Supply Chain

2004 became a transitional year in which many organizations reconsidered tactical supply chain investments, favoring a more strategic view of their overall supply chain performance. For 2005 and beyond, supplier management and inter-enterprise integration will become priorities as organizations drive overall business performance management objectives through process-oriented systems.

Achieving the Holy Grail of "perfect orders" involves more than just plugging data into software. Companies must also restructure their supply chain processes from end to end.

Intentia International AB has released the latest version of its business applications suite, an update that's likely to be the software's last major overhaul before Intentia completes a planned merger with fellow midmarket ERP (enterprise resource planning) software maker Lawson Software Inc.

Although there was nothing wrong with Hospital Logistic Inc.

SAP AG is waiting for retail software maker Retek Inc. to respond to its acquisition offer before commenting on a counter bid from arch rival Oracle Corp., SAP's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) said Thursday. "We cannot comment on this development until we have heard from Retek," said SAP CEO Henning Kagermann at a news conference at the Cebit trade show. "When we hear from Retek, then we can talk again."

There's much talk about RFID being the next big thing, but is it ready for prime time? Although the technology has been with us for many years, it still has some hurdles to overcome as a ubiquitous business tool. This RFID primer will put you in the picture

New Zealand has been slow to move into the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) tags in the supply chain, and is in danger of missing a crucial takeoff of the technology over the next year, says Peter Stevens, head of the local branch of the international article-numbering organization, EAN.

If your company is considering radio-frequency identification (RFID) solely because a trading partner mandates the technology, perhaps your firm should expand its mindset on the matter, according to industry watchers.