In today’s global economy, supply chains face a level of uncertainty that is unprecedented in recent decades. Political factors such as Trump-era tariffs, renegotiated trade deals, and shifting international policies have disrupted traditional sourcing and logistics strategies. Even if you’re not directly involved in imports from affected regions, these shifts can ripple through your supply chain, delaying components, inflating costs, and challenging your operational resilience.
The truth is, you can’t predict exactly what will happen next. Trade negotiations can be renegotiated, tariffs can be imposed or lifted, and unforeseen events like port strikes, pandemics, or natural disasters can further interrupt the flow of goods. Many organisations have relied on the “just-in-time” model for decades, reducing stock to cut costs and improve cash flow. While efficient under normal circumstances, this strategy leaves businesses vulnerable when the supply chain is stressed.
Is your resilience as strong as it should be? This is the critical question for modern supply chain managers. Simply trusting that your supplier, wholesaler, or importer will have the stock you need may not be sufficient. A supplier that has optimised for minimal stockholding might not be able to fulfil your requirements if demand spikes or transport is delayed. When multiple customers are affected simultaneously, shortages multiply.
One way to mitigate this risk is to increase stockholding of critical components and materials. While counterintuitive to the cost-saving strategies of recent decades, maintaining higher inventory levels ensures you can continue operations even when the supply chain falters. Key to this approach is not just storing more items, but doing so strategically, identifying which components are essential and which can be delayed without significant disruption.
Techniques like consignment stock, additional storage capacity, and well-designed reserve stock and putaway processes can increase your resilience without causing unnecessary inventory bloat. It’s also important to recognise that what was efficient for a flow-through, just-in-time operation may not be optimal for a more stock-heavy model. Processes may need revising to handle higher inventory efficiently, ensuring replenishment and retrieval remain smooth.
In the next part, we’ll explore practical strategies to implement these resilience measures, from consignment stock to process redesign, ensuring your supply chain can withstand political uncertainty and maintain operational continuity.
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