Authors: QProducts & Services Digital Team, Under the Direction of Paul Yadron
The impact of COVID-19 is still being felt by businesses and supply chains around the world. We surveyed 138 supply chain professionals and 80 percent of respondents indicated that COVID-19 has personally impacted their business.
Respondents that were impacted were further bucketed into categories based on their answers into topics such as demand for goods and services, financial variations, modes of transportation, capacity constraints, and more. Some reported experiencing the impact in several areas, therefore, percentages do not equal 100 percent.
Below are the survey results, which show where the impact of COVID-19 is being felt by supply chain professionals:
DELAYS: 26%
- Transit time delays for ocean and air shipments
- Cancellations
- Delayed deliveries
DEMAND FOR GOODS & SERVICES: 18%
- Drastic decrease in demand from food processors and restaurants means that growers and food service suppliers are inundated with excess supply
MODES OF TRANSPORTATION: 17%
- Disruption across all modalities
- Route changes
- Increased usage of multi-modes
- Decrease in air transport
CAPACITY CONSTRAINTS: 15%
- Tight capacity for international air and ocean shipment
FINANCIAL VARIATIONS | REVENUE, COSTS, & PROFIT: 14%
- With a bottleneck in supply chain from farm to table, federal programs such as the Farm to Families initiative has alleviated lost revenue for food growers and suppliers.
WORKPLACE ADJUSTMENTS: 10%
- Companies are experimenting with work from home (WFH)
- Adjusting schedules and shifts to accommodate social distancing
- Focusing on safety and prevention
COMMUNICATION | INTERNAL & EXTERNAL: 7%
- Increased client engagement
- More digital communication
- Drivers are not allowed on docks
- Postponement of audits
STRATEGY ADJUSTMENTS: 6%
- Seizing this opportunity to try new things and change course
- Several people reported a shift from food service to retail in order to survive
- Increase in the usage of automation instead of relying on humans
Planning for the Future
Rarely have supply-chain leaders faced more complex, changing conditions than they have during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to McKinsey, supply chain disruptions lasting a month or longer now happen every 3.7 years, on average. Global manufacturing has only just begun to adopt a range of technologies such as analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), advanced robotics, and digital platforms. Most companies are still in the early stages of their efforts.
To survive and overcome changes in the supply chain environment, organizations need to plan for the future and adapt in order to have the ability to respond quickly to change.
Final Thoughts
Our team of temperature protection experts here at QProducts and Services is here to provide solutions to fit your adapting supply chain.
In our November 2020 webinar, Using New Tech and Adaptive Logistics to Deliver Sensitive Medicine to Remote and High-Risk Destinations, we invite you to join us as we dig deep into drone delivery, emerging UAV technology, and tackling extreme cold chain and supply chain challenges.
