What Is Local Area Network (LAN)?
A Local Area Network (LAN) connects devices within a small area, typically a warehouse, office, or establishment. In supply chain management, LAN provides the communication backbone to manage and monitor the supply chain’s activities. They allow for information sharing between nodes such as factories, warehouses, and distribution centers, enabling efficient coordination and control of the supply chain.
Significance of Local Area Network (LAN) in E-commerce and Shipping
LANs allow supply chain management to experience remote monitoring. As a result, business is more efficient. Here are the other benefits.
1. Streamlined communication: LANs can facilitate communication between different departments and offices, making collaboration easier for teams.
2. Robust security: Companies can protect their data from outside threats by segregating networks.
3. Cost savings: They can reduce travel costs and eliminate the need for additional servers and hardware.
4. Scalability: They can be easily scaled up or down to meet the needs of an organization.
5. Improved e-commerce: LANs allow businesses to process orders and shipments quickly and securely.
Prerequisites of Local Area Network (LAN)
For the Local Area Network to work efficiently, these pointers need to be taken care of:
1. Network infrastructure: A reliable LAN architecture with appropriate networking hardware, such as routers, switches, cables, wireless access points, and other components.
2. Data storage: A secure data storage system to store customer information and orders.
3. E-commerce platform: An e-commerce platform with payment gateway integration and similar features to enable online transactions.
4. Business intelligence: Intelligence tools to analyze and generate insights from e-commerce and logistics data.
Use Cases of Local Area Network (LAN)
An example of a Local Area Network (LAN) in e-commerce and logistics is a warehouse that uses a LAN to track inventory and coordinate operations. The warehouse can use LAN-connected computers and barcode scanners to track inventory and order fulfillment. The warehouse can also use it to connect to other systems, such as the company’s customer relationship management (CRM) system.