Management Science Letters (Mar 2013)
JIT supply chain; an investigation through general system theory
Abstract
This paper explains theoretical approach of the four theories of General system Theory (GST) developed by Yourdon (1989) [Yourdon, E. (1989). Modern Structured Analysis. Yourdon Press, Prentice-Hall International, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. Senge] while applying it in information technology and subsequently used by caddy (2007) [Caddy I.N., & Helou, M.M. (2007). Supply chains and their management: Application of general systems theory. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 14, 319–327.] in field of supply chain and management. JIT philosophy in core activities of supply chain i.e. procurement, production processes, and logistics are discussed through general system theory. The growing structure of the supply chain poses the implication restrictions and requires a heavy support system, many times a compromise is done while implementing JIT. The study would be useful to understand the general trends generated naturally regarding the adoption of the JIT philosophy in the supply chain.
