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The use of technology to manage supply chain processes without direct human participation is known as supply chain automation. Automation employs a variety of technologies and takes many different forms. Supply chain automation provides modern apps, smooth workflows, and real-time data to help businesses enhance their operations.
In general, one of the most significant areas of innovation throughout the past century has been automation. It has significantly impacted cost-effectiveness and efficiency in global supply chains, leading to larger profit margins and lower pricing.
Businesses are filling in these gaps with agile workflows that provide the missing visibility and boost productivity and satisfaction for all parties engaged in those processes by utilizing low-code automation tools.
Automation in the supply chain enhances human labor rather than replaces it. For example, the world still needs truck drivers, airline pilots, and ship personnel to continue arranging goods in the absence of widely used autonomous vehicles. Tools for automation can improve the productivity of teams operating across the supply chain.
Speed and agility are becoming real differentiators in the competitive landscape in the era of digital transformation. Tools and techniques for supply chain automation might assist you in effectively handling the upcoming disruption.
Supply chain automation provides advantages, but it also has drawbacks.
Supply Chain Automation Challenges
Increasing costs
Operating expenses are significantly impacted by price rises for labor, fuel, and raw materials due to shortages of certain resources, as well as by rising energy and labor costs and wages. Companies must decide whether to absorb these costs and limit their profit margins, or pass them on to customers by raising prices.
Variations in demand
Accurately forecasting sales and managing the necessary level of supply can be challenging due to seasonality and shifts in consumer patterns and behavior. This may result in stockouts, lost revenue, and obsolete goods due to overstocking.
Adjustments in regulations
If you flout and follow the most recent import and export limitations, health and safety laws, and quality requirements in every market you operate in, you may lose your ability to operate in that market or face steep fines.
Increasing need for sustainability
To safeguard their brand reputation, businesses must assess production methods and be open about their attempts to meet ESG goals as customers grow more aware of how their purchases affect the environment and the people in the supply chain.
Your IT stack’s gaps
Process silos and disconnected technology impede supply chain visibility, making it challenging for managers to assess performance. This affects risk identification and mitigation as well as efficiency-boosting enhancements.