13 Must-Read Manufacturing Sourcing & Procurement Posts of 2023

Key Takeaways:

Organizations continue to grapple with manufacturing sourcing, procurement, and supply chain technology
Utilizing digital manufacturing insights can streamline supply chain management, improve supplier relationships and negotiations, and reduce overall material costs

The Full Article:

Strategic sourcing and supplier management are becoming increasingly complex. We’ve collected our most popular supply chain-focused blog posts of 2023, covering topics that range from improving profitability to creating a greener supply chain. Enjoy!

1. Zero RFQ Best Practices for Strategic Sourcing

Price Waterhouse Coopers notes that 83% of executives say their supply chain technology investments haven’t fully delivered expected results, while 65% say managing and reducing costs was a top priority. To achieve Zero RFQ, your manufacturing sourcing strategy needs a digital solution that identifies and remediates high costs quickly and accurately. Achieve better supplier pricing and relationships, and pivot quickly during supply chain disruptions.

2. How the Digital Thread Ties Design, Sourcing, and Manufacturing Together

Meeting manufacturing goals can seem like playing the game, “Whac-A-Mole”. When you address one issue like cost, another challenge pops up regarding manufacturability or sustainability. However, enterprise-wide visibility across product development and manufacturing can help to eliminate surprises. The digital thread mitigates this quandary by virtually connecting your design (product digital twin), processes, routings, etc. (process digital twin), and production capabilities (factory digital twin).

3. Supplier Data Consistency Improves Sourcing Decisions and Manufacturing Costs

Data is good. So is choice. But you need a single source to make decisions confidently. Today’s manufacturing sourcing goals require a digital solution that supports more accurate and consistent data, more efficient collaboration, and the ability to quickly act on supply chain issues.

4. How Grundfos Advances Sustainable Sourcing with Digital Twins

Although cost and sustainability don’t appear to be synonymous, both are interconnected and achievable with the right digital manufacturing solution. aPriori connects both, providing critical carbon and cost insights to meet both sustainability and profitability goals. Just ask Grundfos.

5. How Manufacturing Process Innovation Links Cost and Procurement

Balancing product manufacturing efficiency with cost is akin to the chicken and egg conundrum: which comes first? How can you keep costs in check without sacrificing value and innovation? Learn how to take a more proactive approach to cost and procurement. Leverage aPriori to get real-time actionable feedback that informs cost and procurement decisions without sacrificing quality.

6. Nearshoring: A Solution to Supply Chain Risk Management?

In real estate, location is everything. What about when it comes to your supply chain? Many manufacturers are reevaluating their supply chains and considering nearshoring, which utilizes suppliers closer to their operations. Explore whether it’s right for your manufacturing business and how aPriori can facilitate it including the Regional Data Libraries.

7. The State of Supply Chain Management & Procurement Survey Results

It’s natural to want to know how you stack up to the competition. IndustryWeek and aPriori conducted a survey to better understand procurement between manufacturers and their suppliers. See how your organization compares to others, where you need to shore up, and how aPriori facilitates collaboration and task management for the manufacturing sourcing and procurement process.

8. Greener Products Start with a Green Supply Chain

The grass is greener on the other side of sustainability. A good starting point is ensuring that your supply chain is green. To get there, you need applicable and impactful sustainability insights. Explore how you can baseline CO2e emissions, select truly sustainable and responsible suppliers, optimize new product development to reduce carbon and costs, and better meet Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) regulations and standards.

9. 3 Ways Manufacturing Insights Improve Supply Chain Efficiency

Do more with less. Operate lean and mean. Today’s manufacturers must be as efficient as possible to stay competitive and profitable. The supply chain is one area where they can gain an advantage. But it takes the right solution to see immediate and meaningful results. Implementing manufacturing insights can streamline processes and quoting as well as mitigate recessionary, materials, and geopolitical disruptions.

10, How GE Appliances Optimized Its Supply Chain

GE Appliances, a Haier Company, noted in their recent annual report, that it spends $4.9 billion with 6,300 US suppliers – a 293% increase in spending and a 233% increase in the number of suppliers since 2016. So, it’s not surprising that they need an optimal supply chain to manage their suppliers and costs. Take a few moments to learn how GE Appliances works with aPriori to meet its supply chain goals.

11. How Eaton Created a More Resilient EV Supply Chain with aPriori

What good is an electric vehicle (EV) if its parts and/or suppliers are not sustainable? A Gartner article found that the vast majority of suppliers support sustainability. However, only 19% believe they have those capabilities. See how aPriori helped Eaton reduce supply chain risks, compare raw materials, machines, and processes to determine the most sustainable and supply chain efficient ones, and facilitate faster quoting times.

12. Carrier Streamlines Supplier Management with Digitalization

If your organization could potentially save $21 million annually by conducting a cost analysis on a few parts, would you? Learn how Carrier used aPriori’s manufacturing cost modeling software to uncover hidden savings that saved money and time with early design stage iterations and gained fact-based data to validate overall cost and manufacturing feasibility.

13. Explore Supply Chain Risk and Resiliency at MIC 2023

If you thought supply chain issues were in the rearview mirror, think again. Inflation, material shortages, and geopolitical issues continue to bottleneck the supply chain. Peruse several key supply chain challenges discussed at our recent Manufacturing Insights Conference (MIC). Each underscores how digital twins can circumvent many supply chain issues, giving you a leg up on the competition.