New Quality
Global supply chains require a special level of quality in IT infrastructure. This is shown, for example, in the way that the new ATLAS system for customs clearance is being implemented.
(logistik journal 07.2009) The current economic situation illustrates clearly the extent to which supply chains have become increasingly globalized and interlinked. In mastering the complexity of these structures, commercial opportunities evolve to benefit from a strengthened global economic situation. The global champions of tomorrow are already working on creating the structure for their future success. No one doubts that IT will have a special role to play, because it is key to introducing new levels of quality in mastering processes that are both internal and external to the company.
The contribution that IT can make to introducing new levels of quality into Supply Chain Execution (SCE) as a whole can be seen in the way that the ATLAS system for customs clearance (mandatory from July 1st, 2009) is being implemented. Applied in an intelligent fashion, the customs software required is an integral component of a standardized IT infrastructure that aims at optimizing the preparation, monitoring and control of global transportation.
Central to this kind of platform for Supply Chain Execution is the transportation management system which controls the complex optimization routines and takes into account all the associated aspects. The interaction between all the IT systems involved in the overall planning, monitoring and control of global transportation is synchronized by means of a Collaborative Integration Platform (CIP) such as that supplied by inet-logistics. At the heart of this controlling entity is a powerful transportation management system designed to control the optimization process whilst taking into account information from other systems such as customs management, container management and freight cost management.
