markitect-main/examples/supply-chain-vsm/README.md

# Supply Chain Management through the Wealth of Nations

A demonstration of infospace **composition**: the Wealth of Nations
infospace (from `../infospace-with-history`) is used as a **discipline**,
applying Smith's economic framework as an analytical lens to concepts in
modern supply chain management.

This example shows that a completed, viable infospace is not just an end
in itself — it becomes reusable knowledge infrastructure for analysing
entirely different topics.

---

## What This Demonstrates

1. **Binding a discipline**: `infospace.yaml` declares the WoN infospace
   as a discipline with a relative path. `markitect infospace disciplines`
   shows it is viable (988 entities, all thresholds met).

2. **Cross-domain mapping**: Each supply chain entity has a `## WoN Concept`
   section mapping it to a specific WoN entity. The `output/mappings/`
   directory contains structured mapping files with rationale and
   conceptual continuity ratings (Strong / Moderate / Weak).

3. **VSM inheritance**: Because WoN entities are already mapped to VSM
   systems (S1–S5), supply chain entities inherit a VSM position by
   transitivity through their WoN mappings — without the supply chain
   infospace needing its own VSM reference.

4. **Independent viability**: The supply chain infospace has its own
   schema, thresholds, and viability check. It is viable independently
   of the WoN infospace.

---

## Key Mappings

| Supply Chain Entity | WoN Concept | Strength | VSM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demand Signal | Effectual Demand | Strong | S2 |
| Vendor-Managed Inventory | Division of Labour | Strong | S1/S2 |
| Just-in-Time Inventory | Circulating Capital | Strong | S1/S3 |
| Bullwhip Effect | Natural Price as Central Price | Moderate | S2 |
| Safety Stock | Accumulation of Stock | Moderate | S3 |
| Platform Intermediary | Merchant Capital | Strong | S2/S4 |
| Monopsony Power | Combination of Masters | Strong | S3* |
| Single-Source Dependency | Monopoly in Trade | Moderate | S4/S5 |

---

## Running the Composition Commands

```bash
cd examples/supply-chain-vsm

# Check bound disciplines and their viability:
markitect infospace disciplines

# Show status of this infospace:
markitect infospace status

# Run collection checks:
markitect infospace check

# Review viability:
markitect infospace viability
```

---

## Processing New Sources

To process additional source documents through the pipeline:

```bash
export OPENROUTER_API_KEY=$(cat ../../apikey-openrouter.txt | tr -d '[:space:]')

markitect infospace process "new-source.md" --provider openrouter
```

The `map-to-won` stage will inject `artifacts/won-reference/core-entities.md`
as the discipline context, enabling the LLM to map new entities to WoN
concepts during extraction.

To use the full WoN entity set as context (rather than the curated subset),
update the `map-to-won` stage macro to point at the WoN entities directory:

```yaml
macros:
  won_core_entities: ../infospace-with-history/output/entities/
```

---

## Intellectual Payoff

The most striking finding from this mapping exercise is how few of Smith's
concepts are genuinely obsolete. The core mechanisms he identified —
coordination signals, capital velocity, intermediary leverage, monopoly
extraction, and buyer power — all have direct modern counterparts in
supply chain management.

What has changed is the technology: price signals are now data feeds;
merchant capital now takes the form of platform networks; the division of
labour now operates across firms (VMI) rather than within them. The
mechanisms are the same; the surface form is different. This is precisely
what Strong conceptual continuity ratings capture.

The genuinely novel element is the elimination of inventory risk by
platform intermediaries — a structural innovation not available to Smith's
merchants, who had to bear physical stock to earn distribution profit.
This is the one place where the WoN mapping stretches to Moderate rather
than Strong.