Research reveals that 79% of businesses that optimize their supply chain improve revenue significantly more than those that do not. There is a reason why construction businesses are constantly on the lookout for ways to optimize their supply chain.
What Is Supply Chain Optimization?
The simple answer is that supply chain optimization is a technique that prioritizes how you build or manufacture goods and in what order they should be addressed to maximize sales and revenue. The idea is simple: Put the appropriate tools and resources in the place that has the highest chance of improving your manufacturing and distribution operations.
What Is the Goal?
The goal of supply chain optimization should not simply be to go through the process and hope for the best. It requires understanding what you are trying to accomplish. Here are some of the tangible results you can expect when you optimize your supply chain:
- Better asset and inventory management
- More efficient planning
- Reduced costs
- Better supplier performance
- Faster production responses
- Improved quality
Ten Tips to Optimize Your Supply Chain
Now that you are on board with taking the steps to optimize your supply chain, here are some tips to help you achieve your goals:
1. Outsourcing Does not Have to Be a Dirty Word. Streamlining your business means you’ll have to consider shipping off certain aspects of your business. Find areas that you might outsource to save time, effort, and money.
2. Communication is the Key. The most important part of optimizing your supply chain is to make sure all the different suppliers and manufacturers establish a strong channel of communication to plan and deliver products or materials in a timely fashion.
3. Discover the Power of IoT. Do not be afraid to leverage the power of the internet or mobile computing to speed up problem solving or anticipate the needs of a project. Use the newest construction technology to make short work of real construction problems.
4. Choose the Right Project Management Software. There are plenty of options that pull data from all departments and teams to efficiently manage a project. We are partial to Procore® and not only because it works seamlessly with SiteKick. Leveraging a centralized management platform ensures that every team has the most up to date information to make solid decisions.
5. The Multichannel Approach. Inventory management requires a multichannel approach to build a scalable and effective supply chain. A multichannel system ensures you can plan and provide better forecasts for interested parties.
6. Quality Control for Success. Cutting corners on materials is not the best way to achieve supply chain optimization. Know the strengths and weaknesses of your suppliers and manufacturers and find the suppliers that can deliver quality and cost savings without sacrificing one for the other.
7. Crystal Ball Planning. Every successful project starts with a great plan. Plan correctly and you will never be caught short with supplies or assets you need to complete a project on time and under budget.
8. Fulfilling Client Demands. Developers are a specific breed of businessperson. Knowing what your customer needs and anticipating those needs, along with analyzing data your systems generate will help determine how and when you should communicate with your suppliers.
9. Analytics is More than a Buzzword. Rely on your data and use analytics tools to better understand your market and your client’s needs. Properly analyzing your data will help you make all your most important supply chain decisions.
10. Wheeling and Dealing. The most important conversation you can have with our suppliers and manufacturers is at the negotiating table. Of course, it does not stop there. Never be afraid to renegotiate if your circumstances change or environment dictates a change in plan. This ensures you have the inventory to deal with issues as they arise.
The Bottom Line: Data Drives Success
These tips are brief, but it certainly gives you a framework for exploring different areas that will vastly improve your understanding of your supply chain. We have mentioned data several times in this article and it is because the most successful businesses use data to make decisions, anticipate problems, and discover solutions before they affect the bottom line. To find out how SiteKick is helping business gain insight into how efficiently their projects are functioning, give us a call for an informative demo on what we do.
