3 Reasons The Transport & Logistics Industries Are Reluctant To Change

The world of transportation and logistics is constantly evolving and improving, yet many businesses and consumers remain frustrated by its lack of progress.

Recently, I posted a poll on LinkedIn which may shed some light on the reasons behind this resistance to change. My small survey (1958 impressions) revealed a lack of trust and understanding (55%) as being the main reason, while a fear of the unknown (28%) showed that the industry may still have a long way to go. Finally, a reluctance to break things (13%) was also cited as a significant cause for the lack of action. The remainder of the votes went to other reasons, with one voter complaining vigorously about the state of the industry.

With this in mind, it is clear that further education and understanding of the technology and processes involved in the transport and logistics industries are needed for the industry to progress.

In this article, we will discuss the potential solutions and outline the types of technology implementations to help alleviate some of the uncertainty stifling progress.

Context

I am dedicated to helping supply chains, logistics, and transport businesses optimise their operations. As a business owner and technologist, I understand the importance of staying up-to-date with the latest trends and technologies available to the industry.

The traditional supply chain model remains prevalent, having existed for many years, and based on the linear transfer of materials and products from one entity to another. While this model is focused on customer satisfaction, it fails to provide visibility of the entire supply chain process, meaning that any issues that arise can go unnoticed and unresolved.

The consequences of this outdated supply chain model have been felt in the form of inefficiencies, delays, and lost profits, with the current financial crisis being partially attributed to the issues with the movement of goods.

Without visibility of the entire supply chain, companies fail to identify areas where improvements can be made or potential disruptions can be avoided. This lack of visibility leads to costly mistakes, delays, and customer dissatisfaction, which can result in lost profits and a damaged reputation.

‍

Additionally, the traditional model prevents companies from leveraging the latest technologies, without which companies can not optimise their supply chain processes, leading to an inability to maximise operational efficiency and reduce costs.

The Future

The modern supply chain is undergoing a massive transformation, and the introduction of Supply Chain 4.0 is revolutionising how businesses operate.

Transformation is happening through leveraging the latest technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), Blockchain and big data analytics, to create a more efficient, transparent, and data-driven supply chain.

What's on offer is numerous benefits, including improved visibility and responsiveness, greater operational efficiency, and better customer satisfaction. By enabling better visibility, businesses have better insight into the entire supply chain process, allowing them to identify and address any issues that arise quickly and efficiently.

This improved visibility also allows companies to better anticipate potential disruptions in the supply chain and better predict customer needs to provide a better service.

It's not just improved visibility and customer satisfaction on offer, benefits include reduced costs and gaining a competitive edge in the market.

Supply Chain 4.0 is also helping to create a more transparent and secure supply chain. By using blockchain and other technologies, companies can ensure data security, and all stakeholders in the supply chain have access to the same information. This can help reduce delays and disruptions and ensure all parties in the supply chain are working from one data set.

The introduction of Supply Chain 4.0 will transform the traditional supply chain and offer numerous benefits, including improved visibility and responsiveness, greater operational efficiency, and better customer satisfaction. With the increasing demand for higher levels of performance and efficiency, it is clear that Supply Chain 4.0 is the way of the future.

Transformation: What's Needed?

By leveraging new technologies and integrating them into the existing supply chain processes, businesses can achieve greater operational efficiency, reduce costs, increase customer satisfaction, and gain a competitive edge.

The following steps can successfully transition businesses from the traditional linear supply chain model to Supply Chain 4.0.

The first step in the transition process is to identify and implement the right technology, for example:

IoT sensors can monitor the supply chain in real-time, providing valuable insights into supply chain performance.
AI can then analyse the data and provide predictive analytics to help anticipate and address any potential disruptions.
Finally, big data analytics can be used to identify areas of improvement and optimise the supply chain for better performance.

The second step is to integrate the technology into the existing supply chain processes. This includes automating manual processes and streamlining operations to reduce costs and increase efficiency:

Automation can improve customer service by responding to customer inquiries quickly and accurately. In addition, integrating the latest technologies into the supply chain will also provide businesses with better visibility into the entire supply chain process, enabling them to make more informed decisions.

Finally, businesses must ensure that the data collected from the technology is secure and protected.

Implement a secure data management system and ensure that all data is encrypted.
Develop a clear data governance policy to ensure data is managed and monitored.

Conclusion

Transport and logistics companies must move away from the traditional supply chain model and transition to a more advanced approach, such as Supply Chain 4.0. This new approach emphasises digital transformation and data-driven decision-making and allows companies to gain better visibility into their entire supply chain process.

By leveraging the latest technologies, companies can optimise their supply chain for better performance and reduce costs, resulting in greater operational efficiency, improved customer satisfaction and enabling companies to better predict and respond to customer needs and anticipate potential disruptions in the supply chain.