In light ofthe vast number ofpublications on Supply Chain Management (SCM) it is not easy to extract those which will have a great impact both on theory and practice. The dissertation of Gregor Dudek certainly is one such valuable source because it tackles inter-organizational collaboration in a novel and effective man ner. SCM is concemed with the coordination of material, information and financial flows within and across often legally separated organizational units. lt has gained great attention both in industry and research as an important area for improving competitiveness. A Supply Chain (SC) can be regarded as a hybrid between a market relationship and a hierarchical organization and as such requires specific tools to support the efficient planning and execution of the order fulfillment proc ess. Software vendors have developed so called Advanced Planning Systems (APS) to overcome deficiencies of traditional Enterprise Resource Planning systems and to better support the planning functions needed in SCM. However, APS are based on the principles of hierarchical planning which are well-suited for intra organizational SCs but fall short when non-hierarchical collaboration between partners (companies) is needed. This is particularly true when a buyer and a sup plier have to align their medium term order and supply plans.

'Supply Chain Collaboration' reviews the industry standards and best practices and describes how they can and should be adopted.

Based on original research conducted at the Harvard Business School, Collaborative Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment gathers the insights and experiences of 38 leading CPFR practitioners from around the world and from a variety of industries, including manufacturers, retailers, consulting companies, and IT-solutions providers. Packed with valuable case studies and insider accounts from some of the most powerful companies using CPFR today - including giants such as Wal-Mart, Safeway, Ace Hardware, and Procter & Gamble.

Integrated supply chain planning is well understood by theory and widely applied in practice – however, only with respect to intra-organisational supply chains. In inter-organisational supply chains, an additional, yet unresolved problem arises: due to confidentiality reasons, decentralized parties keep their local data private, which prevents an integrated planning. Local planning procedures such as upstream planning, which are usually applied then, result in suboptimal solutions for the supply chain as a whole. In this work, new mechanisms for inter-organizational, collaborative supply chain planning are presented. These mechanisms are able to identify the systemwide optimum for several classes of supply chain planning problems. They can be applied by two or more self-interested parties and do not require a trusted third party. Extensive computational tests for randomly generated and real-word data suggest a favorable performance of these mechanisms.

"... To sum up, there should be a copy on the bookshelf of all engineers responsible for detailed planning of the Product Delivery Process (PDP). The Editors highlight the impressive gains reported by companies exploiting the potential of coordinating organizational units and integrating information flows and planning efforts along a supply chain. This publication is strong on coordination and planning. It is therefore recommended as an up-to-date source book for these particular aspects of SCM." International Journal of Production Research 2001/Vol. 39/13

How to save your business millions!!! The international expert and author Rob O’Byrne gives his powerful and essential tips and insights based on over 1,200 client assignments across 22 countries. This book shows you how to find the greatest potential for massive savings and increased bottom line. You’ll Learn:* How to access the big ticket items to reduce costs* 5 critical tips on measuring for superior performance* Balancing cost and service for more effective distribution* How to stop inventory investment blow outs* 3 key steps to developing a game winning supply chain strategy* The 5 key steps to improving warehousing effectiveness* Avoiding the stuff that screws your supply chain performance

Businesses must create initiatives and adopt eco-friendly practices in order to adhere to the sustainability goals of a globalized world. Recycling, product service systems, and green manufacturing are just a few methods businesses use within a sustainable supply chain. However, these tools and techniques must also ensure business growth in order to remain relevant in an environmentally-conscious world. The Handbook of Research on Interdisciplinary Approaches to Decision Making for Sustainable Supply Chains provides interdisciplinary approaches to sustainable supply chain management through the optimization of system performance and development of new policies, design networks, and effective reverse logistics practices. Featuring research on topics such as industrial symbiosis, green collaboration, and clean transportation, this book is ideally designed for policymakers, business executives, warehouse managers, operations managers, suppliers, industry professionals, sustainability developers, decision makers, students, academicians, practitioners, and researchers seeking current research on reducing the environmental impacts of businesses via sustainable supply chain planning.