Hence, the internal coordination is not optimal. The lack of coordination between
departments is mainly caused by different objectives and reward systems. The purchasing
department is evaluated on purchasing costs, the sales department on customer satisfaction and
revenues and the distribution department on logistic costs. Hence, the sales department accepts
all customer orders at all times and leaves the logistics departments with the task of delivering the
requested products on time. But the purchasing department will buy its products at the lowest
prices, sometimes at auctions far away, resulting in high transport costs and long supply lead times.
Furthermore, goods often arrive at the distribution centre too late because the supply transport
planner was unaware of changed time restrictions set by the distribution planner due to (late
accepted) rush orders. The combination of all customer orders and their corresponding delivery
times determines the distribution route and the latest departure time for the truck.