In this episode, Ron and Joseph discuss the supply chain and logistical challenges that are supposedly global in nature. But are they really? And to what extent?

Joseph starts by sharing that none of the reported stresses in supply chain and logistics are being reported in Europe. The dozens of ships parked off the shores of Rotterdam, Hamburg, and other ports awaiting their turn to offload or onload as they do off Los Angeles and Newark simply do not exist.

Certainly, the news reports coming from the United States and as witnessed from producer to consumer indicate there is severe strain. There are images of bare shelves in the grocery stores and retailers concerned about not being able to get stock for the holiday shopping season.

But the news coming from other parts of the world and accompanying experiences tell quite a different story. In fact, there hardly seems to be much concern at all in Europe. Perhaps some of it has to do with there being much less emphasis on holiday gift shopping in Europe than in the States, so the supply-side isn't under unusual (or noticable) strain.

Obviously, if there is a supplier-side challenge (such as with computer chips from Taiwan, China, and so on) it affects the entire world similarly. But there is no talk of "Christmas being ruined" and no pain being felt by consumers anywhere but in the States. So what gives?

Ron and Joseph offer their insights into what's happening at the ports around the world, the availability of truck-drivers, chassis, and warehousing; what differences there are between the States and Europe, and how the challenges can be overcome (or endured).

Recorded: April 24, 2021

In this episode, Ron and Joseph call into question the body of knowledge that is the basis of the discipline of supply chain as it exists today.

Keeping in mind that the modern supply chain has existed for roughly 30 years, with the fall of the Berlin Wall, the ascent of China, the building of super-sized container ships, it could be argued that the basis of our knowledge is in need of being challenged and updating with the experiences gained; especially from recent events.

And perhaps supply chain and logistics experts (and academia) need to make sure they have experience where the action happens; on the docks, at the ports, in the trucks (going to the gemba, in Lean parlance). This will contextualize the reality of what is going on and bring to life what is being seen on screens.

Sometimes, you have to go backwards to go forward.

Recorded: March 20, 2021

In this episode, Ron and Joseph discuss supply chains and digitalization.  Certainly, recent events and the disruptions that have gone with them have illuminated the need and benefits of digitalization.  And it’s no longer just about digital documents required for moving products from one point to another, but to use digitalization – in all of its incarnations – to add stability, even predictability, in supply chain operations.

For instance, could a shortage of chips (especially those used in automotive) been predicted in advance of it the challenges actually manifesting themselves?  In an interconnected world – and keeping in mind that an event does not have to directly effect our first-level suppliers, but can have an impact further upstream – could the political upheaval in places like Myanmar been anticipated and counter-measures put in place?

But it’s one thing to be able to predict the future, it’s quite another to act on the information.  At the end of the day, the information is only as good as the human interpreting it.

Give a listen to the conversation.

Recorded: January 30, 2021

In this episode of "Supercharged Supply Chain", Ron and Joseph discuss warehousing; its present state, trends, some of the opportunities and challenges that exist, and what the future might hold.

One of the biggest beneficiaries of the COVID pandemic has been the warehouse industry. The increase in the volume of ecommerce has been astounding. Look no further than Amazon who saw their revenue increase from $280 Billion in 2019 to $386 Billion in 2020. Certainly, a lot of that gain was from Amazon their cloud computing services, but a lot was not. And even so, much of Amazon's web service revenue came from companies expanding their ecommerce offerings.

With this rapid increase in volume came a demand for increased automation; and Ron and Joseph will cover such topics as Artificial Intelligence (AI) in configuring warehouse product storage for optimized picks and put-aways, robotics and co-botics, the Internet of Things (IoT), and the possible expanded roles of 3-D printing.

And no discussion about warehouses would be complete without a discussion on safety; how a culture of safety is necessary and the safety considerations when configuring a warehouse.

Give a listen…

Recorded: November 15, 2020

In our last podcast, “Supply Chains in a VUCA World”, Ron and Joseph shared the risks to supply chains in a world that is not settled and predictable (and probably will never really be).  Under such circumstances, what are some of the countermeasures that can be deployed by a company to increase the reliability and effectiveness of its supply chains while maintaining a desired level of efficiency?

In this episode of Supercharged Supply Chain, Ron and Joseph will discuss the notion of “resiliency”.  How to build a robust enough supply chain so that any shocks can be recognized before they become a critical threat and, if the threats become a reality, how can a company best prepare to cope and avoid possible disruptions from their vendors and ensure their customers are not disrupted?

When the COVID Pandemic first started, automotive plants around the world endured a disruption to their businesses with many having to shut down for a period for lack of parts to produce their vehicles.  This, in turn, caused a disruption in the flow of vehicles to their customers.  And in December of 2020, a closing of the borders between the United Kingdom and France due to a new strain of COVID caused the early closing of Toyota plants in the UK of two days due to a parts shortage as a result of the closure.

Maybe one countermeasure to consider is not to be so focused on being Lean, but rather focus on being Fit.

Give a listen…

Recorded: October 25, 2020

Topic: We are in the midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic.  And while much of the attention has been focused on rates of infection, outcomes, treatments, vaccines, masks, and social distancing, there has been little attention paid to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), which includes items such as; masks (of varying types), gloves, sanitizers, and other materials that can be used to help protect an individual from becoming infected with COVID-19.

In this episode of Supercharged Supply Chain, Ron and Joseph will discuss some of the challenges and perils in the PPE supply chain under the current circumstances and conditions; what some of the risks might be and some of the measures you might take to protect yourself.

Some of the topics we will discuss include;

• How the supply chain was so easily overwhelmed
• How it seems that tents (and websites) are popping up everywhere with people selling PPE, how to help identify the legitimate vendors from the illegitimate (those with good intention but lacking the capability to deliver) and those who are outright fraudsters, and some countermeasures you can take to defend yourself.

Of these two, the building robustness into the supply chain is going to take time; the producers have to ramp-up production, the regulators need to accelerate their approval process without making compromises on quality, the trade regulations need to be streamlined to allow prioritized clearance at the ports, governments need to allow orders from outside the country to be allowed to ship and not withheld for domestic use, and so on.

But of larger concern is fraud.  In chaos and panic you can find people driven by greed; and COVID-19 and PPE has created a new gold-rush.  There are newcomers who are trying to swing deals to take advantage of the rush and panic in the demand but are incapable of performing.  There are those who are re-routing orders to fulfill other orders from people who are willing to pay more.  And there are those with nefarious intent who set-up phantom companies for the sole purpose of outright defrauding companies and governments by selling product that never existed and then fade into oblivion after they have drained their accounts of their victim’s cash advances.

There is a lot of critically important and timely wisdom to be shared in this episode.  And, although the primary subject is about PPE, the information shared on fraud in the supply chain is relatable to any product in any supply chain.  Don’t just protect yourself, protect your business.

Some links of interest;

• United States Department of Justice; Combating COVID-19 Fraud
• United States Federal Trade Commission; Scammy PPE sellers exploit COVID-19 fears
• 3M; Fighting Respirator Fraud, Counterfeiting, and Price Gouging

Recorded: October 25, 2020

Topic: This podcast is to welcome you to Supercharged Supply Chain introduce you to its mission and its co-hosts; Ron Liebman and Joseph Paris.  We share with our guests what the mission of Supercharged Supply Chain is and what we hope to deliver in our episodes.

As any supply chain and logistics professional may know, and those who aspire to become supply chain and logistics professionals will come to know, it’s challenging out there. 

Companies need to be able to source and receive the products they need in a reliable manner.  Among almost countless other things, they need to know;

• The company that makes the products they buy are financially sound 
• The products they produce pass the quality standards expected
• The transactions do not run afoul of laws and regulations
• The products delivery schedules are accurate
• They are protecting themselves against fraud
• The paper blizzard and complex processes that are involved
• The technologies available; both tried-and-true and up-and-coming.
• And consider the countless other variables and challenges, both risks and opportunities, that exist in creating and managing their supply chains and logistics.

These things, and more, will be topics of discussion in our upcoming podcasts, which we hope to release once per month.  We hope you visit us often and we encourage you to suggest topics for us to cover and offer any feedback to help us continually improve.