Supply Chains in Crisis

The Wheels on the Chassis Go Round and Round … Not

December 13, 2021

With the current focus on the tens of thousands of containers stuck on ships outside major U.S. ports, it’s easy to forget a maxim of supply chain management: If it’s not on wheels, it’s not moving.

THE SCB PODCAST

Podcast | How PepsiCo Beverages Coped With COVID

December 10, 2021

Robert J. Bowman, SupplyChainBrain

How has PepsiCo Beverages of North America, with more than $22.5 billion in net revenue, 65-plus manufacturing sites and 420 distribution centers, managed to keep operations going during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Vanishing Ships Underscore Supply Woe: Crisis Peak Is a Mirage

December 10, 2021

Bloomberg

A line of more than 80 container ships waiting to dock at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, was cut in half in late November — or so it seemed. Turns out the vessels disappearing from the queue were merely hiding from it, loitering in the Pacific out of reach of the official count.

Three Trends That Shook Supply Chains This Year, and Three to Watch Next

December 10, 2021

Dave Menzel, SCB Contributor

Everyone is wondering what 2022 will bring for supply chains. But to understand how next year might unfold, it’s helpful to take a closer look at how earlier events shaped the landscape.

Long Beach Port Chief Sees Congestion Easing in Six Months

December 9, 2021

Bloomberg

The head of one of the two ports in the U.S.’s busiest maritime gateway said he expects congestion that has caused upheaval throughout supply chains to improve in about six months’ time.

Yellen Says Supply Chain Shift May Need Protectionist-Like Steps

December 7, 2021

Bloomberg

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that U.S. reliance on foreign supply chains has proved a vulnerability and that the country needs to produce more critical goods domestically in order to protect both its economic and national security.

The World's Relentless Demand for Chips Turns Deadly in Malaysia

December 7, 2021

Bloomberg

The tragedy in Muar shows the little-understood human cost of keeping supply chains running in a pandemic.

How Liteboxer Kept Moving Product With a Knocked-Out Supply Chain

December 6, 2021

Robert J. Bowman, SupplyChainBrain

What better way to work off the anxieties of the pandemic than an at-home boxing workout? Yet the company that’s capitalizing on that urge has had to deal with its own set of frustrations in getting product to market.

U.S. Ship Logjam Stretching Far Into Pacific Is Longer Than Ever

December 4, 2021

Bloomberg

The number of container ships headed for the busiest U.S. port complex has risen to close to 100 under a new counting method, underscoring the magnitude of the economy-restraining logjam that the Biden administration is trying to help alleviate.