Every finished product has gone through a series of transformations. The process begins when manufacturers purchase the raw materials that will be transformed into the components of the product. The parts are then supplied to a manufacturer, who assembles them into the finished product and ships the completed item to the consumer. The transformation process includes numerous activities (Levary, 2000). Among them are • Designing the product • Designing the manufacturing process • Determining which component parts should be produced in house and which should be purchased from suppliers • Forecasting customer demand • Contracting with external suppliers for raw materials or component parts • Purchasing raw materials or component parts from suppliers • Establishing distribution channels for raw materials and component parts from suppliers to manufacturer • Establishing of distribution channels to the suppliers of raw materials and component parts • Establishing distribution channels from the manufacturer to the wholesalers and from wholesalers to the final customers • Manufacturing the component parts • Transporting the component parts to the manufacturer of the final product • Manufacturing and assembling the final product • Transporting the final product to the wholesalers, retailers, and final customer Each individual activity generates various data items that must be stored, analyzed, protected, and transmitted to various units along a supply chain. A supply chain can be defined as a series of activities that are involved in the transformation of raw materials into a final product, which a customer then purchases (Levary, 2000). The flow of materials, component parts, and products is moving downstream (i.e., from the initial supply sources to the end customers). The flow of information regarding the demand for the product and orders to suppliers is moving upstream, while the flow of information regarding product availability, shipment schedules, and invoices is moving downstream. For each organization in the supply chain, its customer is the subsequent organization in the supply chain, and its subcontractor is the prior organization in the chain.
Control of production and corrective maintenance rates in a multiple-machine, multiple-product manufacturing system
