What is the Supply Chain Management (SCM)?

What is the Supply compass focussing (SCM)?The best companies around the world be discovering apowerful new source of competitive advantage. Its called supply-chain management and it encompasses all of thoseintegrated activities that bring product to market and createsatisfied wonters.The Supply ar slog Management Program integrates topics frommanufacturing operations, purchasing, transportation, andphysical dispersal into a unified program. Successful supplychainmanagement, then, coordinates and integrates all of theseactivities into a seamless process. It embraces and links all ofthe break upners in the chain. In gain to the departments withinthe organization, these partners include vendors, carriers, thirdpartycompanies, and information systems providers.Within the organisation, the supply chain refers to a wide range of functional areas. Theseinclude Supply Chain Management-related activities such as inbound and outboundtransportation, warehousing, and inventory control. Sourcing, procural, and supplymanagement fall under(a) the supply-chain umbrella, too. Forecasting, production readinessand scheduling, order process, and customer service all are part of the process as well.Importantly, it also embodies the information systems so necessary to monitor all of theseactivities.Simply stated, the supply chain encompasses all of those activities associated withmoving goods from the raw-materials stage by means of to the end user.Advocates for this business process realised that significant productivity increases couldonly come from managing relationships, information, and material flow across enterpriseborders.What is the importance of Supply Chain ManagementIn the ancient Greek fable about the tortoise and the hare, the speedy and overconfidentrabbit fell asleep on the job, while the slow and cockeyed turtle won the race. That mayhave been true in Aesops time, but in todays demanding business environment, slowand steady wont bring forth you out of the scratch gate, let alone win any races. Managers thesedays recognise that getting products to customers faster than the competition will improvea companys competitive position. To remain competitive, companies must seek newsolutions to important Supply Chain Management issues such as modal analysis, supplychain management, load planning, route planning and distribution network design.Companies must face corporate challenges that impact Supply Chain Management suchas reengineering globalisation and outsourcing.Why is it so important for companies to get products to their customers quickly? Fasterproduct availability is key to increasing sales,An example of a Supply Chain Management applicationTo Reduce Cycle Time, bearing Those Bad Habits..One of the chief causes of excessive order-to- lurch cycle times is the being of longstandingbad habits that result when companies fail to revise internal processes to reflect marketchanges. The existence of separate, independent departments tends to perpetuate these inefficientpractices. Taking the supply-chain management view, on the other hand, helps companies identifythe cumulative effects of those individual procedures. Eliminating such bottlenecks improvesproduct availability and speeds delivery to customersboth of which can increase sales and profits.Supply Chain Management TodayIf we take the view that Supply Chain Management is what Supply Chain Managementpeople do, then in 1997 Supply Chain Management has a firm hand on all aspects ofphysical distribution and materials management. Seventy-five per centum or more ofrespondents included the following activities as part of their companys Supply ChainManagement department functionsInventory managementTransportation service procurementMaterials handlingInbound transportationTransportation operations managementWarehousing managementMoreover, the Supply Chain Management department is expected to increase its range ofresponsibilities, most often in line with the thi nking that sees the order fulfilment processas one co-ordinated set of activities. Thus the functions most often cited as planning toformally include in the Supply Chain Management department areCustomer service performance monitoringOrder processing/customer serviceSupply Chain Management budget forecastingOn the other hand, there are certain functions which some of us energy feel logicallybelong to Supply Chain Management which companies feel are the proper domain of other departments. Most difficult to bring under the umbrella of Supply ChainManagement areThird party invoice payment/auditSales forecastingMaster production planningWrite-in responses reveal the leading edge of what some Supply Chain Managementdepartments are doing. These include engineering change control for packaging customToday Supply Chain Management includes services such asOperational Analysis and Design Materials Handlingstatistical distribution StrategyOperational Improvements, Distribution ManagementCompu ter SystemsWarehouse Design Project ManagementOperational CommissioningComputer SimulationTechnical seminars