Supply Chain Management Challenges Research Articles

Sustaining supply chain management in New Zealand

This paper reports on an exploratory study of supply chain management practices in New Zealand. The results from our survey of New Zealand manufacturers indicate that there has been a significant increase in the general awareness of lean manufacturing, supplier integration and quality improvement strategies. However, practice is still lagging behind. We present these results and discuss challenges that are currently being faced by New Zealand organisations seeking to sustain and improve their supply chain management processes. Certain facets of supply chain management that require special emphasis in the New Zealand scene are discussed and some examples of companies overcoming their supply chain management challenges are presented. Finally, we summarise our conclusions and indicate directions for further research.

Consignment stock of inventories in the presence of obsolescence

The Consignment Stock (CS) inventory policy is becoming an important strategy that companies adopt to face new manufacturing and supply chain management challenges. A CS policy implies great collaboration between the buyer and supplier, pushing them towards a complete exchange of information and a consistent sharing of management risks. In such a context, the effects of the obsolescence of products have to be carefully evaluated since they fall onto both actors, causing an increase in total supply chain costs. This paper proposes an analytical model able to take into account the effects of obsolescence in a supply chain managed with a CS policy. The deterministic single-vendor, single-buyer CS model is used as a base to develop the proposed model. A comparison with a non-obsolescence optimal solution available in the literature is presented. Moreover, the stochastic behaviour of the product lifetime estimation is also taken into consideration. Results demonstrate that the effects of obsolescence can consistently influence the global optimum condition.

Supply chain and relationship management systems supporting the responsive enterprise: an empirical research

Establishing supply chain and relationship management systems that provide member organisations with the materials required (in the desired quantity and quality, at the desired location, at the right time and the lowest possible cost) is a continuous challenge for supply chain management. The proliferation of new communication and information technology enables reduction of inventory and lead time and the improvement of customer service and responsiveness. Although these capabilities may materialise, it is not clear that organisations will be prepared to exploit them. An empirical research in Greek enterprises took place in order to find out the current status of Supply Chain Management (SCM) systems and Customers-Suppliers Relationship Management (CRM-SRM) applications. Issues such as alternative approaches for SC and RM implementation, specific applications, obstacles and benefits were examined.

Collaboration and Teaming in the Software Supply Chain

Knowledge-based, nonphysical (or intangible) products such as software and information and financial services present a different set of supply chain management challenges than those encountered by manufacturers of tangible products. Yet as intangible product manufacturers have developed more complex service and quality characteristics in their product-service bundles, they have adopted the supply chain practices of physical product manufacturers. One of the most salient differences between the two types of manufacturing is the reliance of intangible producers on collaboration and partnering with customers and suppliers created as a result of the reexamination of make-versus-buy decisions for nearly all components and services. This study focuses on software firms to identify and understand how these changes affect firm behavior. Contrary to our expectations, software firms do not fully exploit risk-sharing (teaming) alliances. We attempt to explain this via the lenses of trust and asset specialization between supply chain partners.

Wireless item identification: a solution for e-commerce fulfilment problems

Electronic commerce produces new challenges for supply chain management. The increase in the number of delivery addresses results in leaner material flows; e-commerce customers are demanding products and deliveries that are customised to their specific needs. Also, the scope and volatility of e-commerce markets make the flexible outsourcing of supply chain operations a necessity. This paper analyses the opportunities of wireless item identification technologies in solving the order fulfilment problems of e-commerce. A new concept of item level supply chain management and enabling steps to achieve the benefits are proposed. Wireless item identification is already in use with great benefits in the functional areas of innovative companies. These companies are used as benchmarks for the e-commerce supply chain.

Review of Supply Chain Management Research: Practical Business Value and International Aspects

A study of 37 studies published during the period 1996–2003, all concerning international supply chain management focused on issues related to global supply chain strategies and internationalization of operations in general with special attention to practical business value and managerial implications. On a more detailed level the articles were classified along the following key areas: business process improvement, management of organizations, and information technology. It became apparent that most of the articles concerned special cases and domestic issues, which limits the impact of the international dimension. Practical implications that would provide the managers of global supply chains with new insights and operational guidelines are few. Some of these findings concern how the organizations should adapt to the removal of trade barriers, what kind of supply/demand chain structures are needed to respond to different customer needs, how to implement channel management and how to apply new concepts to supply chain planning in order to improve efficiency. Few of the studies documented breakthrough results, but those concerning actual cases delivered insights on how companies are tackling the challenges of international supply chain management.

Increasing efficiency in the supply chain for short shelf life goods using RFID tagging

Short shelf‐life grocery goods present some of the biggest challenges for supply chain management due to a high number of product variants, strict traceability requirements, short shelf‐life of the products, the need for temperature control in the supply chain, and the large volume of goods handled. A Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) based data capture system can help solve the problems associated with the logistics of short shelf life products. This article discusses the potential of utilising RFID technology for increasing efficiency in the supply chain of short shelf life products. The focus of this article is a RFID trial conducted at Sainsbury’s, which is discussed to study the potential benefits of RFID for short shelf‐life products retailers. Further this article analyses the potential impact of RFID for other supply chain participants. We conclude that when applied with recyclable transport containers, RFID investments can provide quick amortisation of capital whilst offering a range of operational benefits.

NoKalb Genetics (Pakistan) Limited: Supply Chain Management

This case is about the Supply Chain of a pesticides producer (disguised as a hybrid seeds producer) that imported the raw material for its pesticides from its mother company in Switzerland, formulated and packed it in Karachi, and sold it throughout Pakistan. The company had two large warehouses in the country, many regional ware-houses, and a chain of retail outlets throughout the country. The company had been steadily losing market share to cheaper "generics" in the last 15 years. The company had also changed hands a few times in the last ten years and had been under pressure to reduce working capital requirements. The case looks at the typical challenges in supply chain management.

Supply chain management challenges for aerospace control technologies leader

The study reviews various organizational challenges faced and overcome by the Solid State Electronics Center, a division of Honeywell, in successfully managing and establishing a near optimal supply chain framework. Specifically, the company wanted to increase the quality of service, decrease lead-times, and improve communication with its critical supplier for assembly and test services, all the while dealing with this same supplier's year 2000 (Y2K) problem. This supplier, with a fictitious name ‘Alpha’, was chosen as Honeywell's assembly and test vendor because this supplier stated it could handle both processes. Unfortunately, Alpha has demonstrated difficulty assembling to Honeywell's schedule and separating good parts from bad ones with its testing. Alpha also informed Honeywell that not only its tester for Honeywell parts would not function after 31 December 1999 due to a Y2K problem and it would require the company to pay for a solution, but that it was also raising the price for testing. Honeywell decided to find a new vendor for the test services, and worked with Alpha to improve the remaining issues in the short-term. Long-term the company decided to rethink its all-in-one vendor theory, because its experience suggested that no one vendor provided all the services the company desired. Had Honeywell initially chosen the lowest-price vendor for each task individually it probably could have found a lower cost solution.

Performance Metrics: Key to Success in Global Supply Chain Management

ABSTRACT The globalization of business has created new challenges for supply chain management. Many multinational companies have formed partnerships with, and depend on, the cooperation of firms halfway around the world. Managing, controlling, and measuring the performance of global supply chains is growing in complexity, but also in its importance, in order for companies to make a success of their cross-border partnerships. This paper discusses the particular challenges of global supply chain management, the complexity of decisions regarding the location of new facilities, and new information system technologies which facilitate global supply chain management. The paper also presents real-world examples of the successful use of performance metrics to monitor global supply chains and discusses ongoing challenges of global supply chains.

The environmental challenge for supply-chain management

Major construction companies typically have many thousands of suppliers and are thus at the forefront of delivering sustainable construction. This paper reports on an environmental supply-chain management initiative in Carillion plc, which has demonstrated that the Government's recommendations in this regard are both achievable and commercially beneficial. However, considering environmental issues alone is not sufficient—broader social and ethical issues need to be addressed before we can deliver truly sustainable construction solutions.

Value challenges in supply chain management

In response to on‐going global business pressure, the supply chain management of Motorola Semiconductors Hong Kong Limited has imposed a “value challenge” programme to bring in excellence from outside suppliers to increase a purchase’s contribution. Through the changes of supply chain management philosophy together with additional participation of suppliers, the original practice of trimming profit margins at the supplier side to increase the value of a purchase has now been replaced by the collaborative effect to add value in its downstream supply chain activities. Based on such a value improvement initiative, a three‐layer value challenge practice has been developed. Through the use of such a technique, the company has been able to attain over 20 per cent unit cost reduction per pin count. This is equivalent to a US$30 million saving in over two years.

Cost Calculation Model for Logistics Service Providers

The exact calculation of logistics costs has become a real challenge in logistics and supply chain management. It is essential to gain reliable and accurate costing information to attain efficient resource allocation within the logistics service provider companies. Traditional costing approaches, however, may not be sufficient to reach this aim in case of complex and heterogeneous logistics service structures. So this paper intends to explore the ways of improving the cost calculation regimes of logistics service providers and show how to adopt the multi-level full cost allocation technique in logistics practice. After determining the methodological framework, a sample cost calculation scheme is developed and tested by using estimated input data. Based on the theoretical findings and the experiences of the pilot project it can be concluded that the improved costing model contributes to making logistics costing more accurate and transparent. Moreover, the relations between costs and performances also become more visible, which enhances the effectiveness of logistics planning and controlling significantly