innovate arkansas

Infor announced recently that it has donated software licenses for Infor SCM Network Design, supply chain planning and analysis software, to the University of Arkansas. Infor SCM Network Design will be implemented by the Supply Chain Management Research Center in the Sam M. Walton College of Business as part of its ongoing research into supply chain management.

The Supply Chain Management Research Center serves as a direct link between the private sector and university resources, providing a forum for research, education and collaboration on supply chain issues among faculty, students and industry leaders. The center is on the leading edge of supply chain management theory and practices in areas like optimization and environmental sustainability. Infor SCM Network Design offers the university's research center access to software that companies use to strategically design their supply chain networks.

"Our goal is to use Infor SCM Network Design to put theory into practice, demonstrating how different variables impact efficiency and identifying the key characteristics of an optimized supply chain," said Terry Tremwel, research director for the center. "We expect this to be a valuable tool to help develop best practices for use in the private sector as well as an opportunity to expose our students to advanced supply chain technologies."

Strategic network modeling is the process of modeling the entire supply chain to quantitatively evaluate network design options in terms of costs, revenue and service. Some of the world's largest retailers, logistics providers and manufacturers use Infor SCM Network Design to build models that incorporate relevant costs, facilities, nodes and modes.

"Research institutions like the SCMRC at the University of Arkansas are a vital part of supply chain practices," said Richard Simpson, senior product manager of supply chain management for Infor. "Infor is committed to supporting them and we gain equal value through the collaborative exchange of ideas with their faculty and students."

Infor software is in use at number of colleges and universities around the world. Most recently, Infor and its partner, Synergy Resources, provided enterprise resource planning software, Infor ERP SyteLine, to Binghamton University and Farmingdale University, both part of the State University of New York.