process. The process includes production planning, forecasting, materials requisition and materials handling, purchasing or procurement, order processing, receiving and inspection, inventory control, order management and fulfillment, transportation of outbound shipments to customers, invoicing, and payment (Mentzer, 2001).
In this case study, we are as...