Successful buildtoorder strategies start with the customer. The concept of postponement was closely related to that of mass customization, the key to mass customization effectively is postponing the task of differentiating a product for a specific customer until the. Dick conrad, senior vice president, hp global operations supply chain 1 edward feitzinger and hau l. In this highly competitive market, breakfast cereal.
Case studies of postponement in the supply chain by susan m. Product uniqueness as a driver of customer utility in mass customization. Postponement is a mass customization technique that is applicable for certain products that can have their variety postponed until just before shipping. Lee graduate school of business stanford university stanford, ca 94305 august, 2001. However, the provision of product variety comes with. Supply chain management core curriculum reading related. Even without trying to customize their products, most companies have found it difficult to. Even though the localization of the printers was postponed, the regional distribution centers still produced the localized printers in a maketostock fashion. Postponement, mass customization at hewlet packared.
Apr 01, 2005 evaluation of postponement structures to accommodate mass customization evaluation of postponement structures to accommodate mass customization su, jack c. Regarding the independent variables, the effects of technology adoption on mc, product customization, and labor productivity were mostly positive and significant. Feitzinger e and hl lee 1997 mass customization at hewlett. Mass customization at in many mass markets, companies are facing a predicament. The issue of postponement as an enabler of customization is a natural segway to the design for postponement literature. Mass customization is a trend in which the benefi t of mass production and product customization both are included. Reebok and nike postponed the process of printing to later period to mass customize nfl jerseys. Hp spam hewlettpackard strategic planning and modeling is an internal consulting group that supports hp businesses on missioncritical strategic and operation decisions. Postponement is consistently mentioned as one of the central features of mass customization. In the supreme court of the united states life technologies corporation, et al. The key to mass customizing effectively is postponing the task of differentiating a product for a specific customer until the latest possible point in the supply network.
Find link is a tool written by edward betts searching for mass customization 47 found 1 total alternate case. As evidenced by its publications and awards, spam has been a. Revised august 2002, january 2003 to appear as a chapter in the handbook of orms on supply chain management edited. This has renewed researcher interest in studying the benefits of postponement. Reading mass customization at hewlett packard the power of. From mass production to mass customization of led lighting.
Hewlettpackard has effectively used postponement to realize mass customization in their printer and pc businesses feitzinger and lee 1997. Although mass customization appears to be an oxymoron made up of two contradictory termsmass production and customizationit is very much a reality today as several companies in the united states and the world are using this concept in their daily production and operations management. Design for postponement university of north carolina at. A new product customization process for laserjet printers in. The article presents the history of postponement, characteristics of this concept, types of postponement and important information about its implementation in global supply chains. Analysis of postponement strategy for perishable items by. In this conceptual paper, we propose that the next stage of evolution of mass customization is customerizationa buyercentric company strategy that combines mass customization with customized marketing. The key to masscustomizing effectively is postponing the task of differentiating a product for a specific customer until the latest possible point in the supply network. The power of postponement by edward feitzinger and hau l. The 4 series has various models, including the standard laserjet 4 for business use, the 4l for personal use and the 4p for small businesses. The key to mass customizing effectively is postponing the task of differentiating a. Evaluation of postponement structures to accommodate mass customization evaluation of postponement structures to accommodate mass customization su, jack c. Spams mission is to drive innovation and datadriven decisions in hp through assisting with analytics, consulting, and operations management.
The paper aims to present postponement strategy as a crucial element of logistics strategies of todays global supply chains. Feitzinger and lee advanced the notion that postponing the final configuration of products enables an expanded offering of product variety in a cost. Pdf mass customization aims to deliver products and services that best meet individual customers needs with near mass production efficiency. Read the article listed below and answer the questions below. A classic example of a company using fp is hewlett packard s hp postponement of the final assembly of their deskjet printers to their local distribution centers lee et al. The power of postponement your response should be comprehensive and detailed. Indeed, mass customization has become a business requirement for many high technology companies. The concept of mass customization mc focuses on satisfying individual customers unique needs with the help of technologies such as agile manufacturing, flexible manufacturing systems, computer integrated manufacturing, and information and communication systems. On the one hand, customers are demanding that their orders be fulfilled ever more quickly. Postponement strategy in supply chain management mba. Hewlettpackard companys key to mass customizing effectively is to postpone the task of differentiating a product for a specific.
In their landmark paper, zinn and bowersox 10 defined and analyzed five different types of postponement labeling, packaging, assembly, manufacturing, and time. Mass customization is not an oxymoronit is reality. Nov 12, 2012 mass customization at hewlett packard. The hp laserjet 4 abbreviated sometimes to lj4 or hp4 is a group of monochrome laser printers produced in the early to mid1990s as part of the laserjet series by hewlett packard hp. Instead of taking a piecemeal approach, companies must rethink and integrate the. Pdf implications of postponement for the supply chain. Rietze submitted to the department of civil and environmental engineering on may 12, 2006, in partial ful. Hewlettpackard deskjet printer supply chain a and b. Evaluation of postponement structures to accommodate mass.
First 90 days, by michael watkins, a proven guide for leaders in career transition, offers strategies for getting up to speed quickly in your new role. Find link is a tool written by edward betts searching for mass customization 48 found 1 total alternate case. For an interesting discussion of the strategic role of knowledge platforms, see. On the other hand, they are demanding highly customized products and services. Mass customization and beyond evolution of cocreation. Swaminathan kenanflagler business school university of north carolina chapel hill, nc27599 hau l. The concept of postponement is increasingly drawing the attention of researchers and practitioners.
This allows the producer to achieve the marketing benefits. Nov 24, 2015 mass customization at hewlett packard. They show that postponement structures allow firms to meet the increased customized demands with lower inventory levels in the case of tp, or with shorter leadtimes in the case of fp. Postponement in logistics strategies of global supply chains. It is analyzed the capabilities of the existing production systems within a company producing. Postponement means delaying activities in the supply chain until customer orders are received with the intention of customizing products, as opposed to performing those activities in anticipation of future orders. Effects of technology adoption on mass customization. Optimal investment in productexible manufacturing capacity. One p ractical example is hewlettpackard development company. Hp spam hewlett packard strategic planning and modeling is an internal consulting group that supports hp businesses on missioncritical strategic and operation decisions. Mass customization is an important business concept, which numerous brands are adopting these days. Moreover, the concept is also utilized in the development of marketing strategies for product and service lines and during the process of recognizing the target audience of a brand or business. Hp produces genericprinters in its factories and distribute s them to local distribution centers, where power plugs with.
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