Traditional systems treat the problem of supply chain planning as an enterprise-centric optimization problem. The emphasis is on modeling the enterprise’s constraints in great detail and then applying sophisticated algorithms to optimize around those constraints. In this approach, the model for the demands of a customer and the capabilities of a supplier are relatively light. The coordination of the enterprise’s optimized plans with those of its customers and suppliers is relegated to secondary “collaboration” tools. In contrast, Amitive’s approach treats the problem of supply chain planning as collaborative, cross-enterprise activity. The activity of planning is viewed as the activity of synchronizing the plans of the enterprise with those of its customers and suppliers.

This fundamentally different view of the problem of supply chain management requires far richer models of the customer and the supplier. The aim of such models is to comprehend as much detail about this extended supply chain as is necessary in order to align the enterprises within it. In addition, this requires algorithms that are both fast and effective. Together, these models and algorithms aim to keep the buyers and suppliers in sync by minimizing the latency and inefficiencies that plague such communities.

In early 2008, Amitive engaged our services to provide leadership in the design of these models and algorithms. The work that spanned about 18 months led to innovative, patent-pending work in the area of algorithms for optimal demand fulfillment and incremental planning.