Digitalisation has become a driving force for various industries today, allowing them to increase their productivity and efficiency. The case is no different for supply chain and logistics facing challenges after the pandemic.
Supply chain issues have been a primary reason for the high inflation many countries, including the US and the UK. Today, supply chain management is a big functioning vehicle which involves all business operations from marketing to product development, manufacturing, and much more.
With the help of digitalisation, it becomes easier to create an ecosystem where everything is transparent to all stakeholders. So what is supply chain digitalisation? And how can the supply chain digital transformation benefits you? We’ll discuss all those things in this article.
Supply Chain Digitalisation: What Is It All About?
Supply chain digitalisation is all about incorporating new technological advancements that will allow them to enhance their process. The best part is that it allows you to focus on the core aspects of your supply chain business by streamlining the tedious and repetitive tasks.
The goal is to build a supply network that is transparent and responsive. As a result, it can deal with various industry variables like the shortage of inventory, availability of resources, etc. A few companies might go one step ahead by completely changing their process because of the usage of new technologies and digital solutions.
The companies that incorporate the new technologies for supply chain management can enjoy various benefits, such as:
· Shorter lead times
· Lower production and operational costs
· Improved reporting and data analysis capabilities
· Better planning and production programs
Factors that Are Driving Supply Chain Digital Transformation
Businesses worldwide had to experience lockdowns and shipment delays due to the pandemic. That became a driving force for businesses to focus on supply chain digitalisation. Many companies in the industry incorporated new technologies to make their operations more agile and resilient.
Companies had to endure social distancing protocols and other practices that impacted their production capacity. Moreover, the changing consumer pattern also became a factor that disrupted the entire supply chain ecosystem. All these things made it inevitable for companies to adopt new technologies.
How Can Supply Chain Digitalisation Benefit Your Business?
Supply chain digitalisation can help you grow and enhance your business’s overall productivity. Here are some benefits you can enjoy by incorporating new technologies and digital solutions.
Process Automation
There are many documents and paperwork that goes behind the supply chain operations. From sourcing the product to opening an LC, the manual task can take a lot of time, reducing efficiency and productivity.
That is where the digital supply chain tools completely transform the module for them. It saves you from the hassle of manual data entry and ensures that all parties get access to the necessary data. Furthermore, the different technological tools such as sensors assist you with real-time inventory tracking.
Better Accuracy and Greater Efficiency
The best thing about supply chain digitalisation is that it reduces the chances of human error. The total transparency allows you to learn about the progress of relevant tasks. Moreover, automation makes it relatively easy to avoid mistakes in general processes.
Another great advantage of supply chain digitalisation is that you can enjoy greater efficiency. You can integrate different technologies in the process that will lead to higher operational productivity. For example, conveyor automation can simplify warehouse efficiency and increase overall productivity.
Reduce costs
Increasing the net profit margin is a primary goal for many businesses. And the best way to achieve that goal is by increasing your revenue or decreasing your costs. That is where supply chain digitalisation comes into play. It allows you to simplify various processes such as:
· Resource planning
· Raw material flows
· Operational logistics
· Inventory levels
· Forecasting
Additionally, it can enhance the overall information sharing and collaboration process. This can allow you to discover the bottlenecks in the process, reduce time-to-market, and increase the overall return.
Finding issues that can become a problem and identifying their consequences can be time-consuming and unreliable with traditional supply chain operations However digitalization allows companies to identity such issues and deal with them accordingly beforehand
Incorporating the Supply Chain Digitalisation for Your Business Today
Supply chain management includes various workflows, including sourcing, procurement, inventory and logistics management. A disruption in any one of these workflows is enough to create issues that can have global consequences.
We saw that during the Covid-19 pandemic, the entire supply chain industry had to deal with lockdown and other issues. Therefore, moving towards digitalisation is more than important for your business today. If you want to get a competitive edge over others, it is vital to incorporate new technologies and digital solutions.
