IT

Who is in and who is out of the chain?

Who is in and who is out of the chain?

By Hugh Williams

If you had asked me a few years ago which function would be the last to embrace supply chain thinking, I'd have got it wrong.Over time and despite...

How the fittest survive

How the fittest survive

By Paul Gander

The war is on. Supermarket chains have declared it and are fighting it with their army of price cuts and special offers. This is putting enormous...

Chain gang chat

Chain gang chat

By Rick Pendrous

Supply, demand and retailer promotions. Industry peers discussed supply chain issues at Food Manufacture's recent event. Rick Pendrous reports

Delve deeper into the chain

Delve deeper into the chain

By Hugh Williams

Last month I attended a conference, which was supposedly about the latest trends in supply chain management. The tone was set by the chair whose...

Ready, steady, go

Ready, steady, go

By Rick Pendrous

Producing a line of own-label ethnic ready meals for Asda is no mean feat. S&A Foods talks to Rick Pendrous about life on the short shelf

Future perfect

Future perfect

By Michelle Knott

When it comes to making a profit in the food and drink industry, mastering supply and demand is essential. Michelle Knott reports

How long is a supply chain?

How long is a supply chain?

By Hugh Williams

I bought a new calculator recently. I thought my old one was faulty: the numbers didn't add up! Let me explain. Over the past 10 years businesses...

Change for the better

Change for the better

By Sarah Britton

Choosing the right enterprise resource planning (ERP) system can be a challenge, but implementation is where the fun really begins, as firms convince staff that this is a positive change. Sarah Britton reports

Hijacking sales and operations planning

Hijacking sales and operations planning

By Hugh Williams

It happened to lean and also to advanced planning and scheduling before that. Now it has happened to sales and operations planning (S&OP). Some...

Stop playing the blame game

Stop playing the blame game

By Hugh Williams

Software gone bad? I'm talking about implementations that don't deliver the expected benefits, or have gone astray over time. The result is an...

Economic quantities - or a pallet's tale

Economic quantities - or a pallet's tale

By Hugh Williams

This is the story of an old but wise pallet. Over the years, it has seen supply chain thinking evolve and lived through many changes.Many years ago...

Get up to speed on traceability

Get up to speed on traceability

By Michelle Knott

Systems can improve visibility throughout your factory while helping to avoid damaging product recalls, as Michelle Knott discovers

New currency to replace euro

New currency to replace euro

By Hugh Williams

Pounds are becoming kilos. You are probably thinking that I am about to re-launch the debate of imperial versus metric. I'm not. I'm talking about...

Lean makes mathematical sense

Lean makes mathematical sense

By Hugh Williams

Here's a riddle for you: Your raw material costs are going up rapidly. Your customers are by nature very price sensitive. Increasing your prices with...

Sometimes duplication is necessary

Sometimes duplication is necessary

By Hugh Williams

I find it fascinating to watch a business open up to supply chain thinking. One day it operates in isolation, mistrusting the competition, suppliers...

Don't let non-bottlenecks steal from you!

Don't let non-bottlenecks steal from you!

By Hugh Williams

Is your business a victim of internal self-inflicted supply chain crime?Like a burglar sneaking round the back, are you being robbed by some of your...

How to be green and lean

How to be green and lean

By Hugh Williams

And I thought that after many years of slow but locally efficient supply chains, lean had taken over: you signed up to the fact that sending a...

Grabbing the supply chain by the crust ...

Grabbing the supply chain by the crust ...

By Hugh Williams

You know it will happen, every time: you grab that slice of pizza by the crust; you give it a nudge with the knife in the hope of a clean cut; then,...

Best practice or industrial tourism?

Best practice or industrial tourism?

By Hugh Williams

In principle nothing is wrong with most businesses' obsession with supply chain best practice. People want to know what other companies are doing...

Take stock of business costs

Take stock of business costs

I have a fundamental problem with some of the traditional measures and key performance indicators in place in companies, because they do not always...

Focusing on cost can be so costly

Focusing on cost can be so costly

I guess at least a few people share my prejudice that the US breeds supply chain people who are highly skilled at talking and 'theorising', but not...