Seeking to give manufacturers visibility into not only incoming supplies, but also the movements of finished products, E2open today unveiled version 7.0 of its self-named software suite, calling it a breakthrough in end-to-end supply chain execution.
E2open 7.0 comprises three main applications: the Demand Network Solution, the Supply Network Solution, and the Outsourced Partner Network Solution. The distinguishing addition — and the feature that makes the 7.0 version a next-generation offering — is the demand capability, said Rich Becks, senior vice president of supply-demand solutions at the company.
“Basically, what we did was we leveraged the experience and technology we brought on the inbound side and we moved it into the outbound side,” Becks told Managing Automation in an interview.
That technology taps into the vast stream of transactions that connect a manufacturer — in the case of E2open’s customer pool, primarily those with sales of $500 million and up — to its suppliers, distributors, and other business partners. The supply-side application taps information on the shipment of components or raw materials from suppliers to the manufacturer. In 7.0, E2open closes the loop between supply and demand, helping a company gaze into the marketplace with near real-time visibility to understand how products are performing.