COVID-19 was one of the most significant shocks to global supply chains in recent years. Not only was it more challenging for companies to source goods nationally and from overseas, end consumers also struggled to get hold of certain products due to increased demand but decreased output. As many production chains came to a halt, this made supply chain management much more difficult for businesses across the globe.
Due to the worldwide pandemic, there has been a complete overhaul of how businesses manage their supply chains. As a result of this, there has been an uplift in demand for more efficient systems moving forwards for better visibility and reduced costs. Read more about how real-time supply chain monitoring will become increasingly important in a post-COVID world.
Using Supply Chain Monitoring Systems to Increase Efficiency
Common disruptions to supply chains include trade tensions, surges or drop in demand, storage and access restrictions and natural disruptions such as flooding. Experts have stated that disruptions in supply chains are becoming more frequent and common, and to expect 1–2-month long disruptions to production lines every three-and-a-half to four years.
Many supply chains are complex and complicated, designed for low costs and high production rates. By incorporating a sustainable real time supply chain monitoring system with data loggers, disruptions will become minimised and managers will gain increased visibility of the entire supply chain.
Benefits of effective supply chain management include cutting administrative costs, increased transparency and collecting valuable data to help continuously improve production processes.
Building A Future Proof Supply Chain
COVID-19 caused a very sudden disruption to supply chains across the globe, sadly causing many businesses to temporarily or permanently close due to having insufficient contingency plans in place. This is why it is now vital to ensure a high-quality supply chain monitoring system is implemented to prevent future problems that could negatively impact your business.
Supply chain managers should not be constantly preparing for the “big” event disruptions, as these are unpredictable and it would be costly to have measures in place 24/7. Instead, supply chain owners should focus on vulnerabilities within the system itself to minimise issues in the future.
In the post-COVID-19 era, supply chain monitoring stress tests will become the norm. Before COVID-19, the main priority within supply chain management was achieving minimum cost, however now the main priority is optimising and increasing visibility of the supply chain to prevent disruptions and improve business performance.
Maneuvering through these disruptions requires visibility and comprehensive real-time analysis, allowing supply chain owners to highlight and address any issues that arise. Innovative
equipment such as supply chain data loggers provides a full status report of the supply chain process with analytical data. By applying these techniques and tools to your real-time supply chain monitoring system, this can increase protection against future disruptive events.
For further information about our real-time supply chain monitoring solutions or to enquire, get in touch with our friendly team at Wessex Power. Call us on 01929 459459 or email sales@wpls.co.uk