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ASSIGNMENT 2 Forces that flattened the world according to Thomas Friedman Supply chaining A supply chain is a system of organizations, people, technology, activities, information and resources involved in moving a product or service from supplier to customer. Supply chain activities transform natural resources, raw materials and components into a finished product that is delivered to the end customer.
In sophisticated supply chain systems, used products may re-enter the supply chain at any point where residual value is recyclable. Supply chains link value chains. For example, in the 1980s, the term of Supply Chain Management (SCM) was developed where the companies and corporation exchange information about the market fluctuations and production capabilities. The term of supply chain is developed to match the demand with supply and also with the minimum inventory.
Many aspects of optimizing the supply chain include liaising with suppliers to eliminate bottlenecks; sourcing strategically to strike a balance between lowest material cost and transportation, implementing JIT (Just In Time) techniques to optimize manufacturing flow; maintaining the right mix and location of factories and warehouses to serve target markets, and using location/allocation, vehicle routing analysis, dynamic programming and traditional logistics optimization to maximize the efficiency of the distribution. Work flow software
A workflow application is a software application which automates, at least to some degree, a process or processes. The processes are usually business-related, but it may be any process that requires a series of steps that can be automated through software. Some ways of the process may require human intervention, such as an approval or the development of custom text, but functions that can be automated should be handled by the application. Advanced applications allow users to introduce new components into the operation. For example, a purchase order that moves through various epartments for authorization and eventual purchase. The order may be transfered from department to department for approval automatically. When obtaining all authorizations, the requester of the purchase order is notified and given the authorization. A workflow process may include constant change and update. For example, the normal approver of purchase orders may be on vacation, so in some cases the application will request approval from alternate approvers. References 1)http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Supply_chain 2)http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Supply_chain_management 3)http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Workflow