Supply Chain Optimisation
Supply chains fail at the joins: the supplier nobody vetted, the stock nobody forecast, the single source nobody flagged.
On this page04
Overview
This work is about knowing where your dependencies are before they become incidents, and building enough slack and visibility into the chain that a disruption is a problem rather than a crisis.
It covers the practical mechanics as well as the strategy: how goods move, how much you hold, how long onboarding takes and what was checked before a supplier started delivering.
Brought in when
- A disruption exposed a dependency nobody had recorded.
- Stock is simultaneously too high in some lines and short in others.
- Onboarding a new supplier takes months, or takes days and skips the checks.
- Logistics and distribution costs have grown without a corresponding change in volume.
- You need to evidence supply chain due diligence to a regulator, funder or board.
What this covers
Three areas of work.
Supply chain strategy & resilience
Mapping where the real dependencies and single points of failure are, then designing around them. Dual sourcing where it is justified, buffer where it is cheaper than failure, and a clear view of which suppliers genuinely cannot be replaced quickly.
Logistics & inventory management
Stock control, distribution and supplier logistics reviewed together: what you hold, where you hold it, how demand is forecast and where cost is being absorbed without anyone deciding to absorb it.
Supplier onboarding
A structured onboarding and due diligence process that is proportionate: thorough where the risk is real, quick where it is not. It covers compliance, financial standing, quality and performance expectations before the first delivery rather than after the first problem.
Where it comes up
Discuss a supply chain challenge.
Bring the dependency that worries you most. It is usually the quickest way to establish whether there is a real piece of work here.