Here is a view from MIT in favor of transparency and traceability. I am strongly in agreement. You improve what you measure, right? And in supply chain, knowing what’s happening is the key focus on what you can improve.
While Companies Usually Fight Related Regulation, That View Maybe Shortsighted, Says Alexis Bateman
Source: Supply Chain News: Manufacturers Should Embrace Transparency and Traceability, MIT Researcher Says
This is a fascinating McKinsey study promoting the notion of a circular economy, one which focuses on trying to reduce the externalities in economic activity to build a more sustainable economic system. There are many good examples. You can also download the 98 page fiull report from the post.
Adopting circular-economy principles could not only benefit Europe environmentally and socially but could also generate a net economic benefit of €1.8 trillion by 2030. A McKinsey & Company article.
Source: Europe’s circular-economy opportunity | McKinsey & Company
Posted in Leadership, Macroeconomics, Strategy, Sustainability
Risk to supply chains crops up from all kinds of sources. It appears that hazardous materials were being stored in the warehouse complex. The port has been shut down because of problems with road access, as well as in the harbor.
There’s no way to plan for this stuff. However, you can be flexible and have more than one route planned. Or you can place inventory elsewhere on the route to allow you to survive for longer, until the facility gets going again. So you have to think about risk in terms of alternate means at all times.
And how about supplier qualification? Should firms look more closely at all the facilities their 3PL chooses to use? Of course that would help, but it would also be hugely expensive. And you can bet the 3PL is not doing it, or not doing it the way you would, perhaps. I wonder if there will be an aftereffect of firms not wanting to go through this port because they feel the Chinese operators are not being policed closely enough for compliance with basic safety and operational rules.
Posted in Logistics, Supply Chains, Sustainability
Supply Chain Digest Port Technology International Marine Link
Supply Chain and Logistics 