As August turns to September, there’s still a lot of uncertainty surrounding the global supply chain and how it will play out the rest of the year. Salesforce forecasts global holiday sales of $1.19 trillion, a 2% year-over-year increase. But, right now, shippers worldwide are trying to get their inventory just right to maximize the end-of-year opportunity — which isn’t easy.
The global supply chain continues to face disruptions from various sources. The challenge is to keep shelves full through the holidays, to create great customer experiences, and to maximize the share of that $1.19 trillion. But known and unknown disruptions could thwart success for many reasons.
This week’s look at headlines from around the supply chain and logistics space includes updates on potential disruptions, plus insights on how BCOs and LSPs are taking action to create more resilient supply chains. Continue reading to learn more, and contact the Cargologik team to discover how our platform helps your organization build much-needed supply chain resilience.
Ports Become Part of the Solution
Right now, the most pressing potential disruption is the threat of a strike across U.S. ports along the East and Gulf Coasts. If dock workers and management fail to reach an agreement, BCOs and LSPs will likely face increased costs, delays, and diversions.
Inside Logistics examines how ports are coming up with solutions to supply chain disruptions, including a focus on “visibility, elasticity, and investment” at the Port of Montreal. The story details how the port works with third-party storage providers to decongest the yard when volume spikes. It also describes the importance of prioritizing specific containers during volume surges. This level of prioritization requires visibility to achieve operational efficiency.
Surprise! We’re Having a Container Shortage
Another potential source of disruption: a shortage of shipping containers. There was a worldwide oversupply of containers before the Red Sea missile attacks started. Now, the longer voyages required to avoid the Red Sea have created a shipping container shortage. Hapag Lloyd has spent $500,000 on new containers so far in 2024. About 1.5 TEUs of containers were introduced into the market in the first half of 2023, compared to the 1,250,000 TEUs introduced in the first half of 2023.
What will this mean for maritime shipping over the last four months of the year? The container shortage could make it more difficult to streamline the flow of goods and ensure optimal inventory levels.
Ongoing Challenges in Bangladesh
We previously wrote about the geopolitical issues impacting Bangladesh's ready-made garment (RMG) industry. Flooding in the country has further exacerbated supply chain issues in the RMG space.
What’s happening in Bangladesh highlights the need for supply chain resilience, including visibility, collaboration, and orchestration. Disruptions can emerge anytime, bringing supply chains for entire industries to a standstill. It’s essential to have systems and processes that support a proactive and ultimately effective response to disruption.
How to Build Supply Chain Resilience
Global Trade Magazine recently wrote about the need for resilience in strengthening supply chains. The story notes the increasing frequency of supply chain disruptions, including “geopolitical tensions, warfare, piracy, natural disasters, pandemics, and weather events.” The story also suggested solutions for building resilience, including alternative suppliers, cross-functional collaboration, tracking the right KPIs, supplier scorecards, and monitoring global events. Alternative suppliers, in particular, are becoming a popular solution because of issues like what’s happening in Bangladesh.
Finding the Right KPIs to Power Supply Chain Analytics
To track “the right KPIs,” BCOs and LSPs will need “to focus on big data and advanced analytics, according to Supply & Demand Chain Executive. According to survey data, almost 65% of companies chose “big data and advanced analytics” as the trend that would have a major impact on supply chains in the coming years.
Of course, taking advantage of KPIs requires technology and a dashboard that your team can access. Organizations can always try to build their own technologies and dashboards, but choosing a third-party vendor that’s created a platform built for supply chain analytics (and much more) is far easier.
How the Seafood Industry is Building Supply Chain Resilience
Shippers are finding all sorts of innovative solutions for building visibility and resilience. For example, participants in the seafood supply chain are now taking advantage of reusable fish crates that include low-energy track-and-trace tags that make a shipment’s entire journey traceable. The right solutions for different businesses and industries may vary, but BCOs and LSPs must be open to these innovations and willing to test them to build resilience.
Cargologik: The Platform for Building Supply Chain Resilience
At Cargologik, we’ve built a supply chain orchestration platform designed to help BCOs and LSPs overcome modern challenges like supply chain fragmentation. It can help support resilience and collaboration through tools designed for everything from visibility to document management. If you’re ready to implement a supply chain management platform that responds to your most urgent needs, get started with Cargologik.
