Supply Chain Systems Planning and Network Design are essential sources of competitive advantage for organizations. They focus on strategic decisions such as defining the configuration of production and distribution facilities, deciding where to source, and determining how to best serve customers.

Every choice impacts customer satisfaction, operational costs, and environmental performance, making supply chain design essential for long-term success. To address these challenges, this online course from the MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics (CTL) will equip you with practical tools and experience using supply chain design models, enabling you to make informed, balanced decisions.

Focusing on real-world applications, the course begins with foundational network models, such as transportation, transshipment, and facility location problems. As you progress, you will delve into more complex networks that involve multiple tiers of facilities and multimodal transportation. Additionally, the course will teach you how to integrate revenue and inventory considerations into supply chain design models, and develop the analytical skills needed to balance competing objectives effectively.

To enhance learning, the course combines video lectures with practical Python exercises, guiding you through the implementation of quantitative models. No prior knowledge of Python is required , as the course provides a comprehensive introduction to all necessary concepts. You will also have the opportunity to explore interactive visualization tools developed by the MIT CTL Computational and Visual Education (CAVE) Lab, allowing you to gain hands-on experience that bridges theoretical knowledge with real-world applications. This approach, aligned with MIT’s "learning by doing" philosophy, ensures that you not only grasp the concepts but can also apply them in practice.