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www.us- tech.com


Supply Chain Supply Chain as a Competitive Advantage By Jacob Fattal


Omnics joined Scoop’s Philip Stoten to discuss supply chain requirements and how good supply chain strategy can be a distinct differentiator and competitive advantage. Traceability data is also becoming more in de- mand, as companies prefer to have more granular data from which to se- lect business partners, and to make sure that the products and processes they use meet expectations.


D


Deeper Traceability Dennis Gradler, director of busi-


ness development for industrial solu- tions at Kimball Electronics, opened the discussion by talking about the need for deeper traceability that goes well beyond the walls of Kimball’s production sites and into multiple tiers of downstream vendors. This traceability information


uring a roundtable event at this year’s APEX Expo, execu- tives from Kimball, Ventec and


includes the silicon, laminates and even raw materials such as metals that come directly from smelters. The data also needs to be collected at a single-board level, rather than a batch level. Traceability goes well be- yond what finds its way into the product; it can include process data, such as reflow oven profiles, that can be adjusted for individual boards. Ventec’s COO for Europe and


the U.S., Mark Goodwin, spoke to the benefits the company could add as a laminate manufacturer and distribu- tor, going farther than the traditional model where manufacturers and dis- tributors work in isolation. “The first benefit is supply chain security,” said Mark. “We can ensure the product moves throughout the supply chain in a controlled manner, because we don’t use third party distributors.” The challenge for a company like


Ventec can be in the actual manufac- turing process. Mark added, “Our


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products are all made in bulk formats, sheets of laminate, rolls of prepreg, which are then delivered to our cus- tomers, sometimes in sheets, some- times cut into panels. They are then further cut into smaller panels and in- dividual circuits, before they are de- livered to the next part of the supply chain. Lot traceability is easy, but now we are working through all the formats the laminate finds its way in- to, and that’s a challenge.” One that Mark is confident they will overcome. Stoten then pointed out that


connecting supply chain traceability right back to design data is essential and asked Akhil Oltikar, founder and CEO of Omnics, about his expe- rience using data in the supply chain, not only for traceability but al- so as a competitive edge, throughout the business process, starting with the quote. There are three major challenges in supply chain decision making, according to Akhil. “One is data latency; the data exists, but get- ting it out in a meaningful form is difficult,” he stated. “The second is visualization or insight, and the third is speed and cost. Many of the tools out there are too slow and ex- pensive.” Akhil mentioned that in the past, this processing took weeks, now it is needed within hours, or preferably, in real-time. Omnics develops software tools


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to generate, manage and utilize data. Philip asked Ahkhil if that data could be used at the very start of the process to help win new business, down to the quoting level. Akhil talked about the supply chain analy- sis of a quote and how data is devel- oped and then discarded. The compa- ny is currently working on how to preserve that data and leverage it for the future. Dennis added, “We now can use


the data from quotes to assess how we won and lost business. That data can be used to shift our thinking around how we quote, and hopefully win new business.”


Connecting with the Customer Given the recent volatility in


the laminate sector, Philip asked Mark specifically about risk and shock mitigation and the company’s ability, as a supply chain owner, to reduce the risk or impact on its cus- tomers. “Everyone’s aware of the cop- per foil shortages and the impact that’s having” stated Mark. “Because we’re connected right from raw mate- rials to customer we are able to speak to our customers, and some- times there’s a disconnect. We take the view that it’s responsible to talk to our customers, and we also really know what’s going on, so we can


speak from a position of authority.” Laminates are an interesting


example, particularly as they impact product performance. For example with high-speed laminates, the wrong laminate can simply mean the product doesn’t work, or in the metal- backed business where thermal con- ductivity is integral to the lifespan of the product. These are all areas where is too easy to make material


Traceability data is


becoming more in demand, as companies prefer to


have more granular data from which to select business partners


substitutions and traceability in the supply chain becomes critical. Perhaps one of the key issues is


how far down the supply chain we should be expected to define and col- lect data. “There’s no perfect answer; no one size fits all.” suggested Akhil. “It comes down to understanding your business strategy and how that informs your supply chain strategy. It can go all the way to the mines, but perhaps that’s too far.” A company should consider managing by finding exceptions — where things can and do go wrong — and dig deeper there. Dennis offered the view that


conflict materials issues can mean there must be traceability all the way to the smelter for reporting and regulatory issues. This suggests that total supply chain traceability may be the only real solution. Philip wrapped up the discus-


sion with the thought that while pre- viously these levels of traceability where reserved for what we called high-reliability products, like mili- tary/aerospace, medical or automo- tive, they are now for all products. A point which rang true with Dennis, who said, “At Kimball everything we make has that level of traceability and definition in the supply chain.” Supply chain strategy can be a


competitive advantage and growing traceability within the supply chain is becoming a necessity. How the da- ta is utilized and shared can be used to differentiate, but the strategy must fit the business model, the products and the markets for which they are bound. r


Note: Scoop filmed 12 roundtable dis- cussions at APEX in February with the sponsorship of Cogiscan, Fuji, Ja- bil, KIC, Mentor, and Radius Innova- tion. You can find the entire collection of videos at www.us-tech.com under the videos tab.


May, 2017


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