Automotive enterprises are becoming more customer-centric to meet
today’s challenging market demands. Mass customization adds industrial
value to the enterprise in order to gain competitive advantage. This
calls for a restructuring of B2C relations and related new technologies.
The automotive industry has furthermore become highly networked and
requires improved communication on products and components in relation
to its B2B relations. In this context, CATER is specially tailored to
bridge the gaps in the existing ICT world in industries through delivery
of an integrated system that caters to the needs of customers,
manufacturers and suppliers.
A global manufacturing supply chain is a network of suppliers,
factories, subcontractors, warehouses, distribution centres and
retailers, through which raw materials are acquired, transformed,
produced and delivered to the end customers. In a global manufacturing
supply chain, a number of autonomous or semiautonomous business entities
are collectively responsible for procurement, manufacturing and
distribution activities associated with one or more families of related
products. Performance of any entity in a supply chain depends on the
performance of others, and their willingness and ability to coordinate
and negotiate activities within the supply chain of product fulfillment.
A global manufacturing supply chain usually involves heterogeneous
environments. Such a supply chain network is much more complex than that
for the procurement, production and delivery of a simple commodity, not
only for the volume and complexity of transactions, but also due to its
dynamic and heterogeneous manufacturing environments (Jiao et al., 2005;
Helo, 2004). CATER will model the supply chain for N-business that
integrates the various business processes
CATER Web site: www.cater-ist.org
Shamsuzzoha, AHM., Kyllönen, S. and Helo, P., “Collaborative customized
product development framework”, Industrial Management & Data Systems,
Vol. 109, No. 5, pp. 718-735, 2009.
Roger J. Jiao , Qianli Xu, Jun Du, Yiyang Zhang, Martin Helander,
Halimahtun M. Khalid, Petri Helo, and Cheng Ni (2007). Analytical
affective design with ambient intelligence for mass customization and
personalization. International Journal of Flexible Manufacturing
Systems. Volume 19, Number 4 / December, 2007. pp. 570-595.
Shamsuzzoha, AHM., and Helo, P., “Reconfiguring product development
process in auto industries for mass customization”, International
Journal of Productivity and Quality Management, Vol.4, No.4, pp.
400-417, 2009.
Kristianto. Y & P. Helo. (2009a). Time and form postponement competition
under dynamic behavior of demand, Operations and Supply Chain
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