News to affect supply chains. Three articles this week provided input into a picture of supply chains in the future. One article discussed the recently agreed (but not ratified) Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade facilitation pact between 12 countries of the Pacific rim. The second talked about the benefits of incorporating the Internet of Things (IoT) into supply chains. The … Read More
Transport changes and the design of your supply chains
Links in your supply chains. The nodes of your supply network are the suppliers of items, which are contracted to deliver; the movement of items between nodes are the links. The routes selected to deliver your items can be decided by 3PL and shipping companies to suit their business objectives. Could future changes in the links affect your supply network? … Read More
System for a decentralised logistics services business
Support a decentralised business with one system. Discussions about the benefits of either centralised or decentralised IT systems often assume a business has a main focus, with performance measures structured to improve the focus. However, what should be the approach to IT systems if your business has an overall reason for being, but is structured to be very decentralised, with … Read More
Technology devices can improve Logistics operations
Logistics applications and the future. The objective of Logistics systems is to enable the time related positioning of resources that will provide availability of goods and services for customers. Integrated ERP systems are designed to achieve this, but users are dependent on the software company’s design specification and upgrade cycle to achieve the objective. Meanwhile, changes continue in supply chains, … Read More
Your Supply Chains group will affect Working Capital
Be noticed at board level. To ensure the board of directors at your business take notice of Supply Chains and Logistics, the board must review financial performance measures that are the responsibility of the supply chain group. The most applicable measures are: cash flow, working capital and return on investment (ROI). Of these, working capital and its derivative, the cash … Read More