The potential impact of supply chain visibility: Battistella Business Case

The thesis project highlights the topic of visibility along the supply chain and its positive impact on corporate performance. It is an ever-expanding topic, that requires continuous research and analysis, in order to provide a clear explanation.
In the last few years, the production model used is proving to be inefficient under several perspectives: slow data management, high-cost increases and ineffective communication represent some of the main problems that companies face today. As a result, to solve these issues, the use of technology, the optimization of the production process and the cooperation with supply chain partners are recommended.
Moreover, the furniture industry is moving toward this path and is investing in innovative and cutting-edge machinery, in order to remain competitive in the market.
The purpose of this paper is to analyze and evaluate, through a practical case study, how the problem of the lack of visibility along the supply chain in the furniture industry is addressed and solved. For this purpose, an in-depth analysis of the furniture sector and of the manufacturing process, as well as a broad study of the concept of visibility along the supply chain and the application of the business problem to a real company, were carried out.
The thesis project is divided as follows: the initial chapter introduces the furniture sector in Italy, starting from its origins up to the global development, through a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the sector.
The second chapter develops the visibility concept, in comparison with traceability and transparency terms, and a broad description of lack of visibility on company performance and on customer satisfaction, is provided.
Finally, in the third chapter, the practical case is illustrated, focusing on two companies operating in the furniture industry, Battistella as a manufacturing company and Gugel as a transport company. Both supply chains are examined to understand the whole furniture process, from the raw material procurement to the final customer service. In addition, the business problem in the Gugel firm is analyzed, as well as the company’s ability to promptly respond to this issue.
The thesis concludes with a critical analysis of the analyzed situation, the results obtained and the potential managerial implications of this research for current and future companies.