WEBCAST AGENDA

Sun's Supply Chain Landscape and Operational Challenges In today's economy organizations must focus on not only improving operations within an enterprise but also across enterprises to strengthen relationships with suppliers and partners. These improvements can have a dramatic impact on an organization's operating and financial performance. To maintain market share, Sun manages a highly flexible and responsive supply chain to provide high service levels and low lead times, while experiencing high inventory turns and low inventory levels. To manage within Sun's dynamic environment, Sun has created a virtual supply chain that includes its supplier base, as well as third-party logistics providers. This virtual model enables collaboration and communication with Sun's three internal manufacturing facilities and three product distribution centers worldwide. To Top

Sun's Objectives, Implementation Strategy and Modular Approach

Sun has taken a phased, modular approach to implementing solutions to better manage its supply chain. This implementation approach enables a quick return and faster time-to-value.

In order to drive flexibility and responsiveness within its supply chain, Sun focuses on key areas including reducing system and process latency, reducing cost through process automation, improving access to information across the extended supply chain, as well as reducing inventory levels.

To enable success, Sun has adopted a best-of-breed approach for managing its supply chain operations. In addition to i2 solutions, Sun leverages iPlanet infrastructure and many other third-party applications.
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Sun's Deployment of i2 Solutions and the Positive Results

Sun chose i2 solutions as part of its best-of-breed supply chain management strategy. In the area of factory planning and work order automation, Sun has seen more than $1.5 million in cost savings, and has also been able to reduce inventory levels by more than $200 million this fiscal year.

Sun uses i2 solutions for customer collaboration, demand planning, supplier collaboration, automated work order scheduling, as well as direct fulfillment and merge-in-transit.

Using i2 solutions, Sun has also improved forecasting and data accuracy, reduced planning cycle time, as well as improved demand forecasting and collaboration.

Building on the successes to date, Sun envisions continual improvements to its supply chain as a key component of its business strategy.
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Learn more about how Sun:

• Realized $1.5 million in cost savings in factory planning
• Reduced inventory levels by more than $200 million in one fiscal year
• Manages demand fluctuations
• Collaborates with more than 300 direct material suppliers
• Improved forecast accuracy by five to ten percent year over year
• Reduced cycle time to execute a planning process by 16 hours
• Runs factory schedules every four hours with full ERP integration
• Established weekly planning cycles from four times a quarter
• Decreased material-planning communication from three weeks to 48 hours
• Reduced the time it takes from receiving to releasing an order to four hours
• Improved velocity of information exchange across systems
• Improved visibility to multiple tiers of suppliers