云端运算将为沉寂的供应链管理带来创新

供应链的创新可能来自于任何地方：只要稍加改善过程，就能简化旷日费时的工作，而采用完全成熟的MRP解决方案更能让这些过程实现自动化。如今，一个看来更有发展前景的供应链创新平台就是云端技术。 云端运算能为整个供应网络带来更有效的沟通与合作。电子供应链最经常使用的EDI、MRP或ERP系统都是封闭式的，不但成本高，而且也无法建立有效的沟通。而云端技术的关键优势在于能够让企业找到新方案来解决长久无法克服的老问题，例如与合作伙伴的互动与成本。 首先，云端技术基于网际网络且可扩展，所以它能让合作伙伴在整个供应网络中 共享数据，而无需大量的前期投资。其次，用户可以开发出一套“规则”，让合作伙伴看到他们所需的信息，同时又能保护不可对外公开的资料。 云端方案供货商GT Nexus公司企业行销总监Greg Kefer指出，“ERP系统并不是针对每一种平台而设计的。每一家公司的资料都储存于独立系统中，在某些情况下，一家公司可能拥有好几套独立系统。这些资料根本就无法连接到供应链网络。” 透过云端方案撷取并转换所需的数据，然后再提供给供应链网络中的成员。这些信息经过标准化、链接并集中储存在云端中，同时也能加以分割。只有获得授权的人员才能取得这些资料。Kefer强调，并不是每个合作伙伴都能取得这些信息。 大型OEM使用云端技术，让小型合作伙伴们更易于在供应链网络中进行合作。 例如，PC制造商联想(Lenovo)采用E2open的云端解决方案，降低了合作伙伴的开发时间与成本。它还在其采购系统中使用云端技术。 根 据最近一份与E2Open共同合作的个案研究，“联想面临的主要挑战之一是增加与关键组件有关的采购成本控制与透明度，同时持续保有外包的效率与降低危机 的好处。”透过利用云端技术，无论联想的PC在哪里制造，现在它都能直接控管重要组件的采购。其采购主要由香港的管理中心统一负责管理。 本文授权编译自EBN Online，版权所有，谢绝转载 本文下一页：联想在香港的采购解决方案

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{pagination} 具体而言，联想在香港的采购解决方案提供了： ●订单到收款以及采购到支付流程完全自动化与追踪； ●减少人为接触与资料汇整的必要； ●支持独立订单与总订单/排程协调； ●联想及其供货商与合约制造商之间的采购订单合作； ●与重要供货商的机密定价协议。 该系统还支持联想的全球服务网络，让售后服务、维修与服务供货商能以预先协调好的更低价格采购其原料。截至目前为止，联想的解决方案已经取得了以下好处： ●改善现金转换循环； ●透过降低核心商品的采购成本，加强市场竞争力； ●改善的货源保证与供应分配能力； ●对供货商的反应周期时间从几小时缩短到几分钟。 云端解决方案本身并不能解决所有的供应链问题，专家指出对于安全的顾虑是云端运算最重要的问题。但是，就作为一种工具来看，云端技术可为创新提供无穷尽的机会。 根据Accenture公司表示：“云端运算可望实现范围更广泛且强大的功能，但其潜在的用途过于广泛且难以预测。可以肯定的是──在未来的日子里──它将从根本上重塑计算机运算能力如何采购与管理、信息如何进行控制以及供应链信息技术经济。” 本文授权编译自EBN Online，版权所有，谢绝转载 编译：Susan Hong 参考英文原文：Cloud Can Unlock Supply Chain Innovations，by Barbara Jorgensen, EBN Community Editor

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{pagination} Cloud Can Unlock Supply Chain Innovations Barbara Jorgensen Supply chain innovation can come from anywhere: A minor process change can streamline a time-consuming function or a full-blown MRP solution can automate such processes. One of the more promising platforms for supply chain innovation is the cloud. The cloud, proponents say, enables better communication and collaboration across supply networks. The systems most often used by the electronics supply chain -- EDI, MRP or ERP -- are closed, costly, and don't communicate very well. Two key aspects of the cloud are enabling businesses to come up with new solutions to old problems, such as partner connectivity and cost. First, the cloud is Internet-based and scalable, so it allows partners to share data across a supply network without a lot of upfront investment. Second, users can develop a set of "rules" that enable partners to see the information they need while protecting other data. "ERP systems weren't designed to work across multiple platforms," explained Greg Kefer, director of corporate marketing for cloud-based solutions provider GT Nexus, in an interview earlier this year. "Every company's data is stored in 'silos;' in some cases a corporation will have more than [one] silo within its own four walls. The data simply isn't flowing across the [supply] network." GT Nexus takes data, translates it, and makes the data available to select members of the network. Although the information is standardized, linked, and centrally stored in the cloud, it is also partitioned. It is visible only to stakeholders that have been granted permission. "Being part of a group does not necessarily mean every partner sees the data," explains Kefer. Large OEMs are using the cloud to make it easier for small partners to collaborate in a supply network. PC manufacturer Lenovo, for example, uses a cloud-based solution from E2open to reduce partner on-boarding time as well as cost. It also uses the cloud for its procurement system. "One of [Lenovo's] key challenges was to increase control and transparency of purchasing costs associated with strategic components, while continuing to reap the efficiency and risk mitigation benefits of outsourcing," according to a recent case study published in conjunction with E2open. By leveraging the cloud, Lenovo now has direct control of strategic components purchasing regardless of where its PCs are manufactured. Procurement is managed through a single hub in Hong Kong. Specifically, Lenovo's Hong Kong procurement solution provides: · Complete automation and tracking of the order-to-cash and procure-to-pay processes · Elimination of the need for manual touches and data aggregation · Support for discrete orders and blanket orders/scheduling agreements · Purchase order (PO) collaboration between Lenovo and its suppliers and contract manufacturers · Confidential pricing agreements with key suppliers The system also provides support for Lenovo's global service network, enabling post-sale, warranty, and service providers to purchase their materials at lower, pre-negotiated prices. To date, Lenovo's solution has yielded the following benefits: · Improved cash conversion cycle · Strengthened market competitiveness through reduced purchasing costs of core commodities · Improved supply assurance and supply allocation abilities · Cycle time on supplier responses reduced from hours to minutes The cloud itself is not a solution to all supply chain problems: Experts cite security concerns among the cloud's shortcomings. As a tool, though, the cloud could provide endless opportunities for innovation. According to a recent Accenture article: Cloud computing promises to enable a wide and powerful range of capabilities; yet its potential uses are exceptionally broad and difficult to foretell. What is certain is that -- in the years to come -- it will radically reshape how computing power is sourced and managed, how information is controlled, and the economics of supply chain information technology.