Reverse logistics and the return portion of the supply chain is often an overlooked and mismanaged process. Companies tend to focus their efforts on the forward portion of supply chain management, while failing to take advantage of the many opportunities that reverse logistics presents (Benton, 2007). What these companies do not realize is that the effective management of reverse logistics has the potential to make them more profitable, and to add value to many other parts of their supply chain. In the case of Johnson Automotive, we will analyze their current supply chain processes to determine their effectiveness while answering the following questions:
1. What is reverse logistics?
2. What are the key elements of reverse logistics in the automotive industry?
3. How can Johnson optimize its reverse logistics channel?
What Is Reverse Logistics?
The Reverse Logistics Association (2008) defines reverse logistics as “all activity associated with a product/service after the point of sale, the ultimate goal to optimize or make more efficient aftermarket activity, thus saving money and environmental resources”. Because all of these processes take place post-sale, this portion of the company’s activities could simply be viewed as a cost center. This could not be further from the truth. The objective of any intelligent business manager should be to optimize all activities and ensure that the maximum value is achieved for every Dollar that is spent by the company.
Some of the activities associated with reverse logistics are remanufacturing, recycling, reconditioning, warranty management, call-center management, and transportation.
The main goal of reverse logistics is to facilitate these activities in a manner that helps the company to meet its corporate objectives.
That is why the design of the reverse supply chain processes is so important. Every company needs specific processes that are aimed at increasing value for the company and its customers based on the type of industry in which it operates and the type of products that it supplies.
The major stumbling block for most companies that are attempting to optimize their return supply chain is the chaotic nature of reverse logistics. Volume within the return supply chain is highly variable and difficult to predict or control (O’Reilly, 2005). In addition, returning the product in a timely manner is often not of major importance to the end users and retailers. Therefore, any processes that rely on the availability of cores or supplies will have to be flexible enough to handle variations in supply.
Can Anticipatory Logistics Work In The Corporate World? I do not see any reason, based on the article provided, as to why anticipatory logistics cannot work in the corporate world. In my opinion both are significantly similar in function and operation. The basic aim of both the supply chain management that is frequently used in the corporate world and the anticipatory logistics used by the armed forces are same, and that Is to satisfy the customer better than the competitor. It is true that in each industry the requirements, needs and demands of customers are different, specifically in the corporate world where one company sells pharmaceutical products while other sells ready made clothes. However, in the industry, all the companies compete for a greater market share and that share is contributed by earning customers, loyal or not. When there is a question of winning customers, then there is a concern about the cost, the pricing of the product or service, the speed and ease of delivery, the psychological acceptance, and many other such elements that make the organization ponder on efforts that would let them survive not just in the corporate world, but also in the war or preparations for war. Anticipatory logistics work in the similar fashion as the supply chain management works. Defining the supply chain management, Li et al (1999) writes that the supply chain management is the “management of materials and information flow both in and between facilities across SC”, where the SC or the supply chain is a “network of facilities and distribution options that performs the function of procurement of materials, transformation of these materials into intermediate and finished products, and distribution of these finished products to custo...
...dustrial Distribution allows me to pursue my interests in both Business and Engineering, and therefore I chose that major. Also, it will help me to build my personal characteristics that will make me successful in this major. As my education continues, I look forward to learning how manufacturers and distributors maintain good communication and relations, so that the products can be distributed efficiently and avoid problems. If there are problems, I would also like to comprehend ways to solve those problems. In the future, I hope to work for a company such as Amazon, Dell, or Boeing in the field of logistics. These companies depend on logistics in planning and conducting their operations. Since logistics and relations between manufacturer and distributor are critical to the everyday operations of businesses, understanding this will help me in my future endeavors.
A supply chain is a system through which organizations deliver their products and services to their customers. The network begins with the basic ingredients to start the chain of supply, which are the suppliers that supply raw materials, ingredients, and so on. From there, it will transfer the supplies to the manufacturer who builds, assembles, converts, or furnishes a product. The chain now needs to get the product to the consumer by transporting the finished product from the manufacturer through a warehouse or distribution center. An example is that Wal-Mart has a nearby distribution center where products are delivered there and then split up to be delivered to a retail Wal-Mart. “Wal-Mart will take responsibility for breaking down larger loads and delivering the product to other Wal-Mart stores” (Ehring 1).
Reverse Logistics is the process of planning, implementing, and controlling the efficient, cost effective flow of raw materials, in-process inventory, finished goods and related information from the point of consumption to the point of origin for the purpose of recapturing value or proper disposal. It is the process of returning goods from consumers back to suppliers. Also comprises of sending new or used products backup stream for repair, remanufacturing, reusing, recycling and refurbishing activities.
The global supply chain variability is causing customer delivery delayed by around 40% and also experiencing quality problems that is introduced by the humidity difference between the locations of Chinese manufacturing plants. Moreover, it is taking much longer to deliver products, and the spare parts preventing any timely customer services. The goal is to come up with a faster product delivery and product cycle employing strategic and tactical changes that might improve supply chain problem and address the quality and increase customer
“Logistic is the process of planning, implementing and controlling the efficient, effective flow of goods storage of goods, services and related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption for the purpose of conforming to customer requirements”
Those activities can be divided into two categories: primary and secondary activities. Primary activities are inbound logistics, operations, sales and marketing, customer service, and outbound logistics. Inbound logistics include receiving and storing materials or distribution to production, operations transform inputs intro finished products, outbound logistics includes storing, and distributing finished products, sales and marketing deal with promoting and selling the firm’s products. Secondary activates consist of administration, human resources, technology, and procurement. Supply chain management systems coordinate the flow of resources into the firm, and make the primary activities
Robinson (2014) explained that reverse logistics stand for all operations related to the reuse of products and materials. It is the process of capturing product lifecycle end value and properly disposal. Reverse flow or logistics could increase aftermarket customer satisfaction, reduce overall costs and effectively maximize recovery assets
Inventory management is a method through which a business handles tangible resources and materials to ensure availability of resources for use. It is a collection of interdisciplinary processes including a full circle of the demand forecasting, supply chain management, inventory control and reverse logistics. Inventory management is the optimization of inventories of manufactured goods, work in progress, and raw materials. According to Doucette (2001) inventory management can be challenging at times; however, the need for effective inventory management is largely seen more as a necessity than a mere trend when customer satisfaction and service have become a prime reason for a business to stand apart from its competition. For example, Wal-Mart’s inventory management is one of the biggest contributors to the success of the company; effective and efficient inventory management is of critical importance.
The relationship between physical distribution and marketing grows stronger and more important by the day. Customer service is traditionally a marketing activity, but is also listed among the 14 logistics activities; one possible explanation could be that customer service serves as an appropriate interface for both physical distribution and marketing to work together towards achieving their objectives.
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The aim of the value chain structure is to maximize the value creation while minimizing costs. Value Chain Analysis is a useful tool for working out how you can create the greatest possible value for your customers. Value chain analysis relies on the rudimentary economic principle of competitive advantage -companies are best served by operating in divisions where they have a relative prolific benefit compared to their competitors. Concomitantly, companies should ask themselves where they can deliver the paramount value to their customer. To conduct a value chain analysis, the company begins by identifying each part of its production process and recognizing where steps can be purged or enhancements can be made. These improvements can result
By adopting the value chain into a manufacturing company, it will gain efficiency, effectiveness, reduce the product cost and improve continuously. For example, Toyota has implemented Toyota Product System (TPS) integrated information system with the business process which allowed the company to be more efficiency, effectiveness and reduce inventory cost. (Toyota
Coyle, J., Langley, C., Gibson, B., Novack, R. and Bardi, E. (2008).Supply Chain Management: A Logistics Perspective. 8th ed. Cengage Learning, p.366.
Integrative strategy development is essential to successful integration of a supply chain. There are many components of an integrative strategy first a company must determine its objectives and strategic goals. These named objectives must be a focused few, with associated metrics. After a company has established its objectives, cross-functional business objectives must be established. With the establishment of cross-functional objectives, the associated team must be brought ...