As supply chain disruptions have become the norm across the globe, 94% of manufacturers say that resilience has become a bigger priority today than it was five years ago.
According to a Supply Technologies survey of 50 senior manufacturing professionals, 82% of respondents said that they're concerned about facing a new disruption over the next 12 months. Of those, 62% flagged tariffs as trade policies as the greatest risk that manufacturers face in the next year, followed by issues with transportation and logistics at 54%, geopolitical instability at 44%, and material shortages at 42%.
"The findings suggest organizations are no longer preparing for isolated events," Supply Technologies says. "Instead, they are operating in an environment where multiple risks can emerge simultaneously, often reinforcing one another and creating challenges that extend well beyond the traditional boundaries of procurement."
That has manufacturers looking for ways they can ensure they're able to withstand this new world of disruptions, with 80% rating their supply chain resilience at seven out of 10 or higher. In service of that goal, 64% reported increasing inventory levels, while 54% are looking to diversify suppliers, 48% are expanding nearshoring and regional sourcing, 46% are investing in better forecasting and demand planning, and 38% are improving their digital supply chain visibility. That all paints a picture of how manufacturers have targeted a more layered approach to risk and resilience, where solutions are used to address a range of issues.
Supply Technologies goes on to highlight the important distinction between adaptability and protection when it comes to addressing resilience. On one hand, adaptability allows a business to effectively respond to a disruption as issues are occurring in real time. On the other, protection can shield a manufacturer from the immediate impacts.
"The strongest supply chains combine both," Supply Technologies posits. "The resilience gap is not necessarily the difference between organizations that are prepared and those that are not. It is the difference between being protected against disruption and being prepared to adapt to it."
