What is the Net Lab?

Eyeing the revolution through a cross-campus prism.

Recognizing the revolutionary power of netcentricity to transform our lives, the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland has created a unique laboratory to study its impact and shape its future. The Netcentricity Laboratory supports cutting-edge netcentric practices in an integrated environment. The lab comprises the high-tech teaching and research environments of integrated supply chain management/e-commrece, financial markets, and behavioral aspects to provide a seamless multidimensional view of netcentric practices as they impact a myriad of market applications.

Supply Chain Management Center

The Supply Chain Management Center provides the Netcentricity Laboratory with a multimedia environment that models the ongoing, high-speed supply chain process unfolding in the networked organization. Corporate partners such as Sun Microsystems, SAIC (Science Applications International Corporation), EDS, Cisco, TIBCO, Manugistics, Oracle, and SCL (Supply Chain Logic, Inc.), have contributed over $6 million in business applications and computing resources. As a result, the center’s IT suite includes advanced supply chain management planning and optimization, enterprise resource planning (ERP), collaborative logistics, global simulation of e-supply chains, middleware, data mining and analysis tools, and sophisticated workstations connected to large screen, flat-panel projection displays.

Founded in 1998, the center is an advisor to the State of Maryland and a key partner in the eMaryland Initiative to build the most advanced e-infrastructure of any state in the nation.

E-Commerce

E-commerce applications explore all aspects of bringing a product to market, from product definition and introduction to process management, manufacturing, delivery, and customer service. Students explore how companies are leveraging technology and the Internet to globally market products and services, manage customer equity, build brand awareness, and sustain a competitive edge. In addition, students examine e-commerce and supply chain management in an integrated environment, so they can better understand the complex strategic and technological issues facing managers in today's digital economy.

Financial Markets Laboratory

The Netcentric Financial Markets Laboratory provides the Netcentricity Laboratory with real-time trading information from Wall Street and financial markets around the world.

Emphasizing hands-on learning and real-time decision making, the Smith School’s financial markets lab provides the ideal “immersion” or experiential learning experience to help students better understand sophisticated global financial markets information and risk management in the netcentric economy.

The financial markets lab plan consists of 16 trading terminals seating 32 students. Real-time data and analytical tools are provided by Reuters and displayed on electronic datawalls, electronic tickers and flat screen terminals throughout the lab.