Supply chains will survive the pandemic, but revised strategies may take hold

Shortages of medical equipment, sanitary supplies and even toilet paper have thrust the importance of the supply chain into daily news feeds. And while some pundits demand a retreat from global sourcing, those that work in supply chain management see things a bit differently. While there will certainly be increased risk assessment and some changes to supply lines, the global supply chain will survive this pandemic pretty much intact, managers said, albeit with some revised strategies. Some companies have not been severely impacted. Many firms that had added redundancies and diversified suppliers before COVID-19 were in a better position to mitigate disruption. Axcelis Technologies had previously created dual sourcing for critical items, which Ken Glasser, a global sourcing contracts manager at the company, said boosted his confidence to get through the current disruption with his supply chains intact. "We’ve been able to maintain a good flow of materials from our sources in China throughout the pandemic," Glasser told Supply Chain Dive. "There have been some slight interruptions from time to time but generally we are getting everything that we need to maintain our production schedules." Glasser noted that some of his suppliers had recently moved manufacturing operations out of China to Malaysia and Vietnam, and that has helped with the flow of materials during the pandemic.