The massive import from the developing countries has been putting the Textile and Apparel industry under pressure for several years now. However some companies prove that the development of a web of suppliers (from the supplier's supplier to the customer's customer) pays rich rewards. The foundation of all this is an integrated approach based on strong partnerships, that react quickly to market tendencies with the aid of advanced techniques (examples: Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), Internet Communication, etc.) and management concepts (examples: Just in Time (JIT), Total Quality Management (TQM), Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI), etc.). A simulator has been designed that will be able to represent a wide variety of specific logistic supply chain models based on several generic modules (supplier, manufacturer, etc.). The effects of the use of advanced techniques and management concepts will be simulated and the results on lead times, capacities, inventory levels, information & material flow and binally costs will be generated.
