Increased sustainability can be extremely beneficial for manufacturers. A focus on sustainability can not only reduce costs, but can also create a more positive brand reputation. Manufacturers are using advanced technology more and more to reduce wasteful activities, build new efficiencies in their operations, and track sustainability goals across their organization. When it comes to optimizing inventory and building sustainable procurement processes, LeanDNA is a valuable resource in a supply chain team’s toolkit. 

In today’s manufacturing landscape, understanding where your materials are coming from, and improving collaboration with those sources, is crucial for preventing shortages and navigating supply chain disruptions. In this blog, we break down vendor vs. supplier vs. distributor—and even talk about wholesalers as well—how they compare, and how manufacturers can improve collaboration.

2021 is the year of new for manufacturers. New challenges are bringing on new manifestations of lean, new ways to connect manufacturing operations, and a new focus on the factory as a strategic force for leaders. Last month, LeanDNA CEO Richard Lebovitz joined industry analyst Bob Ferrari’s latest installment of his podcast, “Supply Chain Matters” to discuss these themes and more. “Supply Chain Matters” is widely regarded as one of the top internet blogs in the field of supply chain management thought leadership. 

Find and listen to this installment of the podcast here, or read on for the main takeaways from Ferrari and Lebovitz’s discussion.

Dealing with a shortage is no small task. While there is no “quick fix” for such a large problem, there are many ways manufacturers can prevent them from happening. Here are a few ways to prevent and reduce the risk of the most disruptive out-of-stock situations.

Oftentimes, the terms “shortage” and “stockout” are used interchangeably. But they are actually two different—yet extremely similar—things. To understand the difference, we must look at the two terms separately.

Shortages can mean trouble for many manufacturers, especially when the customer is waiting on a purchase. Some companies see this as “unavoidable.” Backorders might be common in a modern, complex supply chain; however, they don’t have to be. 

At LeanDNA, we strive for collaboration and teamwork to create a safe space for everyone to innovate. We live and breathe our four core values, because our vision—to disrupt manufacturing by transforming every factory into a strategic force—wouldn’t be possible without our extraordinary Leaniacs. 

In IndustryWeek’s recent webinar, “Going Beyond Status Quo,” we brought together leading supply chain experts to introduce a new hybrid inventory management model for today’s manufacturing complexities. Richard Lebovitz, Paul Aram, and Bob Ferrari have mastered this model, which leverages the best of lean procurement while maintaining an MRP-driven PO-based forecast. They shared their expertise on how to deploy it and why it’s more important than ever.