Application Of Information Technology In The Optimization Of Supply Chain Management

What is modern supply chain management (SCM)? It means that operations activities such as management, plan, organization, direction, coordination and control etc., make full use of modern information technology to optimize the entire supply chain process system as well as high efficiency in data communion and exchanging between its each tache, which is subject to the ultimate goal of lowest cost and best service for SCM process. What it handling about is the production process, which includes raw material, spare part purchase, transportation, processing, producing, retail and storage. It doesn't meet the end until reaching the final customer.The key point in SCM process optimization lies in modern information technology utilization, by which help establishing an information-based society of management. Furthermore, it helps improving logistic efficiency and conforming the entire production and logistic, thus greatly reducing transaction cost.This paper introduce the forming, developing and changing of modern SCM, in which elaborates the theory structure, characteristic, type, content and core viewpoints and so on. It tells about how SCM should face with challenges in rapid change basing on an exterior competition environment and internal management needs. Moreover, it points out the only way to go out of the hot water, which realize SCM process information integration and sharing by making full use of advanced information technology. First of all, this paper emphasizes several commonly used information technology in modern SCM process, which have been playing different role in the different phases of SCM development. They include Electron Data Interchange (EDI), Internet/Intranet technology, modern communication, database technology and all kinds of automatic identify technology.Secondly, It aims at analyzing SCM optimization by advanced information technology applying in the process, including purchase, transportation, production, stock, retails and sales. Then it concludes that utilization of advanced information technology, especially for the promotion of modern Radio Frequency Identification technology (RFID), does promote SCMgreatly.With the aid of supply chain management based on modern information technology, data in SCM can be gathered automatically, what would be helped in a series of aspects, such as reducing stocks, improving product track and management, improving supply chain reaction rate, improving product transportation process, reducing loss in stock and robbery. In a word, it optimizes the entire process of SCM by enhancing working efficiency and raising customer service. The transformation of non-structure information to structured information communion was realized by information integration and communion, which helps improving the structure and the base of information in SCM process, and finally achieves the ultimate goal of enhancing benefits and enterprise competitive ability.