Computerworld
Quick Menu
Search



Ads by TechWords

See your link here


Subscribe to our e-mail newsletters
For more info on a specific newsletter, click the title. Details will be displayed in a new window.
ROI (Return on Investment)
IT Management
Computerworld Daily News (First Look and Wrap-Up)
Computerworld Blogs Newsletter
The Weekly Top 10
More E-Mail Newsletters 
Computerworld 2007Subscribe to Computerworld
40 years of the most authoritative source of news and information for IT leaders.
Laptops
Toshiba Laptops with Intel® Centrino® Duo. Free Shipping

Untangling the Supply Chain

 

Sign up to receive ROI Resource Alerts

November 26, 2001 (Computerworld) -- Rodger Hurst knew his company didn't have time to develop and test a Web-based inventory management system for its supply chain. So he rented it. The information services manager at $4.1 billion Autoliv Inc. in Stockholm had been the product control manager at plants in Indianapolis and Madisonville, Ky., before moving into IT at the world's largest maker of auto safety restraint systems. That hands-on operations work gave him real insight into how the company's supply chain operation could improve.


One of his first moves late last year was to enhance communications between Autoliv and its hundreds of suppliers by adopting the hosted i-Supply Service from SupplySolution Inc. in Southfield, Mich. Because SupplySolution was a start-up, founded in 1999, Hurst also knew it was important to give the company a serious test.


"We linked up 12 of our vendors to i-Supply—our six best and six worst—to see if operations would improve," he recalls.


The net result? "We no longer had to send faxes or make phone calls. No more finger-pointing or claims that this person or that one did not have the information," Hurst says.






















SupplySolution Inc.


What’s the edge? Addresses supply chain execution in manufacturing supply chains to increase their efficiencies.



Since the successful dry run, Hurst estimates that i-Supply has helped cut premium freight costs for Autoliv's Midwest plants by an astounding 92%, and inventory levels have fallen by 32% because plant managers immediately know where parts are in the supply chain and how long it will take for them to arrive. The enhanced communications make it less likely that inventory managers will be caught flat-footed without necessary inventory on hand, so they won't have to rush parts to their stockrooms.


In addition to the benefits of SupplySolution's outsourced software, Hurst says, "another advantage of working with a small company is that they respond quickly to change requests."


The need for responsiveness is a recurring theme. Users working with start-ups focused on operations technology are seeking more than a top-notch help desk or service organization; they want to interact with company leaders personally.






















Arzoon Inc.


What’s the edge? Enables companies and their trading partners to use a single platform to procure, execute, monitor and reconcile freight services.



Charley Eisele, vice president of strategic planning and administration at transportation giant Union Pacific Corp. in Omaha, says that before his company's executives embraced a supply chain logistics application from San Carlos, Calif.-based Arzoon Inc., they got to know the young company's leaders. Eisele says Union Pacific uses Arzoon's software to show shippers the options they have in delivering goods, including the economic benefits of using railroads.


"We naturally had a shared belief in the vision of the technology and the value that it would provide our customers," he says. "But we were also very impressed with the management team, in particular [Arzoon's] CEO."


Farid Dibachi has more than 20 years' experience working out logistics problems as co-founder and chief technology officer at Menlo Park, Calif.-based Diba Corp., a network appliances company bought by Sun Microsystems Inc., and as a former Hewlett-Packard Co. executive. His background, Eisele says, mitigated the company's youthfulness and helped encourage Union Pacific's adoption of LIFE, Arzoon's software.















Prism Visual Software
Continued...
1 | 2 | NEXT  



Print this Story Send Us Feedback E-mail this Story Digg! Digg this Story Slashdot this Story
"Cisco and PostPath will finally break Exchange's iron grasp on business e-mail...." Read more...
"Gartner Inc. has issued a press release with the headline "Gartner Says Enterprises Must Anticipate How Societal Trends Will Impact..." Read more...
Read more Management posts or See all Blogs
Cellular operators say they're ready for Gustav
Psystar calls Apple a 'monopoly' in antitrust charges
Doubt cast on Seinfeld as Windows TV ads near
More top stories...
IT workers hit hardest by offshore outsourcing, survey finds
Microsoft: No more Windows Live Mail crashes with IE8 Beta 2
Microsoft warns of IE8 lock-in with XP SP3
Telework can change office dynamics in ways you hadn't anticipated. Proceed cautiously.
Got a painfully slow connection or random dead spots? Our tips will help you get the most out of your wireless network.
Listen up, managers: Employees don't quit the job; they quit you.
Netbooks, ultraportables, mini-notebooks — whatever you call them, they've been grabbing headlines. Are they here for the long term or just a flash in the pan?
Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS.
Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready?
All Zones
Application Performance Zone
Business Continuity Zone
The File Data Management Zone
Security Management Zone
ITIL Best Practices Zone
The SAS Zone
Business Intelligence and Analytics Zone
Windows Protection Zone
Identity & Security Management Zone

Ads by TechWords

See your link here
Deploying Windows Vista to the Desktop: Get It Right with Dell
Get this paper now!
(Source: Dell) Dell has improved PC deployment activities through patent-pending automation technology and offers an array of services from planning a Windows Vista migration to post-deployment management.
Download this white paper go
Google's Universal Search for Business
Google's Universal Search for Business
View this exclusive webcast, free, compliments of Google!
Go to the webcast 
Learn-Fast Guide: Software as a Service is Growing Up
Download this Computerworld Executive Briefing, a $195 value, for free! Compliments of Akamai.
(Source: Computerworld) SaaS is here to stay as an application delivery channel. You will be using it, but will you do so wisely? This Learn-Fast Guide will prepare you for software delivered over the Web. From security issues to contract negotiations, there's a lot to consider ... and a lot to gain.
Download this executive briefing download
White Papers
Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services.
Archiving Compliance with Sunbelt Exchange Archiver
The Impact of Messaging and Web Threats
Advanced Load Balancing: 8 Things You Need to Handle Today's Network Traffic
View more whitepapers