Visibility is always one of the great challenges of the supply chain, and obtaining it in real time through all levels of suppliers as customers can improve speed to market, reduce investments, identify shortages and quality problems. However, many do not have it even at the first level of contact. Transparency is related to what and how data is communicated to customers and suppliers. Visibility is important from the provider perspective and is the same as transparency from the client side. The reality is that both are needed.
Visibility in the chain refers to being able to see and follow your inventory levels, your trucks and their movements, from your suppliers to your customers. Transparency is related to operations, especially in sharing information related to quality, safety, ethics, and environmental impacts. Example: in a shipment of avocados, visibility tells us where the product came from, where it is and where it is going, transparency could include information on whether the avocados are organic, the name of the producer and the certifications they have.
In grocery, pharmaceutical or toy products, more and more consumers, governments and companies are demanding transparency about the origins of the products.
There is a greater concern for quality, safety, ethics and impacts on the environment of the products we consume. With the question where does this come from? The mistreatment of workers, organic contamination and harmful ingredients, are cases that alter us that companies still do not have control in their supply chains. For many products, origin is an essential characteristic of what the customer buys and is essential in establishing trust and reputation. It will become easier and easier to track and share the manufacturing trajectory of products. RFID tags are smaller and less expensive and can and will be less expensive and can be used on virtually any product (such as jewelry, paper, or plastic) by making source information part of the product or material. As customers take a greater interest in the origins and authenticity of the things they buy, giving them tools to track them will be an important part of the marketing mix and will give producers and stores new ways to capitalize on brand value.
0 Comments