Integrated logistics management (ILM) is the use of data to plan, control, and implement a supply chain that delivers a product to a customer in the most effective way. This includes deciding on manufacturing locations, ensuring all components and materials are available, selecting where to warehouse completed products, and anticipating shipping needs. ILM is best understood as a service-oriented process designed to make things as easy for the customer as possible. It is not a method designed to help companies save money, though maximizing the efficiency of manufacturing and limiting the number of times a product needs to be transported ultimately helps keep prices down.