Kong and Allan looks at the supply chain development of particular industries to better understand processes impacting material flows. Kong and Allan looks to more broadly understand downstream effects in an industries supply chain, how will future changes effect operations, and where can the industry as a whole improve. We are continually adding to this list, so please check back if there is limited information regarding the industry you operate in.

How do the key factors such as sales volume, service level, order size, inventory levels and turnover, and lead time impact retailers and the retail industry? We will look at a supply chain design model, which focuses on coordination and the supplier-retailer relationship.

In this article, we consider two specific models that exemplify changes occurring in the automotive industry. The first model concerns the reduction of logistics costs for one large automotive manufacturer. The second model looks at effectively coordinating suppliers.