The speed of technological innovation is exhilarating and sometimes feels like a white-knuckle ride. But this technology is not an end in itself – it is a tool for managers and planners to build better supply chains and logistics.

Can you imagine running a supply chain without phones, faxes or email? One where you were dependent upon the mail for orders and information? In this information age, that is truly a business nightmare. The time is rapidly approaching when we will not be able to run supply chain and logistics operations without Internet services. Because of these seamless and real time communications, supply chains will finally become event driven. Genuine knowledge of what is going on out there NOW and the ability to automatically alert affected players means we will be able to fix problems as they arise. There will no longer be the need to be re-active and struggle to find data which will tell us what went wrong and why.