Digital Agility in Automation
While every industry has taken steps towards automation across all its functions with digitization, one must understand the key options within automation that is best suited to their needs.
When companies get it right, automation provides a path towards digital agility, which ultimately leads to the reduction of cost and errors, while improving productivity and raising revenue. Digital agility is especially important amid COVID-19 disruptions, as it allows manufacturers to quickly pivot.
Digital agility and an integrated ecosystem are the twin levers required to enhance customer experience, drive operational efficiencies, and foster long-term business viability. Let us take an example of Supply chain automation, which digitizes areas such as payments and invoices, inventory management, applying bulk actions to high volume orders, tracking across various sales channels and much more depending on the complexity of the supply chain. An ERP allows information to be collected at one point for understanding, but does not allow the same to be processed or changed/adapted to achieve an end business goal.
With tools like Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML) it becomes easier to create a flexible working system through intelligent packaging. Agility allows the freedom of making process improvements across a complete process from Purchase Order issuance to final Proof of Delivery, and across your supplier, logistics, and customs networks. Analytical applications need to be able to take advantage of the wealth of information derived from this end-to-end flow. Supply chain traceability solutions allows a company to implement such technologies and solutions fast, drive quick and accurate results and tackle losses or evaluate profit for scope of improvement. Companies who have implemented supply chain traceability solutions have observed a drop in problems or product diversion, infiltration and these solutions have even supported their existing anti counterfeit operations.
Developing a digital supply chain is more than just a money saver; it can create competitive advantages and increase growth by speeding up transit time, managing FIFO/FEFO. Smart packaging can also be used for consumer engagement and as an anti-counterfeit solution. Companies must transform the way they do business and take the leap into making their supply chains digital, otherwise, they will be left behind.
Once supply chain traceability is enabled with the help of intelligent packaging, the brand gains a flow of information about sales hotspots, returns, distribution channel performance, inventory control and improves decision making based on the collected data. These informed decisions result in better business performance in comparison to decisions informed based on incomplete data. It also allows companies to mobilize workforce and resources dynamically, and continuously monitor options and progress against goals. Any market change is also quickly captured and updated to the brand. Such awareness is termed hyperawareness where brands are aligned to what is going on around them, particularly to changes that highlight opportunities or threats. Threats such as fake products are also easily highlighted where an excess sale is recorded against the supply. Anti-counterfeit solutions via intelligent packaging can also be implemented to protect the brand and setup a system of self-authenticating the product and giving the product the opportunity to communicate with the consumer via multiple consumer engagement campaigns.
Nestle mentions on their website ‘Digitalization helps us generate efficiencies, create agility and provide new platforms for growth. The shift towards agile manufacturing also helps to deliver faster innovation and supports personalization.’
To know more about such ground breaking technologies, contact Sepio Products Private Limited at [email protected]