Timing is Everything

Chain Reaction

Timing is everything says Tony Hines when it comes to achieving supply chain advantage. Whether it is how long it takes to procure goods, process work-flows or transport goods (raw materials, work-in-progress or finished inventories) to the customer. Time endows advantage. Of course time can also be a problem if you do not manage it well. Managing time in supply chains is a risk. Ther are uncertainities beyond your control that give rise to risks that you may not have factored in. Even the most savvy supply chain professionals are subject to it. Take the current issues in global supply chains with ports experiencing delays in handling cargo. Satelite pictures of ports in California showed about seventy ships lining up waiting to discharge containers at Los Angeles. Long Beach too has delays. About 40 per cent of US Container traffic passes through these two ports. In the UK too at Felixstowe which handles about 36 per cent of the UK container traffic there are similar problems. In the US it has been taking up to 14 days to get ships into port and in the UK 6 days. There is also increased dwell time in turning around containers. It has risen form 4 days to 10 in the UK. The Biden Administration brought those involved in the US crisis to the table to discuss practical solutions and gain commitments. This is seen as a postive move and parties are keen to operate ports 24/7 to get the job done. In the UK the underlying problem is the shortage of 100,000 HGV drivers to clear the ports and get containers in the right places. Time is everything because these delays are costly for everyone the shippers, the ports, the hauliers, the customers and those managing the various operations. A number of large retailers have been agile in trying to manage the risk by hiring their own vessels to move goods. These are generally smaller ships to weave in between the larger ships and to drop cargo at smaller facilities to avoid the backlogs. Home Depot's Sara Caliga said the idea started as a joke saying they would charter the ships themselves to get the job done but that's exactly what they have done. Wal-Mart said their strategy was to hire smaller ships to move goods more quickly. IKEA, Target and Costco are all doing something similar. Cocal Cola said it was using smaller vessels usually used for grain or coal to move their products around. In the UK the John Lewis Partnership runs 34 department stores and about 374 Waitrose Stores and it too committed to charter ships on 16th September to ensure they had supplies for the run up to Christmas. Hiring ships is not cheap. It is also not a skill expected of retailers to run the shipping operation so it will be interesting to see how they do. These retailers are looking to secure the h

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About Tony Hines and the Chain Reaction Podcast – All About Supply Chain Advantage

I have been researching and writing about supply chains for over 25 years. I wrote my first book on supply chain strategies in the early 2000s. The latest edition is published in 2024 available from Routledge, Amazon and all good book stores. Each week we have special episodes on particular topics relating to supply chains. We have a weekly news round up every Saturday at 12 noon. All things impacting global supply chains in that week, so come and join us on the Chain Reaction podcast. I look forward to seeing you there.
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