在 COVID-19 及以后保护您的供应链

As we move past the halfway point of 2020, we asked Marc Strandquist, President of the Americas at Optimas, about the state of supply chains today, what we’ve learned so far and how to secure your supply chain for the path forward.

现在制造商面临的最大挑战是什么？

The short answer is understanding true demand. Back in January, we saw customers building say, 200 units a day and then they were shut down in April. When manufacturers reopened and began to ramp up production, they started with maybe 50 units a day. This is significantly less than where they were six months prior, and many were making their best guess at the numbers. It’s difficult to project and adjust production, especially in such a volatile market.

制造商的上游是材料供应商。例如，钢铁行业不得不调整生产，以尽量避免因下游生产停滞和减产而导致的库存增加和价格下跌。

我们都希望并祈祷，如果出现第二次全国性的病毒激增，我们会以不同的方式处理事情，我们会找到更好的方法来保护我们的经济，而不是关闭一切并重新开始这个循环。

What are some of the other challenges that you’ve seen manufacturers struggling with?

许多供应商宣布不可抗力或停业，使分销商和制造商陷入困境，导致供应链出现重大中断。

The industrial industry has also had to deal with limited mobility and travel restrictions. They’re not able to visit customers, meet with key accounts, and its hurting customer relationships.

当然，一些公司正在为现金流而苦苦挣扎。

一些公司比其他公司更好地准备应对这场危机。这些公司做对了什么？

我认为他们在与客户和供应商的沟通方面采取了非常积极的立场。他们确保提供持续更新和签到，提供舒适感。

Also, companies that leveraged technology – digitizing as much of their supply chain as possible – had the right data resulting in better demand planning for defers and cancels that push out inventory – so they could have enough cash on hand.

那些措手不及的人呢？

Communication is so important. Companies that did not communicate upfront and effectively with customers and supplier partners struggled the most. They couldn’t react appropriately or fast enough. As we’ve all recently witnessed, a shutdown leaves us vulnerable and exposed. Clear and transparent communication makes it possible to better mitigate risk.

And, from what we’ve seen so far of the 2020 pandemic, supply chains built primarily on low cost, single source, and low inventory were the least equipped to deal with such massive disruptions.

最后，我认为没有与合适的供应商和供应链合作伙伴建立牢固的关系会伤害许多企业。

您看到制造商为纠正路线和稳定所做的一些事情是什么？

具有适当风险缓解策略、多元化采购、数字化以及与供应商建立牢固关系的公司更具弹性。

已开始实现供应链多元化并实施在岸供应链战略、投资国内制造的公司已大大降低了风险。

好消息是，美国制造业将从中受益匪浅。

At Optimas, for example, we do high-volume, high-quality manufacturing in our Chicago-area facility. We’re seeing an uptick in interest in sourcing domestically versus overseas.

我们将在第四季度继续看到哪些供应链挑战？

任何公司及其领导者面临的挑战都是他们无法控制的事情。通过这个，我的意思是更多的政府在州或国家层面关闭。这将使计划库存、预测需求和相应地调整劳动力变得不可能。

制造商现在可以做什么来稳定他们的供应链并将风险降至最低？

Get accurate data on what you’re going to consume. That’s #1. As an industrial distributor, we don’t have a problem getting inventory for our customers, but we need good data to ensure the highest level of service possible. Greater visibility is key.

需要哪些长期解决方案来继续保护他们的供应链？

每家公司都应该对其供应基础和商品战略进行非常彻底的审查。确保与稳定、财务上可行并具有交付能力的供应商签订协议。回到我之前所说的，透明的沟通和关系至关重要。

COVID-19 将如何永久改变供应链？

There is no question that there will be a whole new way of doing business. There will be less human contact, more Zoom/Teams meetings, and likely more restrictions on travel as well. These things will be with us for a long time. But it’s an opportunity for all of us to get creative in how we interact and reach our customers to help them achieve their business goals.

我还预计对国内制造业的持续兴趣。制造商正在寻求降低他们的总拥有成本，并为他们自己的生产和客户提供更好的支持。

当我们摆脱 COVID-19 时，反弹会是什么样子？

Those that took this time to focus internally on the business, train their people and make their companies stronger will be the ones who can get out there and grab some market share. Those that were passive and wasted their time will be left behind – big or small. There will be a lot of aggressive behavior out there to get market penetration.

At Optimas, we’ve been quite busy the last five months. We’re better prepared to gain market share and grow because we’ve been investing in technology upgrades, expanding into new markets, and adding new product assortment for our customers.

作为领导者，您在这段时间学到了什么？

I had to change my thinking about working from home. I was not a fan of the concept before the virus. I thought that it would degrade the business or be too difficult. The downsides are that you lose a bit of team camaraderie and company culture suffers when you’re all remote. It ended up being a seamless transition. We made sure our people had access to what they needed so they could continue to do their jobs.

How can we be ready for what’s next?

Make sure your team understands that your customer doesn’t want to be sold to right now – they want answers and help figuring out what’s next. Respond quickly to customer needs and make sure your people are properly led and trained to work in the current conditions. There will be opportunities out there, but you need to be properly prepared and flexible.