ABSTRACT
The pressures of cost reduction and focus on core competencies are driving many toward a new model for supply chain relationships. Figure 15.1 highlights the changes brought on by the emerging model. The model has distinct differences from the traditional one shown in Figure 14.3. First, there are fewer players in the supply chain. As shown in Figure 15.1, there may be only one company, not several, at each echelon. In the emerging model, the size of the participants has also expanded, and the number of echelons, or supply chain levels, has diminished. The expanded role of remaining participants encompass new capabilities. These are often the result of horizontal and vertical partnerships described in Chapter 14. By implication, several former members of the chain have exited, and perhaps have gone out of business completely.
