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by Hallie Forcinio, Contributing Editor   When a global heavyweight manufacturer endeavors to clean up its supply network, the results are bound to be big. In 2002, IBM Corp. (Armonk, NY) established its Integrated Supply Chain (ISC) division. By 2005, the high-tech giant was saving $25 million per business day, a feat that produced cost reductions of $6 billion for the year and helped deliver $7.9 billion in net income on revenue of $91.1 billion. During the same period, average payment terms shrank by two days and cycle time accelerated 6%. Speeding inventory turns and improving collections and supplier payment terms generated more than $580 million in cash for the company in 2005. With the ISC initiative now in its fourth year, customers are more satisfied and internal synergies have materialized. But most indicative of the initiative's success is its expansion to the company's services organization, where it not only is being implemented in-house, but also is being offered to customers. [Click to continue] |