the producer phase of a military supply extends from determination of procurement schedules to acceptance of finished supplies by the military services
the consumer phase of a military supply extends from receipt of finished supplies by the military services, through issue for use or consumption.[2]
Supply control is the process by which an item of supply is controlled within the supply system, including requisitioning, receipt, storage, stock control, shipment, disposition, identification, and accounting.[4]
A supply point is a location where supplies, services and materials are located and issued. As a single moving entity,[5] a supply point location is temporary and mobile, normally being occupied for up to 72 hours.[6]
Sub-suppliers are those suppliers who provide materials to other suppliers within the supply chain. In other supply chain management contexts they are referred to by tier, second-tier suppliers serving first-tier suppliers, etc.[7] The European Union refers to sub-suppliers in its objective to improve cross-border market access in the defence sector.[8]
The main difference between the concept of logistic management and supply-chain management is the level of information gathered, processes, analysed and used for decision making. An SCM-based organization not only having concerns with its immediate clients but also handles and forecasts the factors affecting directly or indirectly their supplier or suppliers or on their client or clients. If we exclude this information part out of supply chain model then we can see the logistic management part of the business.
Unlike standard supply-chain management practices world-wide, some major concepts are not supported in the military domain. For example, the "just-in-time" (JIT) model emphasizes holding less (or no) inventory, whereas in military supply chains, due to the high costs of a stock-out (potentially placing lives in danger), keeping huge inventory is a more acceptable practice. Some examples of these are the ammunition dump and oil depot.
Likewise, the military procurement process has much different criteria than the normal business procurement process.[citation needed] Military needs call for reliability of supply during both peace and war, as compared to price and technological factors.