5% of the manufacturing output of the gross domestic product
(Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics, 2003). Overall the
industry sector supports 674 hardwood mills and 268 softwood mills along with
30 panel board mills employing 78,400 people in 2000/2001 (Australian Bureau of
Agricultural and Resource Economics, 2003). The forestry industry is growing in
importance in Australia. The stated aim of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries,
and Forest (1997) according to its 2020 vision document is to triple plantation
area by the year 2020.
The business process of supply chain management (SCM) provides an opportunity
to improve business efficiency within this industry, increasing profit margins, and
thus favourably impacting the Australian economy. The prospect of improving the
efficiency of SCM is provided by new information and communication technologies.
EDI is an established technology that provides B2B communication within
the supply chain but demands rigid agreements between organisations concerning
the structure and content of communications.
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