ABSTRACT
Supply chain management (SCM) as a means to improve operational effi ciency has been recognized since the early ’90s within the various manufacturing industries. Aft er several successful implementations and studies, today SCM is a proven, well-understood theory for managing several aspects of a manufacturing business, from fi nance to operations management. Companies are now openly adapting their business processes, and adopting technology-based SCM tools to reduce ineffi ciencies and get better visibility into their operations, better manage their manufacturing planning and scheduling, and better interact and integrate with their suppliers. Concurrent with improved SCM
practice, a new breed of enterprise soft ware vendors emerged to sell “Manufacturing Advanced Planning and Scheduling” or manufacturing SCM solutions (e.g., i2 Technologies, Inc., https://www.i2.com; SAP AG, https://www.sap.com; Oracle Corporation, https://www.oracle.com; among several other vendors). Benefi ts from successful adoption of SCM techniques and information technology (IT) solutions include reduced ineffi ciencies, reduced work-in-progress (WIP), increased throughput, and increased productivity, all of which lead to reduced bottom-line operating costs, and increased topline revenue and associated profi ts. Section 15.4 has examples of value realized from specifi c projects.
