A knowledge-based supplier intelligence retrieval system for outsource manufacturing

Knowledge management is to promote business success through a formal, structured initiative to improve the use of knowledge in an organization, in which an effective organizational memory information system plays an increasingly important role. Unlike the past, the performance of an enterprise now depends much on the performance and relationship of its customer-suppliers in the value chain. Good customer-supplier relationships are important for an organization to respond to dynamic and unpredictable changes. This paper describes a knowledge-based supplier selection and evaluation system, which is a case-based reasoning decision support system for outsourcing operations at Honeywell Consumer Products (Hong Kong) Limited in China. As a result, collaborative suppliers are identified quickly during the new product development process. By using the system, the cumulative performance of suppliers is constantly updated automatically according to past practice. This means that the knowledge of suppliers can be retained, categorized, retrieved and managed effectively.