LANSA White Paper Tackles Supply Chain Synchronization

Published: June 30, 2009

by Alex Woodie

LANSA yesterday announced "Supply Chain Synchronization: Recession-proof Strategies for Improving Efficiencies," a new 18-page white paper by System i industry author Nahid Jilovec that explains what technologies and actions are involved in building a synchronized supply chain.

In "Supply Chain Synchronization," Jilovec, who has been writing in System i trade publications for years, looks at the whole lifecycle of today's Just In Time (JIT) supply chain world, starting with the customer order and product development activities, and how they relate to procurement, production, and distribution activities.

Over the years, developers have come up with various terms to reflect the need to keep on top of complex supply chains, with many moving parts. In the early 1980s, Jilovec writes, companies in the textile industry developed something called Quick Response (QR) to reflect the need for a flexible system. In the 1990s, the grocery industry came up with Efficient Consumer Response (ECR). Still other retailers refer to their supply chain efforts as a Continuous Replenishment Program (CRP).

Today, the ideal of a flexible, dynamic supply chain are reflected in terms like Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) and Collaborate Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment (CPFR). No matter what you call it, obtaining and maintaining supply chain harmony among all the various participants can be a difficult goal to attain.

Jilovec provides an overview of the bewildering array of tools and technologies available to the modern supply chain professional, including electronic data interchange (EDI), barcodes, advanced ship notice (ASN), extensible markup language (XML), radio frequency identification (RFID), the Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN), and the all-important global trade item number (GTIN). She explains how these technologies can be applied in successive stages toward the goal of business process integration (BPI).

"Most supply-chain driven companies have systems in place, but they are error prone, inefficient, and could lead to regulatory compliance issues," says LANSA president Steve Gapp. "Nahid's white paper provides sound advice and examples that demonstrate how lightweight, nimble, and cost-effective solutions can improve supply chain efficiencies by streamlining and integrating a company's current systems."

Jilovec's white paper can be downloaded at www.lansa.com/register/supplychainwhitepapere.htm.

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