Wooden products supply chain to India : a study on glue board planks and finished products

Sammanfattning: We live in a global world with companies that operate in different countries and continents. This globalization creates great opportunities for companies to reach new markets, but also lead to increased competition. This competition makes it essential for companies to constantly work with costs. One important cost for global companies is the logistical costs that arise during transport of goods between countries. This report was written in conjunction with IKEA. The aim of the study is to investigate how the costs are affected if material or finished products are sent to India. The study was made on container freight for three different wooden products, which were transported by truck and boat to India. The work begins with a literature review of what previously had been done within the field. The study is a flexible case study that uses both qualitative and quantitative data. The data was collected in interviews by telephone, meetings, and in the form of computer files, and information sent by mail. Data gathering and data processing continued throughout the course of the work. To achieve the aim of the study, the report investigates the structure of the supply chain and costs was quantified and located. Lead times, supply strategies, and stocks were researched. The report also investigates existing risks in different parts of the chain and which risks that have the greatest influence on the chain. Examples of risks that are treated are the risk that the supply chain fails to supply the department stores, transport risks and control risks. After the data had been collected, the report presents it with maps, tables and models. These figures give a picture over the chain's different parts, costs and a model is presented that shows the costs and how they affect each other. The model is general, which allows it to be used in other similar cases. On the collected data analyses such as sensitivity analysis and break-even analysis to better describe the effect of different costs. The conclusions drawn at the end of the work are that it is cheaper to transport planks and glue board instead of finished products. Material cost is the biggest factor that affects the total cost the most, but taxes and fill rates also affect the final cost considerably. The biggest risks in the chain are that the department stores not get the products on time or that accidents occur in the chain. The supply chain is lean and the forecasts are a very important feature for the chain´s efficiency.