Create a Supply Chain

¶ … supply chain dynamics and what part forecasting and supply chain infrastructure plays in the development and movement of a new product, let alone one that has been around a while and whose sales are predictable. Of course, individual supply chains and the systems they make up play a large part in the overall results for everyone. There is also forecasting and how it affects just-in-time (JIT) production and lean production and this is especially true in automotive manufacturing plants.

While other systems may yield decent to great results at times, proper forecasting coupled with the right supply chain system, such as JIT and Lean, are the normal coin of the realm and this will likely not change for some time. Analysis Forecasting is the art of projecting how much of an item or supply will be needed and what will need to happen to get things where they are needed and when they are needed. However, the question posed for this assignment points to a brand new product.

Indeed, projecting what will happen and what will be needed for a new product is entirely dependent on what goes into making the product as well as how well it does or does not sell. Of course, supply chains are almost always part of larger systems and if one bogs down, the others will have to adjust accordingly even if that means slowing down from optimal production schedules.

This could mean idle machines or people sitting on their hands due to one link in the chain causing havoc for the other parts of the supply chain system (Gonzalez-Benito, Lannelongue & Alfaro-Tanco, 2013; Bohme et al., 2014). While not automotive, supply chain logistics can be explained with the resin that goes into the making of computer memory.

While there are many processes and people involved in making computer memory, there are times where resin becomes cost-prohibitive and/or unavailable and this causes major issues with everyone from the people who make the memory to those that wish to buy it at good prices (Cheng, 2014). Automotive manufacturing is no different.

If any minor or major component of a car such as the rubber, the fluids or the metal becomes hard to get cheaply or hard to get no matter what, then the production cycle will grow larger and larger. This means it will take longer to make a car and this will drive up costs (Gonzalez-Benito, Lannelongue & Alfaro-Tanco, 2013; Bohme et al., 2014). The author will now, also at the request of the assignment parameters, make up a rudimentary supply chain for the selling of canned peaches to consumers.

Indeed, there would be three major parts to such a chain. The peaches would have to be grown (or bought), then brought to the warehouse and then canned. Upon canning, the canned peaches would have to be sold and then transported to points of sales like Wal-Mart or Kroger stores. Raw materials involved would be the materials to harvest the peaches (or the money to pay someone else to do it), the cans and labels to can the peaches and anything else needed to collect, organize or can the peaches.

The peaches would probably be transported via truck unless they are going overseas in which case a ship would probably be the best way to go given that flying such heavy cargo would be very pricy (Gonzalez-Benito, Lannelongue & Alfaro-Tanco, 2013; Bohme et al., 2014). Of course, there are risks involved with this process and supply chain. Whether the growing of the peaches is done in-house or not, there would need to be care taken for weather conditions that reduce harvests or at least reduce the quality of the peaches.

There are also liability and safety risks in transporting peaches to the factory to be canned or away from the factory to be sold to stores. Accidents and other disasters could happen at the factory that can lead to loss of life or at least injury.

Things like power failures and such can lead to factory being idle and this is a bad thing when dealing with something that can spoil or can otherwise lead to the item not being able to be sold due to safety or other regulatory or ethical reasons (Gonzalez-Benito, Lannelongue & Alfaro-Tanco, 2013; Bohme et al., 2014). As for how to mitigate or eliminate these risks, there are several ways. First, there should be multiple suppliers of peaches so that one can fill the void if one or more others falls off.

Second, those suppliers need to be in the most pristine and reliable areas of production rather than on the edges where the production much more easily and readily falls off. As for internal risks, all equipment should be made as safe as possible and safety programs should be enforced.