Table 2.
Supply chain definitions.
| No. | Definition | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Raw materials are transformed into finished goods and delivered to end customers through a structured manufacturing process known as a supply chain. | Beamon [12] |
| 2 | The group of manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, retailers, and transportation, information, and other logistics management service providers that are engaged in providing goods to consumers. | Chow and Heaver [13] |
| 3 | Three or more firms are linked directly to the upstream and downstream flows of products, services, finances, and information. Through these linkages, individual firms gain access to resources, develop capabilities, and impact performance. | Mentzer et al. [14] |
| 4 | Dispersed facilities where raw materials, intermediate products, or finished products are acquired, transformed, stored, or sold, and transportation links that connect facilities along which products flow. | Shapiro [15] |
| 5 | A general description of the process integration involving organizations to transform raw materials into finished goods and transport them to the end-user. | Pienaar [16] |
| 6 | Collaborative inter- and intra-organizational management on the strategic, tactical, and operational business processes to achieve effective and efficient flows of products, information, and funds to provide the maximum value to the end customer at the lowest cost and with the greatest speed | Zhao and Andreas [19] |
| 7 | Receiving the appropriate products in the appropriate quantities, at the right time, in the right location, for the proper cost, and in satisfactory condition for the correct customer. | Wu et al. [17] |
| 8 | The supply chain not only connects suppliers, manufacturers, and customers; it also connects several layers of suppliers on the upstream side, and similarly, it connects to the ultimate end users who benefit from the value of the product or service on the downstream side. | Dutta and Hora [18] |
| 9 | A set of processes and entities (suppliers, customers, factories, distributors, and retailers) that are interested in fulfilling customer orders Plan, source, make, deliver, return, and enable are the main processes of the supply chain. | The Supply Chain Council |