Customisation, Late

When customers demand a wide range of different products, the implications for manufacturers and supply chains is that there is a wide variety of variants made and held as inventory in the supply chain. In order to reduce inventories without compromising customer service, late customisation involves creating modular components from which a wide variety of final products may be made. For example, a computer manufacturer may make all of the key modules of a laptop computer, but instead of making the finished laptop for stock, it assembles the specific permutation of modules required by the customer only after the customer has placed their order. This requires short assembly periods, short lead times and modular design. See also Agility.

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Discover the world’s largest Glossary of Procurement terms

With over 800 Procurement specific terms (and growing) you will find everything you need to know or thought you knew about the Procurement function. Our aim is to provide you with a comprehensive list collated from the Comprara Groups hub of training and consulting source materials.The Procurement Glossary has been compiled by industry expert Paul Rogers.