“Blame it on the Supply Chain.” We hear this excuse at the grocery store, auto dealerships, and almost everywhere we shop. APEX Spring & Stamping works daily to ensure our customers have their products in hand despite global supply chain issues.
Supply chains are critical revenue lifelines that enable companies to make, sell, and move their products. For an organization to thrive it must be flexible and quickly respond to changes and disruptions in supply schedules and shortages. The supply chain continues to globalize and create a domino effect for manufacturers and suppliers everywhere.
Floods in Japan, earthquakes in Germany, and global pandemics all have one thing in common: the ability to disrupt the supply chain. The outsourcing of parts comes with both benefits and risks. Here at APEX, we work hard each day to help our customers avoid the risks that outsourcing presents.
Outsourcing Risks:
Risk #1. Sharing Intellectual Property
Sending IP to create specialty parts overseas can indirectly create competition.
Risk #2. Shipping and Delivery Delays
Ports across the world have several ships waiting to dock with containers ready to be unloaded causing delays.
Risk #3. Language Barriers and Miscommunications
Being blindsided by miscommunications due to language or cultural differences can inflate the bottom line.
Risk #4. Government and Natural Disasters
Political unrest, labor strikes, natural disasters, customs delays, global pandemics are all potential issues to get what you need. These situations put manufacturers and their customers in challenging positions that are avoidable by working with domestic partners. The pandemic exposed the weaknesses of complex, intertwined supply chains being highly dependent on specific geographic regions. Here at APEX we incorporate technology, alternative sourcing strategies, clear customer communication, and purchasing agreements with US companies to avoid supply disruptions. No plan is perfect, but APEX takes an active, forward-looking approach with innovative ways to get what we need, when we need it! Kim R. Dykman, who works in Purchasing/Supplier Development at APEX comments, “Sourcing needs to make the transition from the traditional ‘lowest price wins’ to making more strategic decisions based on factors like location, lead times, freight options, automation and the overall health of your supplier.” Our processes at APEX ensure that we maintain an excellent on-time performance with our customers.
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