Toimitusketjun kehittäminen tukkujakelukanavassa

Asiakaslähtöinen liiketoimintatapa on voimakkaasti valtaamassa alaa tuote- ja tuotanto-orientoituneelta. Tuotteiden erinomaisuus koetaan markkinoilla yhä enenevässä määrin itsestään selvyydeksi. Prosessien tehokas hallitseminen ja asiakkaan kokeman lisäarvon muodostaminen ovat muodostuneet ratkaisevimmaksi kilpailuedun luojaksi. Toimitusketjun hallinnalla on tämän kilpailuedun muodostumisessa ratkaiseva rooli. Diplomityö käsittelee toimitusketjun hallinnan tarjoamia mahdollisuuksia kehittää kohdeyrityksen tukkujakelukanavaa. Työssä pureudutaan toimitusketjun ohjauksen ja sähköisen liiketoiminnan mukanaan tuomien mahdollisuuksien hyödyntämiseen. Tärkeinä kehitystyön menetelminä esitetään toimitusketjun yhteistyön tiivistäminen ja informaation integraatio sekä näiden merkitys toimitusketjussa esiintyvän kysynnän piiskavaikutuksen vähentämiseksi.Työn empiirisen osan tuloksena on luotu kuvaus tutkitusta jakelukanavasta välillä loppuasiakas – kohdeyritys, sen toimitusketjun ohjauksesta ja toteutuneesta toiminnasta. Tämän perusteella on jakelukanavalle luotu kehitysmalli. Malli pitää sisällään viitekehyksen toimitusketjun ohjaukselle, käytännön toimenpide-ehdotukset ja saavutettavien hyötyjen arvioinnin.

Web user interface architecture for advanced planning and scheduling systems Case: Nokia Demand / Supply Planning Applications

In modem hitec industry Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) systems provide the basis for e-business solutions towards the suppliers and the customers. One objective of this thesis was to clarify the modem supply chain management with the APS systems and especially concentrate on the area of Collaborative Planning. In order Advanced Planning and Scheduling systems to be complete and usable, user interfaces are needed. Current Visual Basic user interfaces have faced many complaints and arguments from the users as well as from the development team. This thesis is trying to analyze the reasons and causes for the encountered problems and also provide ways to overcome them. The decision has been made to build the new user interfaces to be Web-enabled. Therefore another objective of this thesis was to research and find suitable technologies for building the Web-based user interfaces for Advanced Planning and Scheduling Systems in Nokia Demand/Supply Planning business area. Comparison between the most suitable technologies is made. Usability issues of Web-enabled user interfaces are also covered. The empirical part of the thesis includes design and implementation of a Web-based user interface with the chosen technology for a particular APS module that enables Collaborative Planning with suppliers.

Defining supply chain service level priorities in an international polyolefin company

Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli selvittää, ovatko asiakkaiden kanssa sovitut kaupintavarastojärjestelyt liiketoiminnallisesti oikeutettuja vai ovatko ne pääasiassa vain asiakkaan palvelua. Tavoitteiksi asetettiin tutkia logististen palveluiden tärkeyttä, etsiä eri näkökohtia asiakaskohtaisten varastojen ja varastopalveluiden tarjoamiselle, löytää mahdollisia korvaavia tai vastaavia palveluita, sekä esitellä menetelmä toimitusketjun palvelutason priorisoimiseksi ja hallitsemiseksi. Työhön tarvittu kaupallinen aineisto koskien tuotteita ja asiakaita saatiin yrityksen tietojärjestelmästä. Muut taustatiedot kerättiin yrityksen toimintaohjeista, keskustelemalla ja haastattelemalla henkilöstöä, sekä seuraamalla yrityksen toimintaa työnteon ohessa. Tutkimus on jaettu kirjallisuus- ja case-osuuteen. Työn case-tulokset osoittavat, että nykyiset kaupintavarastoasiakkaat pääosin ansaitsevat lisäarvoa tuottavan varastopalvelun. Tutkimuksesta saadut kokemukset ja tiedot auttavat tekemään lisäarviointeja, koskien myös yrityksen muita tuotantolaitoksia. Työstä saatuja kokonaishyötyjä on vielä tässä vaiheessa vaikea arvioida.

Tietojärjestelmien kartoitus huollossa ja kunnossapidossa

Tämän diplomityön tavoitteena oli kartoittaa jälkimarkkinointiin liittyvien tietojärjestelmien tarjonta sekä selvittää huollon ja kunnossapidon tietojärjestelmän keskeiset toiminnot. Lisäksi benchmarking-tutkimuksen avulla pyrittiin määrittämään jälkimarkkinointiin liittyvän logistiikan parhaat toimintamallit. Kerättyjä tietoja analysoitiin ja vertailtiin, jonka jälkeen määritettiin niihin perustuvat käsitykset huollon ja kunnossapidon tietojärjestelmien käyttömahdollisuuksista sekä keskeisistä toiminnoista.Huoltoon ja kunnossapitoon liittyvät tietojärjestelmät jaettiin viiteen kategoriaan: varsinaiset kunnossapidon järjestelmät, toiminnanohjausjärjestelmät, toimitusketjun hallinnan järjestelmät, tuotetiedon hallinnan järjestelmät ja asiakassuhteen hallintaan tarkoitetut järjestelmät. Kaikki tietojärjestelmät tarjoavat lukuisia toiminnallisuuksia, joita voidaan hyödyntää jälkimarkkinointitoiminnassa. Tietojärjestelmien kartoituksessa havaittiin selvää potentiaalia tietojärjestelmien käytön tehostamiseksi. Lisäksi benchmarking-tutkimuksen avulla arvioitiin jälkimarkkinointiin liittyvän logistiikan tämän hetkistä tilaa, parhaita toimintamalleja ja potentiaalisia kehityskohteita.

Supply chain cost saving potential analysis

Target of this study was to examine the current supply chain with focus on external part and identify the cost potential areas which lie there. The goal was to evaluate the cost save potential and give estimate what would be required in order to realise it. Base data related to study was searched and examined with using company’s enterprise resource planning system. In case feasible two types of scenarios were built in order to describe the scale of save potential. First scenario was theoretical and achieving it would require further investments and second scenario was realistic approach where more limitations were taken into account. The results clearly show that there is high save potential in supply chain costs linked to balance between internal and external operations. Realising of it would require at least minor investments as current internal capacity is not on a level to fully absorb the additional volumes which are needed in order to realise the potential. This study can be used as a basis when starting new projects related to investment needs.

Strategic supply chain alignment to customer buying behavior

In search for competitive advantage, designing and managing supply chain networks have become a necessary competence for organizations. The target of this thesis is to answer a question, how to design a multiple supply chain network. The purpose is to study, what kind of different supply chain designs exist and, how to choose appropriate supply chain designs for a company. In the thesis, the focus is on the supply chain alignment to customers, more specifically to customer buying behavior. The research method was a case study. A framework for measuring customer buying behavior was developed based on the literature and it was used in the study of customer buying behavior in the case environment. In the case company structured interviews and data records were used as sources of evidence. Persons working in the customer-interface were interviewed face-to-face and through an e-mail questionnaire. When analyzing the data, a Quality function deployment matrix was used as one analysis method. As a result of the thesis, supply chain network of the case company is proposed to be divided into three separate supply chains, which focus on different areas and they could be called lean, agile and continuous replenishment supply chains. In conclusion, in the supply chain alignment to customer buying behavior several aspects have to be studied from different perspectives. According to the results, a multiple supply chain strategy is recommended to be implemented in the case company, since the diversity of the customer needs cannot be managed efficiently through a single supply chain.

Information exchange and disruption risk in multimodal maritime supply chains

Supply chains are becoming increasingly dependent on information ex-change in today’s world, and any disruption can cause severe repercus-sions to the flow of materials in the chain. The speed, accuracy and amount of information are key factors. The aim in this thesis is to address a gap in the research by focusing on information exchange and the risks related to it in a multimodal wood supply chain operating between the Baltic States and Finland. The study involved interviewing people engaged in logistics management in the supply chain in question. The main risk the interviewees identified arose from the sea logistics system, which held a lot of different kinds of information. The threat of breakdown in the Internet connection was also found to hinder the operations significantly. A vulnerability analysis was carried out in order to identify the main actors and channels of infor-mation flow in the supply chain. The analysis revealed that the most important and therefore most vulnerable information-exchange channels were those linking the terminal superintendent, the operative managers and the mill managers. The study gives a holistic picture of the investigated supply chain. Information-exchange-related risks varied greatly. One of the most frequently mentioned was the risk of information inaccuracy, which was usually due to the fact that those in charge of the various functions did not fully understand the consequences for the entire chain.

Working capital management in the small and medium-sized enterprises Case: Project-based business environment in Flowrox Oy

This Master´s thesis illustrates how growing a business ties up the company´s working capital and what the cost of committed capital. In order to manage a company´s working capital in rapid business growth phase, the thesis suggests that by monitoring and managing the operating and cash conversion cycles of customers´ projects, a company can find ways to secure the required amount of capital. The research method of this thesis was based on literature reviews and case study research. The theoretical review presents the concepts of working capital and provides the background for understanding how to improve working capital management. The company in subject is a global small and medium-sized enterprise that manufactures pumps and valves for demanding process conditions. The company is expanding, which creates lots of challenges. This thesis concentrates to the company´s working capital management and its efficiency through the supply chain and value chain perspective. The main elements of working capital management are inventory management, accounts receivable management and accounts payable management. Prepayments also play a significant role, particularly in project-based businesses. Developing companies´ working capital management requires knowledge from different kind of key operations´ in the company, like purchasing, production, sales, logistics and financing. The perspective to develop and describe working capital management is an operational. After literature reviews the thesis present pilot projects that formed the basis of a model to monitor working capital in the case company. Based on analysis and pilot projects, the thesis introduces a rough model for monitoring capital commitments in short time period. With the model the company can more efficiently monitor and manage their customer projects.

Evaluating the Maturity of Data Management Practices in a Major Energy Provider Company

Data is the most important asset of a company in the information age. Other assets, such as technology, facilities or products can be copied or reverse-engineered, employees can be brought over, but data remains unique to every company. As data management topics are slowly moving from unknown unknowns to known unknowns, tools to evaluate and manage data properly are developed and refined. Many projects are in progress today to develop various maturity models for evaluating information and data management practices. These maturity models come in many shapes and sizes: from short and concise ones meant for a quick assessment, to complex ones that call for an expert assessment by experienced consultants. In this paper several of them, made not only by external inter-organizational groups and authors, but also developed internally at a Major Energy Provider Company (MEPC) are juxtaposed and thoroughly analyzed. Apart from analyzing the available maturity models related to Data Management, this paper also selects the one with the most merit and describes and analyzes using it to perform a maturity assessment in MEPC. The utility of maturity models is two-fold: descriptive and prescriptive. Besides recording the current state of Data Management practices maturity by performing the assessments, this maturity model is also used to chart the way forward. Thus, after the current situation is presented, analysis and recommendations on how to improve it based on the definitions of higher levels of maturity are given. Generally, the main trend observed was the widening of the Data Management field to include more business and “soft” areas (as opposed to technical ones) and the change of focus towards business value of data, while assuming that the underlying IT systems for managing data are “ideal”, that is, left to the purely technical disciplines to design and maintain. This trend is not only present in Data Management but in other technological areas as well, where more and more attention is given to innovative use of technology, while acknowledging that the strategic importance of IT as such is diminishing.

Towards Inter-organizational Working Capital Management

Working capital is an investment which is tied up into the inventories and accounts receivable and which is released with accounts payable. Due to the current business landscape with tightened financial conditions and finance markets, organizations emphasize efficient working capital management. With efficient working capital management, a company can reduce the need of finance, free up cash, increase profitability, improve liquidity, increase the efficiency of operations, and decrease (financing) costs. From the perspective of an individual company, efficient working capital management means decreasing inventory levels by shortening the cycle time of inventories, decreasing accounts receivable by shortening the trade credit terms and effective collection procedures, and increasing the level of accounts payable by paying the suppliers later. From an inter-organizational perspective, however, working capital should not be sub-optimized by a single company but holistic view to working capital management through the supply chain should be adopted to create value and improve performance together. The purpose of this research is to take academic research as well as practical management towards inter-organizational working capital management. The thesis discusses the benefits as well as mechanisms of working capital management in the inter-organizational context and has two main objectives: (1) to examine the effect of inter-organizational working capital management on performance in the value chain context and (2) to develop models of working capital management for internal as well as inter-organizational value chains. The results of the archival research conducted in the value chain of the pulp and paper industry and the value chain of the automotive industry indicate that companies can increase relative profitability by managing working capital comprehensively by taking into account all three components, and holistically though the value chain. Companies in the value chain benefit from different strategies in working capital management depending on the position of the company in the value chain. This can be taken into account in inter-organizational working capital management. The effects of inter-organizational working capital management actions on the financing costs of working capital were studied via simulations. Simulations also show that the value chain and individual companies benefit from an inter-organizational view to working capital management. Inter-organizational working capital management actions include for example: shortening the cycle time of inventories, reducing product costs, shifting inventories, shortening payment terms, and considering the cost of capital. The thesis also provides solutions for the practical requirements for tools to control working capital. The design science part of the research introduces the adjusted cash conversion cycle (ACCC) model for internal value chains, as well as models for working capital management in the inter-organizational value chain context: the working capital management model (WCMM) and the financial cycle time model (FCTM) designed in corporation and product levels respectively. This research contributes to literature on working capital management and interorganizational accounting. The research gives a holistic, inter-organizational view to the management of working capital. It advances the knowledge in working capital management on operational level, increases knowledge in the recently risen theme of supply chainoriented, collaborative working capital management, combines management accounting research with supply chain management research, and contributes to the demand of practical inter-organizational accounting methods. In addition, the research has strong practical focus as new managerial methods are introduced.

The effects of location, feedstock availability, and supply-chain logistics on the greenhouse gas emissions of forest-biomass energy utilization in Finland

Forest biomass represents a geographically distributed feedstock, and geographical location affects the greenhouse gas (GHG) performance of a given forest-bioenergy system in several ways. For example, biomass availability, forest operations, transportation possibilities and the distances involved, biomass end-use possibilities, fossil reference systems, and forest carbon balances all depend to some extent on location. The overall objective of this thesis was to assess the GHG emissions derived from supply and energy-utilization chains of forest biomass in Finland, with a specific focus on the effect of location in relation to forest biomass’s availability and the transportation possibilities. Biomass availability and transportation-network assessments were conducted through utilization of geographical information system methods, and the GHG emissions were assessed by means of lifecycle assessment. The thesis is based on four papers in which forest biomass supply on industrial scale was assessed. The feedstocks assessed in this thesis include harvesting residues, smalldiameter energy wood and stumps. The principal implication of the findings in this thesis is that in Finland, the location and availability of biomass in the proximity of a given energyutilization or energy-conversion plant is not a decisive factor in supply-chain GHG emissions or the possible GHG savings to be achieved with forest-biomass energy use. Therefore, for the greatest GHG reductions with limited forest-biomass resources, energy utilization of forest biomass in Finland should be directed to the locations where most GHG savings are achieved through replacement of fossil fuels. Furthermore, one should prioritize the types of forest biomass with the lowest direct supply-chain GHG emissions (e.g., from transport and comminution) and the lowest indirect ones (in particular, soil carbon-stock losses), regardless of location. In this respect, the best combination is to use harvesting residues in combined heat and power production, replacing peat or coal.

e-Business and collaboration: A case study of pulp supply chain

This thesis studies how the case company could digitalize its supply chain and what kind of advantages this would create in the light of supply chain efficiency. The case company manufactures several pulp products that are used for paper, fabrics and packaging products by customers worldwide. The paper and pulp industry has been paying more and more attention to increasing supply chain efficiency with new operating and service models made possible by today’s information technology. The main focus of this study is on the supply chain between the case company and its key customers and the goal is to find ways to make the operations between them as efficient as possible. The study relays heavily on collaboration techniques and digitalization technologies. In addition to a theoretical framework, the study includes several empirical studies that offer real-life examples of how these theories and technologies are applied in operating environments similar to the case company. A plan with strategic and operational levels is created according to the findings of the previous sections to support the case company’s future operations. The plan is based on an RFID-supported collaboration model that aims to advance information sharing between the supply chain partners. The time for an RFID-investment is sought to be very optimal and the benefits of such system to be noteworthy, but challenging to measure in monetary terms.

Global Spare Parts Supply Chain Analysis

In today’s global industrial service business, markets are dynamic and finding new ways of value creation towards customers has become more and more challenging. Customer orientation is needed because of the demanding after-sales business which is both quickly changing and stochastic in nature. In after-sales business customers require fast and reliable service for their spare part needs. This thesis objective is to clarify this challenging after-sales business environment and find ways to increase customer satisfaction via balanced measurement system which will help to find possible targets to reduce order cycle times in a large metal and mineral company Outotec (Filters)’ Spare Part Supply business line. In case study, internal documents and data and numerical calculations together with qualitative interviews with different persons in key roles of Spare Part Supply organizations are used to analyze the performance of different processes from the spare parts delivery function. The chosen performance measurement tool is Balanced Scorecard which is slightly modified to suit the lead time study from customer’s perspective better. Findings show that many different processes in spare parts supply are facing different kind of challenges in achieving the lead time levels wanted and that these processes’ problems seem to accumulate. Findings also show that putting effort in supply side challenges and information flows visibility should give the best results.

Defining Sales and Operations Planning Process in an Environmental Management Company

Sales and operations research publications have increased significantly in the last decades. The concept of sales and operations planning (S&OP) has gained increased recognition and has been put forward as the area within Supply Chain Management (SCM). Development of S&OP is based on the need for determining future actions, both for sales and operations, since off-shoring, outsourcing, complex supply chains and extended lead times make challenges for responding to changes in the marketplace when they occur. Order intake of the case company has grown rapidly during the last years. Along with the growth, new challenges considering data management and information flow have arisen due to increasing customer orders. To manage these challenges, case company has implemented S&OP process, though initial process is in early stage and due to this, the process is not managing the increased customer orders adequately. Thesis objective is to explore extensively the S&OP process content of the case company and give further recommendations. Objectives are categorized into six different groups, to clarify the purpose of this thesis. Qualitative research methods used are active participant observation, qualitative interviews, enquiry, education, and a workshop. It is notable that demand planning was felt as cumbersome, so it is typically the biggest challenge in S&OP process. More proactive the sales forecasting can be, more expanded the time horizon of operational planning will turn out. S&OP process is 60 percent change management, 30 percent process development and 10 percent technology. The change management and continuous improvement can sometimes be arduous and set as secondary. It is important that different people are required to improve the process and the process is constantly evaluated. As well as, process governance is substantially in a central role and it has to be managed consciously. Generally, S&OP process was seen important and all the stakeholders were committed to the process. Particular sections were experienced more important than others, depending on the stakeholders’ point of views. Recommendations to objective groups are evaluated by the achievable benefit and resource requirement. The urgent and easily implemented improvement recommendations should be executed firstly. Next steps are to develop more coherent process structure and refine cost awareness. Afterwards demand planning, supply planning, and reporting should be developed more profoundly. For last, information technology system should be implemented to support the process phases.