For many years production management has no longer been confined to individual production facilities. Intensive cooperation with suppliers has become an integral part of production management. In recent years two further developments have gained ground. On the one hand enterprises have been specialising and concentrating on their core competencies with outsourcing as a consequence, on the other hand globalization has intensified the range of choice among suppliers. Increased dependence on suppliers called for new forms of cooperative ventures. Strategic and legal issues had to be considered and production management had to include sophisticated logistic chain management. These developments have led to the concept of `Extended Enterprise'. Among many other topics, this book discusses: co-operation between companies; supply chain management; agile and virtual management; integration of the logistic chain; and production and logistical strategies. The book comprises the proceedings of the Working Conference on Organizing the Extended Enterprise, sponsored by the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP), which was held in Ascona, Switzerland in September 1997. It will be of great importance to researchers, managers and consultants in production, logistics and information and other areas of organizational development.
