Wirtschaftsingenieurwesen und Management

Design for Supply Chain: An Analysis of Key Risk Factors

Abstract

Erin Gross Claypool, Bryan A Norman and Kim LaScola Needy

The objective of Design for Supply Chain (DFSC) is to design a new product and its corresponding supply chain in a simultaneous manner. Several DFSC models have been developed by previous researchers. However, companies also need to manage the risks associated with both the product design and the supply chain. Many of the previous DFSC models do not consider risk. To determine which risk factors should be included in DFSC models, a survey was developed and administered to industry experts. 29 supply chain risk factors and 21 new product development (NPD) risk factors were included in the survey. This paper shows the process that was used to develop this survey and presents its results. The survey identified a list of the top ten risk factors which includes inventory management/stock out risk, strategic exposure risk, market/demand risks, capacity risks, risk of poor supplier reliability, organizational and project management risks, commercial viability risks, marketing proficiency, supply chain and sourcing risks and financial risks.