Robots Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) enhance supply chain resilience through their efficiency, adaptability, and flexibility, says Jeff Clark, executive vice president with ODW Logistics, which implemented an AMR solution for a national beverage company that was able to almost double its number of units picked per hour. AMRs can also be swiftly deployed or reconfigured in response to shifts in volume and customer demands. “This agility empowers operations to promptly adapt to unforeseen changes in production volumes or distribution requirements,” Clark says. Automation Orchestrating tools, processes, and resources to function more effectively in order to boost supply chain resiliency is one important element of the automation trend. For example, Montway Auto Transport, as its name indicates, offers auto transport services. Its Montway Automation Portal (MAP) centralizes order processing, transportation planning, inventory management, and other processes. “This provides a more efficient, data-driven operation that can respond quickly to supply disruptions as well as consumer demands,” says Mike Trudeau, executive vice president of business development.
An automation portal enables Montway Auto Transport to centralize order processing, transportation planning, and inventory management so it can respond quickly to demand.
For instance, car dealers typically source vehicles locally, ignoring more distant markets due to perceived transportation costs. MAP allows them to generate quotes without committing to orders, so they can assess how transportation costs would impact the profitability of potential vehicle purchases. This helps dealers enlarge and diversify their supplier base. Data Lakes As a central repository that stores large volumes of data in their original form— whether structured, like spreadsheets;
semi-structured, like web pages; or unstructured, like images—a data lake allows data to be processed and used for analysis. Data lakes offer shippers the ability to gain insights into various options that can effectively mitigate future supply chain risks. DESIGN FOR RESILIENCE Along with technology, thoughtful supply chain design is essential for resilience. “Supply chains are either purposely designed or ad-hoc designed,” says enVista’s Rosier. Purposely designing for resilience means planning for seasonality and fluctuations, and then assembling a blend of fixed and variable capacity to meet demand. Building supply chains that can withstand uncertainty, however, may no longer be enough. Companies need to consider strategies that can help them learn and adapt so they can gain value from uncertainty. It’s what Tim Payne of Gartner calls “anti-fragility.” This approach requires stress-testing the supply chain, and continuously asking, ‘If this were to happen, what are options to take advantage of it?’ With the right tools and techniques, companies can embrace anti-fragility and build crucial supply chain resilience to help them face off against the next inevitable challenge. n
What estimated impact will uncertainty exposure have on revenue?
9% Gain
63% Loss
28% No Loss or Gain
Source: Supply chain organizations' response to Gartner research study
66 Inbound Logistics • April 2024
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