Top Challenges in Supply Chain Management

The overall goal of the entire supply chain is to ensure that a company is able to deliver orders on time to customers for the lowest possible cost. Supply Chain Management (SCM) involves the methods and ideas used to create a production process that has the highest efficiency and the lowest amount of waste.

Supply chain management is an essential component of any business that has product flow and is involved in creating or selling products. While this is important and beneficial to many operations, there are many challenges that supply chains may face. This is especially true for smaller manufacturers that may not have access to sophisticated scheduling systems.

The main goal for supply chain managers is to have your supply chain become entirely efficient to ensure that all products are being delivered on time. However, there are a variety of challenges that all supply chains and manufacturing operations may find themselves running into.

Top Challenges in Supply Chain Management

1. Customer Service - One of the most important driving force of the supply chain is customers, as the main goal of the supply chain is to deliver the right quantity of a product in time. Now, customer demand is becoming extremely specific as they expect to be able to customize their orders. In addition, it is important for your customers to know when they will receive their products and should be notified if or when a delay is expected. As such, supply chain managers benefit from advanced planning and scheduling systems that are able to identify possible issues such as resource capacity or material bottlenecks, to prevent delays from occurring or to notify customers in advance. 
2. Cost Control - Operating costs are affected by rising fuel and freight costs, technological advances, labor costs, and other regulatory requirements. High supply chain visibility is important to identify any areas that are not being utilized to their full potential. Increasing the efficiency of your system and eliminating wasteful steps will ensure that your production output is maximized. Any unnecessary and costly steps will be eliminated, which will further reduce the overall production costs. 
3. Finding Qualified Personnel - In certain parts of the world, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find qualified personnel to perform the necessary operations. Sometimes, it can be more beneficial for your company to invest in your current employees with training. In addition, having a performance tracking system can allow you to schedule employees on different production lines or during different times of the day based on when they are more productive.
4. Unexpected Delays - In uncertain times, you may encounter delays in the delivery of materials. To resolve this challenge, it can be helpful to have a planning and scheduling software that tells you when you need to have a certain material and add a buffer to ensure that you would get it in time, even if there are delays. In addition, these softwares can help you maintain buffer stocks by ordering additional supplies when the stock levels are getting low.
5. Rapidly Changing Markets - In order to maintain the efficiency of production, it is important to periodically re-assess and re-design your production plan. These adjustments will reflect changes in the market as new products and technologies are emerging. Having a planning and scheduling system that allows you to see the effects of those changes without disrupting your current schedule can help you make the best decisions in response to those changes.

We’re able to make strategic decisions that improve operations. We can proactively prepare for anticipated increases or slowdowns in demand.

DICK MARX, MATERIALS MANAGER, KNAPHEIDE TRUCK EQUIPMENT

 

A software that can aid with ensuring that your supply chain stays on track is PlanetTogether’s Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) Software. These softwares are a necessity for manufacturing operations that are seeking to take their production to the next level. They allow manufacturers to have a visual representation of their entire production process and manipulate areas that are in need of productivity enhancement.

Advanced Planning and Scheduling

Advanced Planning and Scheduling Softwares have become a must for modern-day manufacturing operations as customer demand for increased product assortment, fast delivery, and downward cost pressures become prevalent. These systems help planners save time while providing greater agility in updating ever-changing priorities, production schedules, and inventory plans. APS Systems can be quickly integrated with an ERP/MRP software to fill the gaps where these systems lack planning and scheduling flexibility, accuracy, and efficiency.

With PlanetTogether APS you can:

• Create optimized schedules that balance production efficiency and delivery performance
• Maximize throughput on bottleneck resources to increase revenue
• Synchronize supply with demand to reduce inventories
• Provide company-wide visibility to resource capacity
• Enable scenario data-driven decision making

The implementation of an Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) Software will take your manufacturing operations to the next level of production efficiency by taking advantage of the operational data you already possess in your ERP system. APS is a step in the right direction of efficiency and lean manufacturing production enhancement.

Try out a free trial or demo!