MANUFACTURING
March 2009
&LOGISTICSIT
Do the maths…
To begin, I think it is well worth highlighting two features that ‘bookmark’
this edition of Manufacturing & Logistics IT. First, we bring you the
first of a series of reports concentrating on end users’ perceptions and
MARCH 2009
The European magazine promoting the effective use of IT in supply chain applications
practical experience of software & hardware solutions and surrounding
technology within their particular vertical sectors. Over the past couple
AEROSPACE/AUTOMOTIVE/HIGH TECH:
of years our regular reports have put the vendor and analyst communities
Ideal vehicle for transportation efficiency
ERP/MRP: under the spotlight; so it seems timely now to provide a mouthpiece for
A clear view in the Cloud
the people and companies that actually use the systems that we so often
FORECAST/PLAN:
Are you sitting comfortably?Are you sitting comfortably?
write about. And as a coda to this issue, you will find a special feature on
ADC:
Enhancing the client-facing service Planning & Scheduling/Demand Forecasting & Planning, where we have
PRINT & LABEL:
invited a number of leading solutions providers to chew the cud on all
END USER ANALYSIS: : Fast and efficient
Auto ID Auto ID
WMS:
that is current and topical within this fascinating technology sphere.
Invest to say ahead
SPECIAL FEATURE:
VOICE:
Planning &
Super contract winSuper contract win
Scheduling/Demand
Forecasting Forecasting
SUPPLY CHAIN: Now, let’s consider for a moment the occasional need to place common
(see page 50) The human element The human element
sense over the advice of computer software. When seeking to optimise
For the latest news and to subscribe to the their supply chains, companies are increasingly relying on software to
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www.logisticsit.com
minimise their total cost of ownership, and in most instances it is more
than fair to exclaim “quite right too”. Nevertheless, there will occasionally
be instances where, despite possibly having the best algorithms and
mathematical capability in the world, the suggested route to achieving
reduced costs needs to be further questioned – or the software itself
requires an inherent flexibility capable of re-calculating the best supply
chain methodology based around certain factors that are highly
important, yet not purely cost-related.
For example, what if cost factors spur the software to tell you to shut
down a factory in an area where a community is solely or largely reliant
on it for its livelihood? Not only is there an important human aspect here
that software can overlook, there could also be the risk of some rather
unsavory publicity for the company in question surrounding its decision
to arguably put hard currency above community spirit. As Infor’s Andy
Killick reflects in this issue, from time to time companies will simply
have to leave things alone or work around them, even if the maths tells
them otherwise. And there is much more thought-provoking content in
this issue besides. We hope you enjoy this issue and, as always, we
Ed Holden
welcome your feedback.
Editor
MANUFACTURING
March 2009
&LOGISTICSIT
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