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In January 2016, the program director of Royal FloraHolland and a supply chain consultant met to develop a supply chain strategy that would allow Royal FloraHolland to adapt to the changing competitive environment that jeopardized its business model. Royal FloraHolland was the largest floriculture auction organization in the world, selling more than 30 million flowers and plants daily. Located in the Netherlands, Royal FloraHolland was a co-operative owned by 4,500 growers. A century-long tradition, where buyers purchased flowers and plants through the Dutch flower auction clock, was being threatened. Pressures facing Royal FloraHolland included emerging global competition, industry consolidation, and customers bypassing the auction process to buy directly from the growers. The two supply chain experts considered opportunities and challenges that lay ahead for the organization.

The owner of Oliver's Diner in Grand Bend, Ontario, was confident that his new venture would be a success. His diner had become an instant hit with local cottagers and tourists, often leading to long waiting lines at peak periods. However, the popularity of the restaurant had led to some "growing pains," and the owner wanted to improve his operation. In particular, he was concerned the high volume of customers had placed a strain on his staff, particularly on weekends. He was also discouraged to hear customer complaints about the long queues to get a table, and longer than expected wait times for meals. It was early July 2016, and the owner was reviewing data from his first two months of operation. He needed to identify opportunities to improve operations and customer service.

In 2016, transportation plays a key role in Canada’s economy. The first part of the note deals with Canada’s transportation network, providing an overview of the transportation services sector and the economic importance of transportation. The second section examines the role of government in Canada’s transportation sector, including government policy. The third section describes the characteristics of each of the six main modes of transportation: air, rail, truck, marine, pipeline, and intermodal. The final section addresses the key challenges facing the Canadian transportation sector, including environmental and safety issues.

Transportation plays a key role in Canada's economy. The first part of the note deals with Canada's transportation network, providing an overview of the transportation services sector and the economic importance of transportation. The second section examines the role of government in Canada's transportation sector, including government policy. The third section describes the characteristics of each of the six main modes of transportation: air, rail, truck, marine, pipeline, and intermodal. The final section addresses the key challenges facing the Canadian transportation sector, including environmental and safety issues.

In January 2016, the president and chief executive officer of Canaan Group in Richmond, British Columbia, was evaluating plans for a proposed trans-loading facility, which would be located inland from Port Metro Vancouver. The trans-loading facility had the potential to simultaneously offer a lower-cost transportation alternative for exporters and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the Lower Mainland. Despite the potential opportunities, three important hurdles needed to be overcome before successfully launching the new operation. First, co-operation was needed from exporters and their shipping companies to provide sufficient throughput of containers. Second, an agreement from Canadian Pacific Rail to provide service at a competitive rate was essential. Third, successful negotiations were required for a long-term lease for the proposed site to justify the necessary investment. The Canaan Group president reviewed the data from a completed pilot study and wondered what his next step should be. With which stakeholder should he start his negotiation? What were his bargaining strengths and weaknesses? Were there other stakeholders that should be engaged?

In January 2016, the president and chief executive officer of Canaan Group in Richmond, British Columbia, was evaluating plans for a proposed trans-loading facility, which would be located inland from Port Metro Vancouver. The trans-loading facility had the potential to simultaneously offer a lower-cost transportation alternative for exporters and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the Lower Mainland. Despite the potential opportunities, three important hurdles needed to be overcome before successfully launching the new operation. First, co-operation was needed from exporters and their shipping companies to provide sufficient throughput of containers. Second, an agreement from Canadian Pacific Rail to provide service at a competitive rate was essential. Third, successful negotiations were required for a long-term lease for the proposed site to justify the necessary investment. The Canaan Group president reviewed the data from a completed pilot study and wondered what his next step should be. With which stakeholder should he start his negotiation? What were his bargaining strengths and weaknesses? Were there other stakeholders that should be engaged?

In late September 2015, the senior vice-president of supply chain management at Walmart China was preparing for a meeting in Bentonville, Arkansas, where she was expected to make a presentation detailing plans for Walmart China's network of distribution centres. The investment in infrastructure would be the next major step in the organization's supply chain transformation. The case provides an opportunity to explore issues related to supply chain strategy in the context of an evolving economic environment in China. Students are expected to assess pending investments in supply chain infrastructure, including evaluation of the quantitative and qualitative aspects related to two competing distribution centre models.

In late September 2015, the senior vice-president of supply chain management at Walmart China was preparing for a meeting in Bentonville, Arkansas, where she was expected to make a presentation detailing plans for Walmart China's network of distribution centres. The investment in infrastructure would be the next major step in the organization's supply chain transformation. The case provides an opportunity to explore issues related to supply chain strategy in the context of an evolving economic environment in China. Students are expected to assess pending investments in supply chain infrastructure, including evaluation of the quantitative and qualitative aspects related to two competing distribution centre models.

The logistics analyst at Spartan Building Products, a large, national distributor of building materials, needs to prepare a report analyzing the company’s logistics practices. Management is particularly concerned about the high cost of servicing customer deliveries. Students are asked to evaluate factors contributing to the logistics problems at Spartan, including freight costs and the sales mix. Students will analyze the cost implications of supporting a broad product line and servicing customer orders that have a small dollar value.

The logistics analyst at Spartan Building Products, a large, national distributor of building materials, needs to prepare a report analyzing the company's logistics practices. Management is particularly concerned about the high cost of servicing customer deliveries. Students are asked to evaluate factors contributing to the logistics problems at Spartan, including freight costs and the sales mix. Students will analyze the cost implications of supporting a broad product line and servicing customer orders that have a small dollar value.

The chief operating officer at Westridge Cabinets, a Canadian cabinet manufacturer, needs to improve the company's on-time delivery performance and reduce costs. Customers' orders vary widely, in terms of both order size and product mix, leading to complications in planning and scheduling the plant. As part of their analysis, students are required to 1) recognize how the company's order process integrates with production planning and control; 2) understand how manufacturing lead times affect flexibility and delivery performance and 3) calculate capacity in each department to identify and resolve potential constraints.

The chief operating officer at Westridge Cabinets, a Canadian cabinet manufacturer, needs to improve the company’s on-time delivery performance and reduce costs. Customers’ orders vary widely, in terms of both order size and product mix, leading to complications in planning and scheduling the plant. As part of their analysis, students are required to 1) recognize how the company’s order process integrates with production planning and control; 2) understand how manufacturing lead times affect flexibility and delivery performance and 3) calculate capacity in each department to identify and resolve potential constraints.

<p style="color: rgb(197, 183, 131);"><strong> AWARD WINNER - PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT CATEGORY - THE CASE CENTRE AWARDS AND COMPETITIONS</strong></p><br>An analyst for a money management firm is studying Apple Inc. as one of the firm’s key investments. In 2013, Apple had a market capitalization of nearly US$500 billion and sales of US$171 billion. According to the research firm, Gartner Group, it had the world’s best supply chain, ranking ahead of companies such as Walmart, Amazon and Inditex (Zara). As part of the analysis, a full review of Apple’s supply chain is required to look for insight into the future performance of the company in order to decide whether or not the analyst’s firm should continue to hold Apple shares.

An analyst for a money management firm is studying Apple Inc. as one of the firm's key investments. In 2013, Apple had a market capitalization of nearly US$500 billion and sales of US$171 billion. According to the research firm, Gartner Group, it had the world's best supply chain, ranking ahead of companies such as Walmart, Amazon and Inditex (Zara). As part of the analysis, a full review of Apple's supply chain is required to look for insight into the future performance of the company in order to decide whether or not the analyst's firm should continue to hold Apple shares.

The director of logistics at Walmart Canada, was developing plans for a new distribution centre in Alberta. Senior management had presented her with a challenge: why not build the most sustainable distribution centre in the world? Yet, much remained unclear about how to translate this challenge into specific actions, while keeping in mind corporate goals for sustainability. Her team now was exploring three options that promised to be significantly greener: hydrogen fuel cells for forklift trucks, LED lighting and renewable energy generation from on-site wind turbines. Any investment in these sustainable technologies had to make business sense, and any decision could dramatically affect the distribution centre’s operating performance.

The director of logistics at Walmart Canada, was developing plans for a new distribution centre in Alberta. Senior management had presented her with a challenge: why not build the most sustainable distribution centre in the world? Yet, much remained unclear about how to translate this challenge into specific actions, while keeping in mind corporate goals for sustainability. Her team now was exploring three options that promised to be significantly greener: hydrogen fuel cells for forklift trucks, LED lighting and renewable energy generation from on-site wind turbines. Any investment in these sustainable technologies had to make business sense, and any decision could dramatically affect the distribution centre's operating performance.

The director of warehousing and logistics at Volkswagen Group Canada (VGCA) had been tasked with analyzing the capacity of the Toronto parts distribution centre to support an aggressive growth plan that involved a series of new product launches and product facelifts. Expecting that expansion of the facility would be necessary, the director needed to determine the additional warehouse capacity required, when it would be needed by, and which expansion option made the most sense.

In 2012, a stock analyst was preparing a recommendation on what his firm, a large U.S. investment house, should do with its stake in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, was trying to recover from a series of missteps that had seen competitors such as dollar stores and Amazon.com close the performance gap. Competitors had copied many aspects of Wal-Mart’s distribution system, including cross-docking products, eliminating storage time in warehouses, positioning stores around distribution centres, and widespread adoption of electronic data interchange (EDI), as well as ordering and shipping from suppliers.

A stock analyst is preparing a recommendation on what his firm, a large U.S. investment house, should do with its stake in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, was trying to recover from a series of missteps that had seen competitors such as Dollar Stores and Amazon.com close the performance gap. Competitors had copied many aspects of Wal-Mart's distribution system, from cross-docking product to eliminate storage time in warehouses, positioning stores around distribution centres, and widespread adoption of electronic data interchange (EDI), to manage ordering and shipping from suppliers.

The director of warehousing and logistics at Volkswagen Group Canada (VGCA) had been tasked with analyzing the capacity of the Toronto parts distribution center to support an aggressive growth plan that involved a series of new product launches and product facelifts. Expecting that expansion of the facility would be necessary, the director needed to establish the additional warehouse capacity required, when it would be needed by and which expansion option made the most sense.