- Supply Chain Management: the coordination and management of all activities involved in the production and delivery of a product or service, from the supplier to the end customer.
- Logistics: the management of the flow of goods, information, and other resources between the point of origin and the point of consumption in order to meet customer requirements.
- Procurement: the process of acquiring goods and services from external sources, typically from suppliers.
- Demand Planning: the process of estimating future demand for a product or service, which is a crucial factor in supply chain management.
- Forecasting: the process of using historical data and other information to make informed predictions about future demand.
- Inventory Management: the practice of overseeing and controlling the inventory of a business to ensure that enough inventory is available to meet demand, while avoiding excess inventory that can lead to waste and increased costs.
- Material Requirements Planning (MRP): a system that calculates the materials required to manufacture a product based on demand, inventory levels, and other factors.
- Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP II): a system that integrates all aspects of production planning, from demand forecasting to capacity planning, in order to optimize production processes.
- Capacity Planning: the process of determining the production capacity required to meet future demand.
- Distribution: the process of getting products from the manufacturer to the customer, which can include transportation, warehousing, and other activities.
- Transportation Management: the process of planning and executing the movement of goods from one location to another, including shipping, freight, and other related activities.
- Warehouse Management: the practice of managing the flow of goods into, through, and out of a warehouse.
- Cross-Docking: a logistics technique where goods are unloaded from incoming trucks and immediately reloaded onto outbound trucks, with minimal handling or storage in between.
- Just-In-Time (JIT): a manufacturing philosophy that focuses on producing goods only when they are needed, to avoid excess inventory and reduce costs.
- Kanban: a visual system for managing production processes, often used in JIT systems.
- Lean Manufacturing: a production philosophy that focuses on reducing waste and maximizing efficiency, to create a continuous flow of materials and products through the supply chain.
- Total Quality Management (TQM): a management approach that focuses on continuous improvement of processes, products, and services to meet or exceed customer expectations.
- Six Sigma: a data-driven approach to quality management, which seeks to eliminate defects and reduce variability in production processes.
- Kaizen: a Japanese term meaning "continuous improvement," often used in the context of lean manufacturing and other quality improvement methodologies.
- Continuous Improvement: the ongoing effort to improve products, services, and processes over time, often using methods such as Kaizen or TQM.
- Quality Control: the process of ensuring that products or services meet established quality standards.
- Quality Assurance: the process of ensuring that a product or service is designed and produced to meet customer requirements.
- Reverse Logistics: the process of managing the flow of goods in the reverse direction, from the customer back to the manufacturer or distributor, for purposes such as returns, repairs, or recycling.
- Green Logistics: the practice of managing the logistics process in an environmentally friendly way, to reduce the impact on the environment.
- Last-Mile Delivery: the final stage in the delivery of a product or service to the end customer, typically the most expensive and time-consuming part of the logistics process.
- Freight Forwarder: a company that arranges and coordinates the transportation of goods on behalf of shippers.
- Carrier: a company that provides transportation services, such as shipping or trucking.
- Third-Party Logistics (3PL): a company that provides logistics services on behalf of other companies, such as warehousing, transportation, or distribution