Supply chain ‘visibility’ remains key to manufacturing excellence

European manufacturers still need to develop their ability to get real time supply chain ‘visibility’ – and move beyond their preoccupation with internal systems – if they are to achieve anything like excellence beyond their own four walls. A survey by Warwick-based supply chain system consulting firm Tompkins Associates finds manufacturers still largely focused on internal accuracy and efficiency measures and associated applications, and still only preparing for supply chain participation. The firm defines levels of supply chain improvement. They’re consultant speak, but worth brief consideration anyway – with ‘business as usual’ at Level 1 (focused internally), moving up to Level 6, ‘velocity’ (final supply chain interaction improvements). European firms have their sights on the second level, ‘link excellence’, says the report. Key measures are order turnaround, inventory accuracy and transportation management – although at 15%, 13% and 12% respectively there is clearly a big spread and the conclusion could be challenged. On the software side though, current priorities translate to warehouse management systems (27%), demand planning (19%) and ‘supply chain collaboration’ (15%, and not well defined). But top challenges – in operations, the changing business environment (17%) and in system implementation, change management (20%) – also indicate a mostly internal focus. The emphasis, suggests the report, is on dragging current technologies, systems and metrics to the point where they are good enough for supply chain involvement. European companies, says the firm, must now go for the next level – ‘visibility’, which means looking at how company systems talk to other systems, and “not just at the loading and receiving docks”. Apparently, 70% of respondents felt that supply chain visibility with suppliers was important. However, achieving visibility is difficult without systems integration, and it’s either encouraging or worrying that only 16% noted that integrating with others was going to be a challenge!