به تعویق افتادن کشف دوباره بررسی ادبیات و تحقیقات

The concept of postponement is increasingly drawing the attention of researchers and practitioners. Postponement means delaying activities in the supply chain until customer orders are received with the intention of customizing products, as opposed to performing those activities in anticipation of future orders. This paper reviews the literature on postponement dating back to 1965, and puts it in a systematic framework. In light of the classification of the literature developed, opportunities are identified for integration and cross-fertilization between research papers in disciplines such as logistics and operations management and between the variety of research methods used. Some directions for research (in terms of content and methodology) are then formulated. For instance, the development of a more integrated supply chain perspective on postponement, and the application of triangulation rather than single methods. Specific research activities to meet these challenges are suggested in the paper.

Postponement is an organizational concept whereby some of the activities in the supply chain are not performed until customer orders are received. Companies can then finalize the output in accordance with customer preferences and even customize their products. Meanwhile, they can avoid building up inventories of finished goods in anticipation of future orders. Moreover, transportation between warehouses and factories can be avoided by shipping products directly to the customer rather than keeping them in stock. Even though it should be noted that this may lead to smaller sized shipments over longer distances. As a result postponement is often more relevant when products are more sensitive to inventory than transport costs (e.g. higher value added products with large product variety). Additionally, lead time constraints may limited the possibility to perform postponed activities while still assuring delivery windows that meet customer’s willingness to wait. Later sections will further introduce operational constraints and conditions for postponement.