System, computer program and method for implementing and managing a value chain network

• US 8,352,300 B2
• Filed: 06/22/2011
• Issued: 01/08/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2004
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: One Network Enterprises, Inc. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: One Network Enterprises, Inc. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Notani, Ranjit, Brady, Greg, Arumugam, Sivakoumar
• Primary Examiner(s): Dixon, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fields, Benjamin S
• Application Number:
  US13/165,789
• Publication Number:
  US 20110264485A1
• Time in Patent Office: 566 Days
• Field of Search: 705/7.11, 705/7.42
• US Class Current: 705/7.11
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0202 Market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities

Abstract

A system, computer program product and method for implementing and managing a value chain network. The computer program product includes allowing a first company having one or more clusters of retail stores and a second company in a value chain network to access to a shared database, having first and second plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with each respective first and second company, on a service provider computer over a network; linking the first company with one or more of the second plurality of fields; linking the second company with one or more of the first plurality of fields; periodically receiving sales information and events, including a demand event and a supply event, on the value network within at least one of the one or more clusters of retail stores; and updating one or more of the first plurality of fields that are linked to the second company upon receipt of at least one selected from the group consisting of the sales information, the demand event and the supply event. The first and second company are linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the respective second and first plurality of fields without creating a copy. The one or more updated first plurality of fields are immediately accessible to the first and second company.

Claims

1. A computer program product embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium for implementing and managing a value chain network, wherein the computer program is implemented by one or more processors executing processor instructions, the computer program product comprising:

a first computer code for allowing a first and second company in a value chain network to access to a shared database on a service provider computer over a network, wherein a first plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the first company, a second plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the second company, and wherein the first company includes one or more clusters of retail stores;

a second computer code for linking the first company with one or more of the second plurality of fields, wherein the first company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the second plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the second plurality of fields;

a third computer code for linking the second company with one or more of the first plurality of fields, wherein the second company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the first plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the first plurality of fields;

a fourth computer code for periodically receiving sales information and events on the value network within at least one of the one or more clusters of retail stores, wherein the events include a demand event and a supply event; and

a fifth computer code for updating one or more of the first plurality fields that are linked to the second company upon receipt of at least one selected from the group consisting of the sales information, the demand event and the supply event, wherein the one or more updated first plurality of fields are immediately accessible to the first and second company.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the service provider computer is a cloud computer.

3. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising:

a sixth computer code for allowing a third company in a value chain network to access to a shared database on a service provider computer over a network, wherein a third plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the third company, and wherein the first company includes a first user accessing the service provider computer via a remote computer; and

a seventh computer code for linking the first company with one or more of the third plurality of fields upon a first request by the first user, wherein the first company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the third plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the third plurality of fields.

4. The computer program product of claim 3, further comprising an eighth computer code for unlinking the first company with the third plurality of fields that are linked to the first company upon a second request by the first user.

5. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising a sixth computer code for creating a sales forecast for the first company over a configurable period of time, wherein the sales forecast includes anticipated sales for a plurality of items within at least one of the clusters of stores.

6. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein the sales information includes actual sales information and sales anomalies, the computer program product further comprising:

a seventh computer code for determining whether one or more trends are occurring or have occurred for the first company based on the sales information; and

an eighth computer code for adjusting the sales forecast for the first company based on the sales information.

7. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the second computer is at least one selected from the group consisting of a manufacturer, a plant, a distribution company and a vendor.

8. A system for implementing and managing a value chain network, the system comprising:

a plurality of remote computers;

a central server;

a network interface in communication with the central server and the plurality of remote computers over a network, the network interface being configured to receive sales information and events on the value network, wherein the events include a demand event and a supply event;

a shared database in communication with the central server;

wherein the central server is configured to;

allow a first and second company in a value chain network to access to the shared database over the network, wherein a first plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the first company, a second plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the second company, and wherein the first company includes one or more clusters of retail stores;

link the first company with one or more of the second plurality of fields, wherein the first company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the second plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the second plurality of fields;

link the second company with one or more of the first plurality of fields, wherein the second company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the first plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the first plurality of fields;

periodically receive the sales information and the events within at least one of the one or more clusters of retail stores; and

update one or more of the first plurality of fields that are linked to the second company upon receipt of at least one selected from the group consisting of the sales information, the demand event and the supply event, wherein the one or more updated first plurality of fields are immediately accessible to the first and second company.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the central server includes:

means for providing a third company in a value chain network to access to a shared database on a service provider computer over a network, wherein a third plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the third company, and wherein the first company includes a first user accessing the service provider computer via a remote computer; and

means for linking the first company with one or more of the third plurality of fields upon a first request by the first user, wherein the first company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the third plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the third plurality of fields.

10. A method for implementing and managing a value chain network, wherein the method is implemented by one or more processors executing processor instructions stored on a computer readable medium, the method comprising the processor implemented steps of:

providing a first and second company in a value chain network access to a shared database on a service provider computer over a network, wherein a first plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the first company, a second plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the second company, and wherein the first company includes one or more clusters of retail stores;

linking the first company with one or more of the second plurality of fields, wherein the first company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the second plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the second plurality of fields;

linking the second company with one or more of the first plurality of fields, wherein the second company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the first plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the first plurality of fields;

periodically receiving sales information and events on the value network within at least one of the one or more clusters of retail stores, wherein the events includes a demand event and a supply event; and

updating one or more of the first plurality of fields that are linked to the second company upon receipt of at least one selected from the group consisting of the sales information, the demand event and the supply event, wherein the one or more updated first plurality of fields are immediately accessible to the first and second company.

11. A computer program product embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium for implementing and managing a value chain network, wherein the computer program is implemented by one or more processors executing processor instructions, the computer program product comprising:

a first computer code for allowing a first and second company in a value chain network to access to a shared database on a service provider computer over a network, wherein a first plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the first company and include first sales information, first inventory information and first supply information, wherein a second plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the second company and include second sales information, second inventory information and second supply information, and wherein the first company includes one or more clusters of retail stores;

a second computer code for linking the first company with one or more of the second plurality of fields, wherein the first company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the second plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the second plurality fields;

a third computer code for linking the second company with one or more of the first plurality of fields, wherein the second company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the first plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the first plurality of fields;

a fourth computer code for receiving sales information, inventory information, supply information and events on the value network, wherein the received sales information includes information from at least one of the one or more clusters of retail stores, and the received events include one or more demand events and one or more supply events;

a fifth computer code for updating one or more of the first plurality of fields that are linked to the second company upon receipt of at least one selected from the group consisting of the received sales information, the received inventory information, the received supply information, the received one or more demand events and the received one or more supply events, wherein the one or more updated first plurality of fields are immediately accessible to the first and second company; and

a sixth computer code for updating one or more of the second plurality of fields that are linked to the first company upon receipt of at least one selected from the group consisting of the received sales information, the received inventory information, the received supply information, the received one or more demand events and the received one or more supply events, wherein the one or more updated second plurality of fields are immediately accessible to the first and second company.

12. The computer program product of claim 11, further comprising a seventh computer code for updating the first inventory information and the second inventory information upon receipt of at least one selected from the group consisting of the received one or more demand events and the received one or more supply events.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, further comprising an eighth computer code for calculating a replenishment amount of the first inventory information based on the second inventory information.

14. The computer program product of claim 13, further comprising a ninth computer code for calculating a demand amount of the second inventory information based on the first sales information.

15. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein the service provider computer is a cloud computer.

16. The computer program product of claim 11, further comprising:

a seventh computer code for allowing a third company in a value chain network to access to a shared database on a service provider computer over a network, wherein a third plurality of fields in the shared database are uniquely associated with the third company, and wherein the first company includes a first user accessing the service provider computer via a remote computer; and

an eighth computer code for linking the first company with one or more of the third plurality of fields upon a first request by the first user, wherein the first company is linked and provided limited access to the one or more of the third plurality of fields without creating a copy of the one or more of the third plurality of fields.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, further comprising a ninth computer code for unlinking the first company with the third plurality of fields that are linked to the first company upon a second request by the first user.

18. The computer program product of claim 11, further comprising a seventh computer code for creating a sales forecast for the first company over a configurable period of time, wherein the sales forecast includes anticipated sales for a plurality of items within at least one of the clusters of stores.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the first sales information includes actual sales information and sales anomalies, the computer program product further comprising:

an eighth computer code for determining whether one or more trends are occurring or have occurred for the first company based on the sales information; and

a ninth computer code for adjusting the sales forecast for the first company based on the first sales information.

20. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein the second computer is at least one selected from the group consisting of a manufacturer, a plant, a distribution company and a vendor.