SHIFT TO SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT By Shri D N Chakravarti National Vice President, East, IIMM, Ex-HOD, MM, Kolkata Port
Trust, Faculty, IIPM, IISWBM, IIMM BOS Member, NSOU A.C.M., Burdwan University Supply Chain Management is an integrated Management of all the linkages and value adding activities from the supplier's supplier to the customer in such a way that enhanced customer in such a way that enhanced customer value is achieved at lower cost.
SLACK CHAIN      INEFFICIENCY HIGH STORAGE POOR STRATEGIES DELAYED MOVEMEMENTS UNDER UTILISATION OF RESOURCES
TIGHT CHAIN   FIRE FIGHTING IN ADEQUATE STORAGE
SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES MEASURE      DELIVERY PERFORMANCE RETURN OF INVESTMENTS/ASSETS PROFIT RESPONSIVENESS TO THE CUSTOMER RESPONSIVENESSTO THE MARKET
KEY PLAYERS OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
SUPPLIER MANUFACTURER RETAILER CONSUMER
ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES
PRODUCT/SERVICE FLOW FUND FLOW INFORMATION FLOW REUSE RECYCLE MAINTENANCE AFTER SALES SERVICE
SUPPLY CHAIN FUNCTION
SUPPLY PLANNING STRATEGIC NETWORK DESIGN NETWORK POLICY OPTIMISATION FINITE CAPACITY PLANNING MANUFACTURING SCHEDULING  VISUALISATION/RESCHEDULING IN REAL SITUATION
DEMAND  STATISTICAL FORECASTING MARKET INTELLIGENCE RECONCILATION    TRANSPORT MARKETING ROAD/MODE SCHEDULING INTRA/INTER ROUTE OPTION
SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGY
INTEGRATION
PUSH/PULL POSTMONEMENT/PREPONEMENT OF PRODUCT GO TO MARKET/CHANNEL
CYCLE OF ACTIVITIES   DEVELOP A SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGY MANAGE/GRAB CUSTOMERS ORDERS PROCURE MATERIAL   PRODUCE FINISHED GOODS/SERVICES MANAGE TRANSPORT LOGISTICS/DISTRIBUTION
Supply chain is a collection of functional activities that are repeated many times throughout a channel in which raw materials are converted into finished products in order to add value in the eye of customers and to fulfill their requirement. This entire channel of activities is known as Supply Chain. So many players are involved actively in this chain at different stage and success or failure of the chain entirely depends on performance of the each player.
FINANACE
S1
MONEY FLOW C1
S2
SUPPLIERS
INFORMATION FLOW
CUSTOMERS
C3
C2
S3
MATERIAL FLOW
TRANSPORTER SUPPLY SIDE
DISTRIBUTION SIDE
SUPPLY CHAIN NETWORK
Basically supply chain has two parts  Supply side and Distribution side. In supply side raw materials are supplied, processed and converted into final products and in Distribution side it transported to the end customers. The key players of the supply chain are  Manufacturer  Here we mean the focal firm (main supplier) as the Supplier. Its function is to procure raw materials from other sub-suppliers (like  S1, S2 and S3 etc.) and after processing converted them into a final product. Suppliers supplier  Associates from whom the focal firm procures raw materials in order to make a final product. Focal firm may procure raw materials from many others firms  in that case they are known as suppliers supplier (viz. S1 / S2 / S3 in the diagram) and here focal firm is the customer to them and they are the individual supplier for the focal firm. Transporter  Who coordinates between supply and distribution side of the supply chain. Function of the transporters is to ensure delivery of the final products from the focal firm to the end-customers within the delivery period and at lowest possible cost. Transporters play a vital role in the chain and Success / failure of the chain largely depends on their performance. In the process of Transportation there are 4 key-factors to be considered for ensuring movement of products to the customer in the most cost and timeeffective manner Load  How much to load? In a consignment how much quantity are to be loaded to satisfy the requirement of the customer in most cost-effective way. Mode  What mode of transportation to be chosen? For example  what mode of transportation should we choose for transporting - road, rail, air or waterway? Flow  What should be the flow of material? Should it be unidirectional or multi-directional, we have to decide to ensure minimum cost and to save time. Route  What will be the route of transportation? Objective is to determine in which shortest possible route consignment can reach to the customers in time and at lowest possible cost. Customer - They are the most important players of the supply chain as all the activities of the chain are designed and executed to fulfill and satisfy their requirement. Focus is on the customers satisfaction  how best way we can serve him/her by delivering the products at right time and at lowest possible cost ensuring proper quality. Distributing Agents  They are the various intermediaries of the distribution side of the chain. They distribute the final products received from the focal firm to the end-customers through various sub-agents, like  Distributors, Wholesalers, Dealers, Retailers and Marketing Agents etc.
Banks  They play very important role in providing finance and control money flow of the entire chain. One hand, banks provide financial help to the various players of the chain and on the other hand they control the money flow of the chain.