Ford and SynQuest Make Major Breakthrough in Inbound Logistics Planning
10 April 2000
Ford and SynQuest Make Major Breakthrough in Inbound Logistics Planning
ATLANTA--April 10, 2000--Deliveries; Ford and SynQuest To Sell Planning Tool to
Extended Supply Network and Other Industries
Ford Global Technologies, Inc. (FGTI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company, and SynQuest, Inc. today announced they have signed an agreement to commercialize a new, jointly-developed inbound logistics planning application. The Logistics Planning Engine is currently being deployed by Ford and will enable the company to increase the frequency of shipment while simultaneously reducing logistics costs, thus providing significant speed and cost-savings improvements.
The Logistics Planning Engine is the first application to deliver end-users a lowest total cost solution for the shipment of every part needed to manufacture a product. SynQuest will market the solution to Ford's suppliers, driving down total supply chain costs associated with building Ford cars and trucks.
"As the manager of Ford's intellectual capital asset portfolio, FGTI is in a unique position to arrange strategic collaborative relationships with suppliers to develop and commercialize breakthrough technologies," said Roger May, President and CEO of FGTI. "The joint development and commercialization arrangement with SynQuest is a creative example of FGTI's focus to derive strategic value from technology. Ultimately this collaboration produces benefits for everyone and aids Ford in the delivery of superior automotive products and services to our customers."
According to Gerald E. Joyce, Director, Global Logistics at Ford Motor Company, "We have worked with SynQuest to develop a landmark solution for the industry. Never before has a logistics planning problem of this complexity been solved, considering the impact of all the variables."
The Logistics Planning Engine gives Ford a strategic tool to analyze the interaction between sourcing decisions, transportation alternatives and plant inventory levels. The software is also designed to reduce total supply chain costs and increase the velocity of material in the value stream.
The Logistics Planning Engine considers total delivery cost from a number of perspectives, including transportation, ship frequency, inventory, and manufacturing constraints. In the past, solutions have focused primarily on reducing transportation costs; but most often, the lowest transportation cost does not guarantee the lowest total cost. For example, scheduling a weekly, full-truckload delivery to a manufacturing plant, as opposed to a daily "milk run," might make sense from a transportation-cost perspective, but it may totally ignore the speed, quality feedback and inventory considerations. One of the objectives of Ford's material flow process is to have less than two hours in inventory at each work station; a logistics planning tool that ignores this objective is not beneficial.
"The goal at Ford is to develop logistics solutions using tools like the Logistics Planning Engine to increase supply chain velocity and decrease total costs," said Tim Harvey, President and Chief Operating Officer at SynQuest. "Together we have met that goal. The Logistics Planning Engine represents a quantum leap in how the industry can leverage information technology to tackle complex planning challenges and drive rapid implementation across the entire supply chain."
About SynQuest
SynQuest(R) One2One Solutions(TM) help traditional and dotcom companies profitably manage the total supply chain. Through real-time management capabilities, SynQuest products help companies improve responsiveness for each and every customer order. At the same time, SynQuest products provide the best financial answer to customer experience and order fulfillment goals. To help customers quickly achieve dramatic results, the SynQuest Optimal Performance Path(TM) delivers a proven opportunity identification and implementation framework. For more information, call (800) 844-3228 or visit www.synquest.com.
SynQuest is a registered trademark of SynQuest, Inc., Atlanta, Ga. SynQuest One2One Solutions and SynQuest Optimal Performance Path are trademarks of SynQuest Inc., Atlanta, Ga. All other trademarks are properties of their respective companies