5 Steps to fortify your supply chain with automation
5 Steps to fortify your supply chain with automation
Operational resilience in the supply chain is more crucial than ever. Companies worldwide are grappling with disruptions to their supply chains, ranging from global component shortages to geopolitical tensions. To thrive in this environment, businesses are recognising the need to fortify their supply chains and enhance operational resilience through automation.
Here are five steps to get you started on this journey:
1. Streamline your supply and demand planning
Efficient supply and demand planning is the foundation of a resilient supply chain. Utilise automation to gain transparency and oversight, employing tools like process mining to identify potential bottlenecks in your critical processes. By automating tasks such as order-to-cash cycles, material requirements planning, and forecast management, you’ll ensure that your organisation focuses on deviations and remains equipped to manage surprises with precision.
“The more you can use automation for supply and demand planning, the better off you are,” emphasises one of our operational resilience experts, Niklas Sundberg, SVP & CIO at ASSA ABLOY Global Solutions division.
2. Optimise inventory management and logistics
Reduce transportation emissions and minimise waste by automating your inventory management and logistics. With automation, you can optimise transportation routes and enhance visibility across the supply chain. This data-driven approach allows you to make sustainable choices when it comes to sourcing materials and components while efficiently delivering finished goods.
3. Embrace sustainable sourcing practices
Leverage automation to ensure ethical sourcing and enhance sustainability across your supply chain. By automating the tracking of CO2 consumption and reinforcing compliance with new regulations like the “Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism,” you can align your organisation with the latest industry standards and proactively address environmental concerns.
4. Collaborate across the ecosystem
With automation, it’s easier than ever to work collectively across the supply chain ecosystem. Break down silos within your organisation and collaborate with partners, suppliers and logistics providers. Automate key processes that involve different actors in the ecosystem, allowing for a more synchronised and agile approach to supply chain management.
5. Prepare for the unexpected with automation
Automation helps build resilience by automating key processes like disaster recovery. Eliminate the need for manual, error-prone tasks by scheduling automated processes to run at any hour of the day. This proactive approach minimises downtime, ensuring your supply chain can adapt to unforeseen disruptions and maintain operational efficiency.
In conclusion, operational resilience and sustainability are intertwined, and automation is the linchpin that ties them together. By implementing these five steps, you can fortify your supply chain with automation, ensuring it remains agile and capable of withstanding disruptions. As the business landscape continues to evolve, your organisation will be well-prepared to navigate challenges and seize opportunities for growth.
For more insights, refer to our dedicated page on building a resilient business through automation.
