Similar to Haier Group, China’s automotive industry has an array of suppliers which require sophisticated systems to manage them. China’s auto market, an ongoing hot topic is becoming more competitive and manufacturers have to look at the entire supply chain to cut costs.

BeijingBenzDaimlerChrysler (BBDC) is a more recent joint auto venture which built a new manufacturing …

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Get your suppliers in line

By Russel Beron

While Alfred Dunhill needs specialized service to handle its high value products, large manufacturers such as Haier Group need specialize strategies to handle their suppliers.

According to a Gartner Research study about on Why supplier relationship management matters, procurement costs account for about 50% of expenses. As profit margins in manufacturing tend to be slim, the incentive to save on purchasing costs is very high.

To reduce costs, improve efficiency and obtain competitiveness to support the aggressive sales growth of different business units, Haier Procurement asked the IBM Global Business Services, SCM Procurement team to develop a procurement strategy for them. For their work with Haier, IBM won the CHaINA award for Best Supply Chain Consulting Partner in China. Read the rest of “China’s Supply Chain raises the bar: Part III” or post a comment

By Etienne Charlier

You doubtlessly have heard and read many different stories about sourcing in China. Some are thrilling and others are scary. But ultimately, what really matters is to understand enough of the ins and outs of the China sourcing scene in order to answer a few key questions for your company: To Source or Not To Source; To Source What and What Not To Source?

Sourcing in China is a hot topic. Nevertheless, decisions to source (or not to), what to source and how to source are not little decisions to take because it seems like a good idea. A sourcing project in China is a time consuming but rewarding exercise. It is not for the ill-prepared but it can lead not only to lower cost quality supplies but also to increased flexibility and improved products. Read the rest of “Ins and Outs of Sourcing in China” or post a comment

Similar to the pharmaceutical supply chain, luxury goods have their own complexities.

Until a few years ago, distribution of luxury goods in China were controlled by state owned companies with little knowledge about sophisticated marketing, distribution and supply chain management strategies. Under WTO commitments, companies like Alfred Dunhill were allowed to open their own stores in China in 2003 – the problem was they didn’t have an effective distribution and logistics solution for mainland China.

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Learn lessons from some of the leading companies in China

By Russel Beron

Innovation is a word we are hearing a lot more of in China these days. The consensus is that as manufacturing costs in China continue to rise and supply chain complexity increases, so companies have to innovate both to save money and to increase efficiency.

In this story we take a deeper look into what a few companies and individuals in China, both foreign and Chinese are doing to lead the way in service, supplier management, IT implementation, as well as cost and process efficiency. These companies and individuals were all winners of awards at the November 2007 CHaINA Summit.

Advances across the supply chain in China are taking the form of new IT implementations, greater levels of service through 3PL’s, better supplier management, strategic location of operations and an increased focus on domestic R&D and development of local human and other resources. Read the rest of “China’s Supply Chain raises the bar - Part I” or post a comment