AutomationDIGITIZATIONLOGISTICS
The covid-19 pandemic completely disrupted businesses. The supply chain took a big hit. For the past few months, I have wondered when I will ever see fully stocked aisles in the shops. The pandemic reinforced the interconnected and complex supply-demand dependency. It also exposed the vulnerabilities and challenges in the overall supply chain process.
Businesses across sectors were forced to address the challenges and come out with makeshift solutions. They had to relook at their supply chain strategies and become resilient, with an increased focus on investment in digital transformation and front-line worker involvement and experience.
Digital technologies remain the biggest accelerator for efficiency, growth, and Innovation.
E-commerce logistics and distribution have been quick to realize and able to digitize in more recent years, especially for last-mile delivery; other supply chain sectors, like manufacturing and traditional distribution, need to be faster to adopt digital transformation initiatives.
The Growing Importance of Digital technologies
If any business wants to improve its supply chain operations and build long-term resiliency for tomorrow, then Digital transformation is the only way.
In the coming 5 years, there is going to be a significant investment that is going to happen in the digitalization of supply chain and warehouse operations. However, this journey requires organizations to re-evaluate their current strategies, objectives, and goals.
We envisage high usage of mobile and wearable technologies, cloud computing, sensors, robotic automation, and predictive analytics.
Paper-based systems need to be phased out with mobile and wearable tech that will give multiple stakeholders in the supply chain real-time visibility into their assets, processes, and people as they make it easy, efficient and accurate to capture the data.
Gartner predicts that “up to 70% of new mobile investments over the next five years will be for front-line workers.”
Since mobile devices used by front-line workers also directly impact the experience and visibility of various tasks performed at the ground level. Increased adoption of software and devices like Mobiles, Tablets, barcode scanners, and mobile printers will also help supply chains to be more efficient and eventually reduce costs.
In addition to implementing the right digital technologies, supply chains must also put their workforce at the heart of digitization efforts.
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