Supply Chain Management

Introduction

The purpose of this course is to provide a fundamental understanding of the subject fields of supply chain management (SCM). SCM is how to secure effective and efficient flows of goods from point of origin (raw materials) to point of consumption (end user). It is about learning how the whole supply chain needs to be coordinated, and how each participating company have to bear the totality of the chain in mind. This is based on an idea that companies are competing with their total supply chains, rather than just products and individual company decisions. SCM is also growing in importance, as international sourcing is resulting in supply chains extending over several continents. Shipping is therefore becoming a natural part of many a supply chain. Shipping in this perspective means that vessels are a part of the process of taking products from point of origin to point of consumption, and provides an inherent tension of exploiting capacities and providing timely supplies.

Course content

• What is supply chain management
• The concepts and tools to analyse supply chains
• Information sharing and collaboration across the supply chain
• The decision making in supply chains demonstrated through a supply chain game
• The context of international logistics and the shipping industry
• Important decisions in international supply chains, and the role of shipping companies