The "cloud" can be a difficult concept to grasp, given the various definitions it has been assigned by software vendors and users. Greg Johnsen, executive vice president of marketing and sales with GT Nexus, calls it "an information replica of the physical supply chain." Cloud-based technology provides one place where managers can go to monitor critical supply-chain events. When an element is updated, "everybody gets the information."
Analyst Insight: Today's supply chains are efficient, and inflexible. Market conditions change, but planning continues based on historical information. Global supply chains need better planning, but traditional technologies are not up to the task. New technologies are emerging to help to fill the gap. We are entering the era of Big Data Supply Chains that will sense before responding and learn before acting. - Lora Cecere, partner, Altimeter Group
Descartes Systems Group has created a pair of cloud-based services to help air freight forwarders comply with U.S. and European security filing requirements.
Warehouse-management system (WMS) software is hardly new, but users are increasingly on the lookout for new applications that can be implemented more quickly and less painfully, says Diego Pantoja-Navajas, president and chief executive officer of Logfire. Among the new features they are exploring is the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model, dubbed more recently cloud-based technology.
Initiatives such as the Global Supply Chain Forum, which resides at Ohio State University's Fisher College of Business, give the business world access to academic expertise and valuable research, says forum director Douglas M. Lambert. Such efforts are becoming more common, he says, adding that "the business community ought to be our laboratory."
Hubspan Inc., a vendor of business-integration software based in the cloud, has released six new business-to-business applications, built using the NetSuite SuiteCloud Computing Platform.
Encompass Global Logistics LLC, a third-party logistics provider specializing in the trans-Pacific trade, has launched a mobile application for cargo management, compatible with all Apple iPhone, iPad and iPod products.
