Supply Chain Logistics

As more and more businesses turn to on-line purchasing, their means of supplying the customer with those goods has undergone a drastic change. No longer does the consumer have to drive to a store in order to purchase a wanted item, all that is needed is a computer, in internet connection and the url for the company. By logging onto a web site hosted by a company a consumer is able to browse on-line catalogues of items offered, select which item or items appeal to them, place the purchase request and pay for the purchase without having to leave the comfort of their home or office.

In today’s market we are seeing a much easier flow of upstream information, consumer to producer and of downstream information, producer to consumer (IEEE, 2005). In order to facilitate a downstream flow of information so consumers can make informed decisions there will be a continued need for information aggregators. A single manufacturer won’t be able to perform all of the processing steps for a consumer but there will no longer be a need for a middle man to basically repackage the order.

Packages are now able to go directly from the business to the consumer without the hassle