In today’s changing environment, building supply chain resiliency is more crucial than ever. Wise technology selection and implementation choices will support the capacity to withstand interruptions, continue business as usual operations, and expand.
The smooth operations of a firm, its agility, and its profitability all depend on effective supply chain management. Supply chain management requires a high level of resiliency.
Most sectors have been impacted by Covid-19 supply chain problems. During Covid-19, a large number of businesses throughout the world suffered issues that affected shipping time, prices, efficiency, and revenues in significant ways. A supply chain with the ability to withstand storms and recover quickly is critical to the success of businesses.
This necessitates the use of technology. Supply chains may benefit from a wide variety of cutting-edge technologies. Let’s look at today’s global supply chain and how you can build strength and resiliency into yours.
Post-pandemic supply chain challenges
Supply chains may be challenging to manage since even a small failure in one connection can have a ripple effect across the whole network. Because of the supply, demand, and ability-to-service shocks, Covid-19 has, unfortunately (or happily) revealed a lot of supply chain fragility.
Labor and equipment shortages continue to be an issue, even as restrictions are being eased and borders are reopened worldwide. Despite all of this, the needs of consumers are constantly changing. With the rapid growth of eCommerce, consumers have become used to (and demand) speedy delivery and flawless service.
Increasing supply chain resilience and competitiveness have necessitated process transformations at many companies. As a result of these disruptions, a large number of businesses have begun to regionalize their supply chains. They’re also looking at supply chain technology to improve operational efficiency and decrease risk.
Transforming the supply chain with digital technology
Supply chains must be future-proofed as organizations adjust to the new normal by minimizing complexity and uncertainty. Increased digitalization and innovative technology will play a vital role in the future management of supply chains. Several advantages may be gained by businesses undergoing digital transformation, among them being:
Increased visibility: The use of blockchain, sophisticated track-and-trace technologies, and enterprise resource planning (ERP) helps to improve supply chain visibility. This gives you the ability to take preemptive risk mitigation steps if anything goes wrong with your inventory.
Improved collaboration: Establishing tight ties with suppliers leads to improved transparency throughout the supply chain. You can react rapidly to changes in the supply chain by engaging with all parties involved. This necessitates the use of technology to gather and exchange data continuously.
Predictive capabilities: Supply chain risk management may be better managed using data analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML). Inventory choices may be altered by forecasting potential interruptions, for example.
It’s time to figure out how to make your supply chain more resilient. If you haven’t modified your procedures yet, now is an excellent moment to do so. These are some of the most effective methods for strengthening the resiliency of your supply chain.
Assess your vulnerability
Start by assessing your current supply chain for weaknesses and gaps.
Vulnerabilities such as the following are possible outcomes:
- Supply chain openness and visibility are lacking
- Processes that are primarily manual and devoid of any kind of technology
- Dependence on a single provider or place.
Consider the hazards associated with your suppliers while doing your due diligence.
Develop a diversified network of suppliers or manufacturers
Make sure you’re not too reliant on medium or high-risk partners by diversifying your supply chain. Companies have been forced to move production to Southeast Asian nations like Vietnam and Indonesia because of the trade conflict between the United States and China.
Diversifying your network and altering your logistical techniques will require time and money. However, by reducing your dependence on a single site, you may increase the resilience of your supply chain.
Buffers should be created for inventory
Creating inventory buffers is another common method for enhancing supply chain resilience. Shipping dates have been affected by Covid-19. As a result, inventory buffers may prevent clients from abandoning you due to out-of-stock items.
Predicting inventory needs may be made easier with the use of planning and forecasting tools that use your sales history and inventory levels to provide automatic forecasts. Some planning tools even predict production schedules and component goods ordering.
Scalable technology solutions
Monitoring and optimizing supply chain resilience necessitates the use of digital technology. Here are a few ways you may integrate technology into your supply chain:
- Automate monotonous work using chatbots and robotic process automation (RPA).
- ERP on the cloud for better data visibility and gathering.
- Dashboards provide real-time access to data and the ability to monitor critical indicators.
- Analytical methods are used to detect potential threats before they occur and take action to mitigate them.
- For example, using data analysis to help detect supply concerns or particular supplier problems before they emerge.
Big data may assist with the following tasks:
- A strict eye on the fine print
- Deployment in real time
- Prevailing conditions
- Preparation and forethought
- Inventory management effectiveness at the warehouse
- Inventory levels and sales prices
- The introduction of IoT and wearables in warehouses will help with choosing judgments.
Future technologies
Emerging technologies that boost efficiency and automate processes will remain an essential part of a successful supply chain management strategy. Here’s what I see happening in supply chain management in the near future:
- Distributed inventory: It helps firms increase order fill rates and manage inventory levels by predicting the flow of commodities using distributed inventory flow forecasting (DIFF).
- Autonomous mobile robots (AMR): Picking procedures might benefit from using autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), while warehouse management systems continue to handle duties such as loading and unloading.
- Driverless vehicles and drone delivery: Drone deliveries and self-driving cars: Driverless and drone delivery alternatives are effective solutions, especially in labor shortages. This is an excellent way to keep costs down when delivering to distant and difficult-to-access areas.
- Blockchain: There may be concerns with transparency when moving across borders. Blockchain technology has the potential to revolutionize many different aspects of the business.
- 3D printing: With 3D printing, it is possible to duplicate and make replacement components on-demand, reducing the amount of inventory kept in storage. Using a local 3D printing shop to create and ship the item might be a time-saving option.
Building supply chain resilience is more crucial than ever. Wise technology selection and implementation choices will support the capacity to withstand interruptions, continue business as usual operations, and expand. Cooperative Computing consists of supply chain solution experts that’ll gladly help you with all your supply chain management challenges.
