Never before has modern-day manufacturing needed to be as resilient as it is today, as supply chain issues continue to evolve at pace. While risks within global supply chains are omnipresent (shipping, port delays, customs, and general logistical hold-ups), recent events have propelled this to the forefront of many businesses operating considerations – in every corner of industry.
Raw material availability, compounded by labour shortages and freight challenges have found manufacturers learning hard lessons, forcing them to rapidly adapt to volatile market conditions as increased demand outstrips production volumes.
Long gone are the days of viewing supply chain as a singular element, replaced by an acute awareness of the whole spectrum of constantly moving parts that make up this critical service.
With the tumultuous state of supply chains, now is the ideal time to reassess sourcing and procurement issues, futureproofing in the long-term against external factors and removing needless complexity.
Where disruptions and reliance on an uncertain vendor-base have highlighted the cost and reliability risks inherent in modern world supply chains, these challenges have made way for greater forecasting, greater control of costs and ultimately, a renewed approach to externally sourcing parts and goods.
Manufacturers are actively shifting focus – decreasing reliance on overseas supplies and an emphasis placed on supply visibility, communication and a need for real-time data and predictive analysis to allow companies to be proactive in production forecasts, costs reduction and increased efficiencies.
For Optimas Solutions, a leading global distributor and manufacturer of industrial fasteners, C-Class components, and data-driven inventory management systems, this is where the company excels.
Already renowned for providing customers with supply chain solutions that elevate efficiencies, the company has, in more recent times, invested huge sums of money into powerful industry-standard software for increased demand planning and inventory optimisation and an advanced ERP system that allows for greater control of internal data and a maximised synergy throughout its entire global footprint.
While there’s no escaping the fact – fasteners are a low value commodity, overlooking or not placing importance on this critical part can bring production lines to a stop. Fasteners are in essence holding production lines together, both figuratively and literally and perhaps are the least of manufacturers worries until something does go wrong, be that supply, or a quality issue.
Optimas’ manufacturing facilities, on both sides of the Atlantic, are clearly positioned to help alleviate impacted production schedules through its expertise in fasteners, bolstered by some of the most advanced cold form technology available.
As supply chains continue to buckle under pressure, localising supply has never made more sense – allowing manufacturers to access high-quality product, in a much smaller timeframe and negating the need for unnecessary inventory surplus.
So as industry battles with a once-in-a-lifetime seismic shift, manufacturers can learn to use data and forecasting to decrease risk and increase efficiency by partnering with onshore suppliers capable of keeping production lines moving.
For further details on Optimas visit: https://international.optimas.com
