New challenges in supply chain design and management emerged after the rapid development of information and network technologies and market requirements. Four of these new technologies are: Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology; mobile transaction technology; information handling and storage technology; and multi-agent technology. They can enable companies to change their thinking about supply chain management to cope with these changes. New methodologies include: sustainable supply chain management, advanced supply chain planning, available-to-promise (ATP) systems and lean supply chain design and management.

This edited book describes new trends in supply chain design and management with an emphasis on technologies and methodologies and contains guidelines detailing the real-world applications of these technologies and methodologies.

This book is of interest to researchers and practitioners and can also be used as a reference handbook by lecturers and postgraduate students in this field.

Since 1999, Dr. Hosang Jung has been involved with several projects sponsored by the Korean Government (Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and Energy) and IMS (Intelligent Manufacturing Systems: www.ims.org) regarding supply chain management. In addition, he has published over 12 international journal and proceeding papers on supply chain design and management. He received a best research paper award from the Korean Supply Chain Management Society in June 2002. He is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at the Grado Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech.

Prof. F. Frank Chen is currently the John L. Lawrence Endowed Professor of Manufacturing Systems Engineering at the Grado Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech. He was the founding Director (2001-2004) and is currently the Associate Director leading the area of Flexible Automation and Lean Manufacturing Technologies of the Center for High Performance Manufacturing at Virginia Tech. Dr. Chen is currently serving in the Technology Advisory Panel of the U.S. National Next Generation Manufacturing Technology Initiative (www.ngmti.us) with primary responsibilities in helping prioritize U.S. federal research funding in the areas of Enterprise Integration and Model-Based Enterprise. As the author or co-author of over 140 technical papers and reports, Dr. Chen is an associate editor of SME Journal of Manufacturing Systems and serves on the editorial board of the International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology. As one of the nine NSF nominated engineering professors in the nation who received the 1996 Presidential Faculty Fellows Award from President Clinton at the White House, Dr. Chen has served as a principal investigator of over $8 million externally funded research projects and equipment grants sponsored by agencies such as National Science Foundation, Caterpillar Inc., Air Force Research Laboratory, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, and most recently the Commonwealth of Virginia (Commonwealth Technology Research Fund Program), since 1991. Dr. Chen received the B.E. (Industrial Engineering) from Tunghai University (in Taiwan) and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in industrial engineering from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Since Prof. Bongju Jeong earned a Ph.D. degree from the Pennsylvania State University in 1993, he worked in the Semiconductor Division of Samsung Electronics& Co. as a senior researcher. Following his move in 1996 to one of Koreas most prestigious universities - Yonsei University - he has led over 10 projects sponsored by the Korean Government (Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and Energy) and leading companies (Samsung Electronics, Samsung SDS, Corning, and Samsung Display Devices, etc.) as a principal investigator. Also, he has published two (translated) books, and over 30 international journal and proceeding papers on the supply chain management and manufacturing system. He is now an executive member of the Korean Supply Chain Management Society.

Trends in Technologies.- A Systems Approach to Viable RFID Implementation in the Supply Chain.- Applications of RFID in Supply Chains.- A Tool Set for Exploring the Value of RFID in a Supply Chain.- The Effect of RFID On Inventory Management and Control.- Mobile Supply Chain Event Management Using Auto-ID and Sensor Technologies A Simulation Approach.- Impact of Information Technology on Supply Chain Management.- An Agent-based Approach to Enhance Supply Chain Agility in a Heterogeneous Environment.- Trends in Methodologies.- Design of Reverse Logistics Networks for Multiproducts, Multistates, and Multiprocessing Alternatives.- Transforming the Government Value Chain: Emerging Business Models and Enabling Technologies.- Beyond Partnerships: The Power of Lean Supply Chains.- Diverse Production and Distribution Models in Supply Chains: A Semiconductor Industry Case.- Decentralized Supply Chain Planning for Two Classified Supply Chains.- Multiagent System Approach for Dynamic Lot-Sizing in Supply Chains.- Integrating Transport into Supply Chains: Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI).- Supply Uncertainty and Diversification: A Review.- Quantitative Robustness Index Design for Supply Chain Networks.- Impact of Reducing Uncertainty in European Supply Chains.- Analyzing the Effectiveness of the Availability Management Process.