Packaging, supply & logistics
accurate enough for their business. When considering communications, he adds it’s important to decide which medium is best; for example, low- power wide-area networks, satellite or Bluetooth low-energy devices? Finally, to select the most appropriate software you need to understand the customer-facing platform, which is crucial as this helps users comprehend what the current status is. These, he advises, should be considered during vendor negotiations and proof-of-concept protocols. An example might be when choosing a track-and- trace supplier, where he suggests to “try to make sure the vendor offers a solution to all three strategic pillars”.
While supply chains are often complex, medtech logistical lines can be even more convoluted due to the sensitivity of the devices involved.
is the cycle time? How many trips did they make? How much CO2
was saved during return transport?
Do I have enough assets? Eventually, the question needs to be answered: am I getting the return on investment I expected?” For Dejans, and Schoeller Allibert, digitalising supply chains helps answer these and many more queries. It’s important to note that for a supply chain to benefit from end-to-end visibility the majority, if not all, of that chain must be digitalised. To do this, stakeholders face challenges – large and small. Perhaps the biggest, for all of them, is first determining the technology needed and then integrating it. “There are three strategic pillars that come to mind: hardware, communications and software,” Dejans says. “The processes around it, especially ERP [enterprise resource planning] integration for seamless order processing allows customers and suppliers to automate and make logistics decisions more reliable.” With that in mind, it is perhaps fair to say ERPs, and their ability to help organisations oversee all of their processes and better manage them, are crucial at a time when efficiency and oversight has never been so important – although not the only critical element. But for medtech, renowned for its important yet burdensome regulation, utilising anything that can speed up processes it is now more than just desirable – it’s essential. Without automation and digitalisation, those multifaceted processes become considerably more laborious. But Dejans believes the systems companies and their partners adopt are a crucial enabler, and as such should be considered carefully. These include choosing the right device to send information on the whereabouts of goods, their condition and history. To do this, he says companies need to ask which solution is acceptable and
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Abundant benefits With DSN now becoming recognised for the benefits it can bring to medtech, it seems change is upon the sector – about time some might say. In an industry well known for its complexity, the benefits digitalisation offers are abundant, including the actionable insights Dejans has been keen to stress. Thanks to the network of sensors throughout the chain, users will know where their products are, how they got there and the conditions they were in – which is particularly helpful when a cold chain is involved and products need to be transported and stored correctly. Proactively, they can alert anyone in the chain to possible issues before they become overly problematic and potentially costly. Thanks to this level of oversight, businesses large and small, with supply chains complex or simple, can make improvements in the way they operate. The benefits of harnessing digitalisation will, as they have been in other sectors, be almost limitless. “Making supply chains visible based on actual data enables something far more interesting: where can we improve?” concludes Dejans. “Focusing on areas where there is room for improvement will help your business make money.” It’s a view shared by PwC, which, when reporting last year on how the sector could manage global headwinds with supply chain fixes, said: “With supply chain visibility solutions in place, your company can analyse network costs and success metrics across the supply base, manufacturing plants, and warehousing and logistics.” With today’s increasingly complicated global supply chain, the notion that the sector can continue as it has is fast becoming outdated. There is a plethora of materials out there encouraging medtech to digitalise, with advice on how to do it. The truth is every journey will be different, but one worth taking if you want to keep pace with a quickly changing world. Today’s environment demands agility – digital technologies allow for it. ●
Medical Device Developments /
www.nsmedicaldevices.com
Artistry Visions/
Shutterstock.com
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