Enligt Carlsson och Rönnqvist (2005) och Frayret et al. (2007) blir det allt viktigare att arbeta med supply chain management inom trävaruindustrin. En utmaning är att finna ett arbetssätt för att hantera variationen i kundens efterfrågan. Idag hanteras variationen oftast genom onödigt stor lagerhållning (Lee et al., 1997b; So och Zheng, 2003).                                                                                 Syftet med studien är att utreda påverkande faktorer som bidrar till en varierande efterfrågan inom trävaruindustrin samt föreslå hur uppkomsten av dessa kan undvikas. För att svara på syftet har tre frågeställningar tagits fram och en fallstudie genomfördes på ett hyvleri. Informationsinsamlingen har skett genom intervjuer av anställda från olika avdelningar samt litteraturstudier. Studien visar att det finns flera utmaningar när det är stor variation på efterfrågan såsom brist på tillgång till prognoser och kommunikationsbrist med kunder. Det medför att planeringen av råvaruåtgången försvåras och det leder till svårigheter att uppnå leveransprecision.   Slutsatsen visar att de påverkande faktorer som bidrar till en varierad efterfrågan är prisvariationer, orderstorlek och orderfrekvens. Prisvariationer kan undvikas genom ABC-indelning av produkterna utifrån produktefterfrågan. Prognoser underlättar uppskattning av efterfrågan men för ett fungerande prognosarbete krävs samsyn, nära relation samt god kommunikation mellan kund och leverantör. Problem med orderstorlek och orderfrekvens kan reduceras om kunden får avgöra orderstorleken utan att specifika krav måste uppfyllas. Slutsatsen visar även att faktorer såsom väderlek, trender, mode, helgdagar och rotavdragets eventuella försvinnande påverkar variationen i efterfrågan. / According to Carlsson & Rönnqvist (2005) and Frayret et al. (2007) supply chain management in the wood products industry is getting more important. One of the challenges is to find a way to deal with customer’s fluctuating demand. Traditional solution to handle fluctuating demand is large inventory (Lee et al., 1997b; So & Zheng, 2003), which causes often high inventory cost for effective supply chain management.   The aim of the study is to investigate factors that affect a fluctuating demand in the wood products industry and suggest how to reduce the fluctuating demand through related factors analysis in order to improve Demand-Supply chain management efficiency. For this pursose, a case study on a planing is conducted. To collect data, interviews with employees from different departments have been made along with literature studies. The study presents that there are many challenges for the fluctuation demand such as lack of forecasts and lack of communication with customers. This, in turn, will cause problems with planning of the raw material as well as difficulties to deliver the goods on time.   The conclusion shows that the factors affecting a fluctuating demand are price variations, the orders batch size and order frequency. Price variations can be improved by ABC classification of the products by product demand. Forecasts will make the estimation of demand easier, although, in order to use forecasts properly a joint vision, close relationships and good communication with customer and supplier is required. Problems regarding batch size and order frequency can be reduced if the customer is allowed to decide the batch size with no specific requirements. The study also shows that factors such as weather, trends, fashion, holidays and disappearance of ROT work affects the fluctuating demand.

Purpose: This research aims to enhance the current understanding and knowledge of the demand-supply chain management (DSCM) concept by determining its elements, benefits, and requirements, as well as by analyzing key elements of the concept. Methodology: This research has utilized the case study strategy and the survey strategy, however, the case study strategy dominates. The case study research has involved five companies originating from Sweden and the collection of empirical data mainly from in-depth interviews with key persons representing senior and middle management. The survey research targeted the largest firms in Sweden and Finland and empirical data was collected through an online questionnaire. Findings: This research has established that the main elements of DSCM include market orientation, coordination of the demand and supply processes, viewing the demand and supply processes as being equally important, as well as value creation, differentiation, innovativeness, responsiveness, and cost-efficiency in the demand and supply processes. It has also been revealed that the main benefits of DSCM include enhanced competiveness, enhanced demand chain performance, as well as enhanced supply chain performance, while the main requirements of DSCM include organizational competences, company established principles, demand-supply chain collaboration, and information technology support. A key element of DSCM further investigated is differentiation focused supply chain design. It has been shown that these efforts can be organized into a process of five stages. In addition, it is important that this process is addressed in parallel with the new product development (NPD) process, that information is exchanged between them, and that they are directed on the basis of the same segmentation model. Another key element of DSCM further investigated is coordination between NPD and SCM. This research has identified several significant linkages between these management directions, which motivate the use of an integrative NPD process where the NPD functions are aligned with the main supply functions in the company and other sales-related functions supporting the commercialization. A final key element of DSCM further investigated is the significance of regarding the demand processes and the supply processes as being equally important. This research has revealed that logistics outsourcing can be risky, if it results in the supply processes being considered less important. Nevertheless, if senior management regards the outsourced processes as equally important as the in-house processes, the effect of logistics outsourcing on company strategies and direction in SCM could be reduced and logistics outsourcing could instead provide an opportunity to improve the design and differentiation of the supply chain. Research limitations/implications: This research has proposed, described, and further analyzed a demand-supply oriented management approach. Such a management approach stresses that the demand processes and the supply processes have to be coordinated and directed at an overlying level, in order to gain and sustain a competitive advantage in competitive and fragmented markets. This research is mainly explorative in nature, and more empirical data, from similar and other research settings, is needed to further validate the findings. Another limitation of the research is that it is essentially limited to Swedish companies (even if some Finnish companies are involved in the survey), however, many of the case companies have a large international presence and are among the top three in their industries, facts which provide some grounds for generalization. Practical implications: This research provides researchers and practitioners with insights into how to develop a demand-supply oriented business. It shows that companies should organize themselves around understanding how customer value is created and delivered, as well as how these processes and management directions can be coordinated. In order for this to occur, the demand and supply processes must be considered as being equally important and the firm needs to be managed jointly and in a coordinated manner by the demand- and supply-side of the company. It is also important that value creation is considered in both the demand and supply processes. Originality/value: Despite strong arguments from both researchers and practitioners for a demand-supply oriented management approach only a minority of companies appear to have effectively coordinated the demand and supply processes. This might be influenced by the lack of research examining how the demand and supply processes can be coordinated, what benefits can be gained by coordinating them, and what requirements are necessary to succeed. This research contributes by investigating these types of aspects further.