| Order fulfillment process in the Swedish Armed Forces : Case study: Aquiring medical capabillity Role 2 for the Nordic Battle Group (2008) | |||||||||||
Abstract | |||||||||||
| Today the Swedish Armed Forces (SAF) is in a process of transformation, with the focus changing from homeland defence to more expeditionary operations. This change is being driven by a trend towards increasing international commitments. The shift from a national to an international focus has created a new set of demands on SAF which place pressure for greater efficiency on the supply chain, not least the order fulfilment process (OFP). Today material managers can have a significant impact on lead-time reduction, but often it is not clear on which aspects of the process managers should focus their efforts and capital to bring about improvements in the supply chain and the order fulfilment process.To increase understanding of this phenomenon and spread knowledge about the subject, the purpose of this thesis has been to analyze factors in the order fulfilment process for Role 2 medical equipment, in order to meet the new demands for developing military capabilities, such as NBG, in the near future. This has been completed with the support of theory on commercial supply chain management and an inductive approach has been taken.The results of the analysis show that there are similarities between the empirical and theoretical elements. Several actors in the process are well aware of what needs to be done to improve the OFP; hence, there are some implications worthy of emphasis. However, the results also indicate that the use of measurements is not considered as a key principle for the management of processes by the respondents. Nevertheless, by using measurements in the OFP, SAF could better define the actual order cycle time and indirectly improve the OFP.The main conclusion from the analysis is that competence seems to be the essential factor in increasing efficiency in the OFP to meet the demand for the development of new military capabilities, such as the NBG. It almost appears that this factor has been forgotten or is being neglected by SAF. Therefore, in order to progress, and improve the OFP, it is strongly recommended that SAF takes a much more serious approach to specialized education and training programs in logistics management in the future. | |||||||||||
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