Natural Resources
The supply of natural resources such as water.Materials
The production of materials such as steel.Ingredients, Parts & Components
The manufacturing of parts and components such as a display for a mobile device.Finished Goods
The manufacturing of finished goods such as a mobile device. Hundreds of parts and components from dozens of countries may go into a single product.Retail, Ecommerce & Services
The sales of goods and services to the customer such as a fashion retailer or a theme park.Customer
Delivering the product to the customer or fulfilling a service. For example, the installation of solar panels on a customer's house as part of the fulfillment of an energy service.Returns, Reuse & Recycling
A modern supply chain can be viewed as a loop where finished goods and services flow to the customer and things flow back for reuse, recycling or as returns.Distribution & Fulfillment
The delivery of a product or service to the customer. For example, a theme park that puts on shows, operates rides and provides food services to fulfill their obligations to customers. Distribution and fulfillment occurs at multiple levels of the supply chain as each level views the next level up as the customer. For example, the food suppliers who deliver food to the theme park or their suppliers who deliver ingredients.Transportation & Warehousing
Transportation and warehousing, also known as logistics is the process of getting resources, materials, ingredients, parts, components and finished goods to the right place at the right time to keep the supply chain operating efficiently.| Overview: Supply Chain | ||
Type | ||
Definition | The end-to-end system that creates products and services and delivers them to the customer. | |
Related Concepts | ||
