The Role of Forecasting in a Supply Chain

Demand forecasts form the basis of all supply chain planning. Consider the push/pull view of the supply chain discussed in Chapter 1. All push processes in the supply chain are performed in anticipation of customer demand, whereas all pull processes are performed in response to customer demand. For push processes, a manager must plan the level of activity, be it production, transportation, or any other planned activity. For puU processes, a manager must plan the level of available capacity and inventory, but not the actual amount to be executed. In both instances, the first step a manager must take is to forecast what customer demand will be. 

A Home Depot store selling paint orders the base paint and dyes in anticipation of customer orders, whereas it performs final mixing of the paint in response to customer orders. Home Depot uses a forecast of future demand to determine the quantity of paint and dye to have on hand (a push process). Farther up the supply chain, the paint factory that produces the base also needs 

Consider the value of collaborative forecasting for Coca-Cola and its bottlers. Coca-Cola decides on the timing of promotions based on the demand forecast over the coming quarter. Promotion decisions are then incorporated into an updated demand forecast. The updated forecast is essential for the bottlers to plan their capacity and production decisions. A bottler operating without an updated forecast based on the promotion is unlikely to have sufficient supply available for Coca-Cola, thus hurting supply chain profits. 

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