International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

Michael Catalan; Herbert Kotzab

2003 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030310502867

Focuses on performance efficiency in the mobile phone supply chain. Through a description of exogenous conditions in the mobile phone industry concerning product characteristics and demand for mobile phones with reference to Fisher's product types, found the notions of responsiveness to be a useful analysis variable and critical success factor for the mobile phone supply chain. Afterwards set up four theoretical evaluation variables that were valuable for analyzing responsiveness: delivery lead‐times, postponement strategies, the Bullwhip effect and information exchange. From an in depth practical analysis concludes that there is a lack of responsiveness in the Danish mobile phone supply chain in both demand transparency and time efficiency.

Øyvind Halskau Sr

2003 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030310502876

In inventory theory the inventory holding cost per unit plays an important part. In most transactions concerning selling and buying a certain postponement of payment is offered or accepted by the seller. This should have some consequences for the order size and can be regarded as a kind of discount. Traditionally, when average costs (AC) are used, these kinds of effects are not explicitly incorporated in the classical formulas for economic order quantities (EOQs). On the other hand, such effects have been treated to a certain degree in the literature when a present value criterion (PVC) is used to estimate the inventory holding costs over a certain time interval. However, in these models one does not differentiate between the holding costs incurred by the capital tied up in the inventory and other costs incurred by storing an item. Approaches this problem in an AC manner, but, opposed to the PVC, splits the inventory holding costs into two parts. Offers an EOQ formula for the simple case of a single item stored; enhances this formula for a situation where a family of items are ordered in a co‐ordinated way, and into a situation with stochastic demand for a single item. Finally, interprets the postponed payment in terms of an all unit discount.

Katariina Kemppainen; Ari P.J. Vepsäläinen

2003 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030310502885

Asks what really has changed for and what to expect from future supply chains. Most surveys rank activities related to sourcing, operations, customer services and marketing in terms of their importance to, or degree of hindrance for, successful supply chain management (SCM). In this explorative study, analyzes the change of SCM both in terms of operational practices and organizational capabilities in some industrial companies. A focused survey traces the development of supply chains and networks over two decades. Observes the expected growth in use of supporting IT systems, extent of information sharing and scope of coordination efforts. Characterizes the different stages supply chain evolution on the basis of supply chain integration and changing roles and responsibilities of the companies. It seems that due to the continuous structural change of the business environment the very concept of supply chain, let alone the best practice of managing one, should be subject to re‐examination in a wider context. In order to reach the current ideal of SCM practices, the strategic preconditions for innovative networking also need to be in place.

Daniel Knudsen

2003 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030310502894

This paper presents a framework for assessing alignment between corporate strategy, procurement strategy and purchasing tools. The framework is built on generation of rents as its common denominator for assessing alignment between the levels. Three types of rents are identified: monopoly rents; Ricardian rents and entrepreneurial rents. The framework is then used for assessing the strategic origin of the following e‐procurement applications: e‐sourcing, e‐tendering, e‐informing, e‐reversed auctions, e‐MRO, Web‐based enterprise resource planning and e‐collaboration. The results indicate that the e‐procurement tools are fully viable for creating monopoly rents, moderately viable for creating Ricardian rents and only somewhat viable for creating entrepreneurial rents. Therefore, it is necessary to first understand how the firm generates rents before procurement strategy and e‐procurement tools are implemented in order to avoid misalignment.

Sofia Ohnell; Johan Woxenius

2003 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030310502902

There are large differences in both speed and costs between the traffic modes road and air. Rail has not yet successfully offered services “faster than road but cheaper than air”, although there are technical, logistical and economical opportunities for competing with air for intra‐continental shipments and co‐operate for intercontinental ones. The article categorises segments of the European express freight market and analyses them in a rail perspective. Services between Sweden and Continental Europe and domestically in Sweden are focused. System modelling tools are also adapted to the application of express intermodal transport and prospective roles for rail in express transport are defined. The analysis shows that a transport chain with many actors and long distances does not necessarily entail longer transport times than a short‐distance with the same circumstances under a single management. The analysis also shows that many express transport systems are built in a modular way, implying that subsystems can be exchanged.