What is a value chain?
value chains or value chains relate to the Processes within a company and less on delivering raw materials to customers. This is provided by Supply chain or supply chain covered. The concept of chain goes back to the modeled form of representation.
The model forms all Steps from product development to manufacturing in activity types off. The activities are arranged in order and consume resources but also create value. These are determined through analyses in order to optimize them. The value chain therefore consists of these Value-creating activities and the margin, or profit margin together. This is the difference between the value that the product or service provides and the resources that are spent on it.
Assigning tasks to activity types
Die Operational activities are first divided into primary and secondary activity types. Primary activities Are inbound logistics such as warehousing, operations or production, marketing and sales, outbound logistics and customer service. Secondary activities On the other hand, are the procurement of raw materials, technology development and human resources management. This also includes training and continuing education of employees. In addition, the infrastructure of the companies.
The activity types are also divided into direct and indirect activities as well as quality assurance on. The advantage is that quality assurance and indirect activities, the For example, the Machine maintenance include, are perceived and documented as separate activities. That way, they don't get lost in the analysis. One advantage is the recognition that efficient systems also make the production process more efficient and cheaper. Which activities are relevant and which can be summarized depends on the sector. A service provider has different requirements than a manufacturer in industry. For a detailed overview, you can also value chains are created for various products.
Benefits of cost analysis
About the analysis Can they Costs determined become. For this purpose, the cost items are assigned to the activities. The costs for individual value activities can also be calculated with those of Compare competition, although they must usually be estimated. The comparison can help to determine the Rethinking production steps to reduce costs and to increase margins. However, differences can also be positive if, for example, you do not want to outsource some production steps at all. This is how one finds differentiation from the competition instead of through which you Increase sales prices can to ultimately increase the profit margin.
