Newly Released APICS CSCP Exam PDF

Concurrent engineering, also known as participative design, is a method used to bring new products to market quickly while maximizing customer value and minimizing costs. It involves the simultaneous design and development of a product and its related processes by cross-functional teams. This approach ensures that design, manufacturing, and other considerations are integrated early in the development process, leading to faster time-to-market, improved product quality, and reduced costs. While leveraging top-performing suppliers, crowdsourcing, and e-commerce can contribute to the process, concurrent engineering provides a comprehensive framework for rapid and efficient product development.

References:

• Prasad, B. (1996). Concurrent Engineering Fundamentals: Integrated Product and Process Organization.
• https://www.npd-solutions.com/concurrent.html

In a make-to-stock environment, the most appropriate measure of the availability of products to ship is the fill rate. Fill rate measures the percentage of customer orders that can be fulfilled from available inventory without delay. Key aspects include:

• Customer Satisfaction: A high fill rate indicates that customers receive their orders promptly, leading to higher satisfaction levels.
• Inventory Efficiency: It reflects the efficiency of inventory management practices and the ability to maintain adequate stock levels to meet demand.
• Order Fulfillment: The fill rate directly impacts the order fulfillment process and is a critical metric for assessing the effectiveness of supply chain operations.

References:

• Coyle, J. J., Langley, C. J., Novack, R. A., & Gibson, B. J. (2016). Supply Chain Management: A Logistics Perspective. Cengage Learning.
• Ballou, R. H. (2004). Business Logistics/Supply Chain Management. Pearson.

Building collaborative relationships with trading partners requires a foundational commitment from top management. This ensures that the initiative has the necessary support, resources, and alignment with the company’s strategic goals. Commitment from leadership drives the cultural and organizational changes needed for effective collaboration. Subsequent steps include implementing technology for information sharing, documenting transaction rules, and organizing cross-enterprise teams.References:

• "Building Collaborative Relationships with Suppliers," Supply Chain Management Review.
• "The Role of Top Management in Supply Chain Collaboration," Journal of Business Logistics.

Qualitative extrinsic data are data that are obtained from external sources and are not based on numerical measurements, but rather on opinions, judgments, or perceptions. Qualitative extrinsic data are used with qualitative forecasting techniques, such as the Delphi method. The Delphi method is a technique that involves a panel of experts who provide their opinions on a topic through a series of questionnaires. The results of each questionnaire are summarized and fed back to the panel, allowing them to revise their opinions based on the feedback. The process is repeated until a consensus is reached or the opinions stabilize . The Delphi method is useful for forecasting long-term trends, new product demand, technological changes, or social and economic issues.