Date:29/11/2004 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2004/11/29/stories/2004112900770300.htm

Back Samsung to improve efficiency of supply chain management

Neha Kaushik

New Delhi , Nov. 28

WHILE the introduction of value-added tax (VAT) in the country is still in the offing, Samsung, like other corporates, is strategising about the changes it would have to make in its supply chain management to take maximum advantage of the new tax regime.

In fact, the company estimates that if VAT is introduced in the country, it will be able to bring down the number of warehouses from 25 to 20. "Efficiency will definitely increase with the introduction of VAT," says Mr Bong Sik Park, Director - Support Division, Samsung India Electronics.

Agrees Mr Park Sungchil, Senior Vice-President, Corporate SCM Group, Samsung Electronics (Korea), "In a large country like India, there is a bigger opportunity to save money on the supply chain management (SCM) side".

Mr Sungchil, who is heading the supply chain operations of Samsung globally, is in India to conduct training on best practices in SCM utilised by Samsung across the world. "The executives will be required to take an exam on the subject and pass it too," he quips.

Samsung is running several pilot projects globally to improve efficiency on the supply chain side and make it more "speedy". "In fact, while most companies are still working on a monthly system, we switched to a weekly one several years ago and are now running a pilot in Korea to reduce the cycle to a daily basis," says Mr Sungchil.