Information technology (IT) costs (in US dollars) associated with major supply chain management processes as described below. These costs should include:
- Development costs (costs incurred in process reengineering, planning, software development, installation, implementation, and training associated with new and/or upgraded architecture, infrastructure, and systems to support the described supply chain management processes),
- Execution costs (operating costs to support supply chain process users, including computer and network operations, EDI and telecommunications services, and amortization/depreciation of hardware)
- Maintenance costs (costs incurred in problem resolution, troubleshooting, repair, and routine maintenance associated with installed hardware and software for described supply chain management processes. Includes costs associated with database administration systems configuration control, release planning, and management).
These costs are associated with the following processes:
PLAN
1. Product Data Management - Product phase-in/phase-out and release; post-introduction support and expansion; testing and evaluation; end-of-life inventory management. Item master definition and control.
2. Forecasting and Demand/Supply Manage and Finished Goods - Forecasting; end-item inventory planning, DRP, production master scheduling for all products, all channels.
SOURCE
1. Sourcing/Material Acquisition - Material requisitions, purchasing, supplier quality engineering, inbound freight management, receiving, incoming inspection, component engineering, tooling acquisition, accounts payable.
2. Component and Supplier Management - Part number cross references, supplier catalogs, approved vendor lists.
3. Inventory Management - Perpetual and physical inventory controls and tools.
MAKE
1. Manufacturing Planning - MRP, production scheduling, tracking, manufacturing engineering, manufacturing documentation management, inventory/obsolescence tracking.
2. Inventory Management - Perpetual and physical inventory controls and tools.
3. Manufacturing Execution - MES detailed and finite interval scheduling, process controls, and machine scheduling. DELIVER
1. Order Management - Order entry/maintenance, quotes, customer database, product/price database, accounts receivable, credits and collections, invoicing.
2. Distribution and Transportation Management - DRP, shipping, freight management, traffic management.
3. Inventory Management - Perpetual and physical inventory controls and tools.
4. Warehouse Management - Finished goods, receiving and stocking, pick/pack.
5. Channel Management - Promotions, pricing and discounting, customer satisfaction surveys.
6. Field Service/Support - Field service, customer and field support, technical service, service/call management, returns, warranty tracking.
EXTERNAL ELECTRONIC INTERFACES
Plan/Source/Make/Deliver - Interfaces, gateways, and data repositories created and maintained to exchange supply chain-related information with the outside world. E-commerce initiatives. Includes development and implementation costs.
Note: Accurate assignment of IT-related cost is challenging. It can be done using activity-based costing methods or using other approaches, such as allocation based on user counts, transactions counts, or departmental headcounts. The emphasis should be on capturing all costs. Costs for any outsourced IT activities should be included.