What Are the Biggest Supply Chain Challenges To Overcome?
Everyone knows that the supply chain is a mess right now. It’s wreaking havoc on nearly every aspect of our lives, and challenges are popping up left and right for all kinds of businesses. So let’s delve into that a bit and explore the biggest supply chain challenges to overcome.
The Challenge To Keep Up
During normal times, the supply chain functions like a well-oiled assembly line. Goods are ordered, they get where they’re supposed to be on time, and customers can capitalize on this and make the appropriate purchases.
When there are disruptions, though, the entire supply chain turns into a distorted race. The goods are ordered, but they show up late or not at all, and customers walk away frustrated because they’re not available.
The challenge is keeping up with the industry and keeping up with customer demand, which is a tough combination when the supply chain is off. One way to improve this, though, is through better demand forecasting. Automated inventory alerts, market analysis tools, and other resources can help you better predict supply and demand, allowing you to prepare for unusual trends to the best of your ability.
The Delay Factor Challenge
Under normal circumstances, the supply chain is actually built to handle brief delays. But when the delays become erratic or extended, there’s no way to compensate for the problems they cause. It’s an impossible challenge that sets everyone behind schedule and generally results in chaos across the board. Long delays mean extra costs, the shipping companies lose money, and those costs get passed on to angry customers.
You can help improve both delays and cost challenges by partnering with reliable trucking fleets, freight forwarders, or other similar services. When you work with a trusted freight forwarder, you know you’re getting the best price and the quickest route possible every time. These services give you better knowledge of your supply chain, making it easier to handle disruptions and get your business back on track when things go wrong.
The Access Challenge
Warehouses and other aspects of the supply chain have been digitally automated in the last few years, and usually, this kind of automation is a huge benefit.
Once again, though, everything changes when things become unpredictable. One of the most frustrating aspects of an automation problem is needing to find out who’s responsible for what and access that person to fix the problem. It’s often difficult to access a person, much less find the right one to implement a given fix, so it’s one of the biggest supply chain challenges to overcome.
Make sure you get the most out of your automation system by choosing the right conveyor system for your warehouse. Choose a warehouse automation solution that suits your existing workflow and integrates with your current processes. This helps you create and maintain a system that is intuitive and effective for your business, no matter what supply chain challenges you face.
