Production & Logistics Management

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Become an expert in the design, planning, optimisation and control of operational processes in production, transportation, supply chains, sustainability and service logistics.   

Modern production and logistics methods are growing ever more complex. Product lifetime is on the decrease, suppliers and buyers are spreading across the planet and more activities are being outsourced. How do you plan logistics between multiple actors in such an uncertain world? And how do you use real-time location information to improve performance? In the specialisation in Production & Logistics Management (PLM), you will gain expertise in a key area of Industrial Engineering & Management: the impact of customised logistical designs on overall performance.  

Research orientations 

A research orientation represents a scientific research area and determines a part of the mandatory courses you are going to follow and the field in which you will complete your master’s thesis. Within the specialisation in PLM, you can choose from four orientations. 

What to expect

‘How can I improve efficiency?’ That is the main question you will ask yourself during this specialisation. You will cut straight to the heart of the supply chain, from sourcing raw materials to delivering finished products to customers. You will learn to pinpoint the best location for production facilities and distribution centres and identify the resources they need. You will also get to grips with how to structure operations management in production, warehousing, transport, distribution and purchasing. The key is to give customers the standard of service they want and to ensure process reliability. 

Examples of courses you follow during this specialisation:
  • Do you want to learn to formulate and solve optimization models in order to find the most optimal solutions to problems in Operations Management? The courses Operations Research Techniques 1 and Stochastic Optimization and Learning teach you how.
  • Do you want to know how to tackle surgery planning on a strategic, tactical and operational level in a large hospital? Take the course Planning and Scheduling.
  • During the course Warehousing, you learn about creating a more efficient flow of goods within warehouses, by using appropriate storage and order picking policies. 

As a student, you learn to deal with practical issues in logistical settings. In the courses, you will apply advanced software tools for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and integer linear programming (ILP) problems, capacity analysis of production systems, distribution planning and vehicle routing. You will also get familiar with Economic Order Quantity calculations, a typical Industrial Engineering & Management challenge. Some courses in this specialisation are shared with our Master’s in Mechanical Engineering. 

What will you learn?

As a graduate of this Master's and this specialisation, you have acquired specific, scientific knowledge and skills and values, which you can put to good use in your future job. 

  • Knowledge

    After completing this Master’s specialisation, you have: 

    • a broad overview of quantitative modelling (OR) techniques;
    • thorough knowledge on how to find research results and integrate these in design processes;
    • a broad overview of areas where operations management techniques can be applied.
  • Skills

    After successfully finishing this Master’s specialisation, you: 

    • are able to communicate effectively (in oral and written form) with different stakeholders;
    • know how to use quantitative modelling to solve complex business problems;
    • can solve business problems, both individually and in groups.
  • Value

    After completing this Master’s specialisation, you: 

    • have a sharp eye for the benefits as well as the limitations of quantitative models;
    • are aware of the different backgrounds of stakeholders and take these into account and benefit from them while working together;
    • have a sense of integrity in doing your job (e.g. handling information cautiously, reflecting on your work in an honest way, etc.).

Other master's and specialisations

Is this specialisation not exactly what you are looking for? Maybe one of the other specialisations suits you better. It is also possible – and welcomed – to make bridges between specialisations, by adding a second specialisation (within or outside of the Master's in Industrial Engineering & Management). 

Not sure if the Master's in Industrial Engineering & Management is the right choice for you? Find out more about these other Master’s:

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