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some of the world ’ s biggest semiconductor manufacturers – China and the US continue to disrupt previously efficient supply chains , making all of us wonder if an alternative strategy needs to be developed in parallel in the background .

At ABB , the realization that supply shortages would continue for some time to come was the catalyst we needed to accelerate our investment in digital systems that would enable us to gain a deeper understanding of our own ‒ and our customers ’ ‒ risk exposure . By harnessing the analytic power of data , we have increased our ability to predict and respond to supply disruptions ahead of time , making our business more resilient for the future .

Accelerating digital transformation

Procedure-wise , since the pandemic started , we have been striving harder than ever to advance our forecasting activities for vendors . With better forecasting , we can create a longer time window , allowing them to better plan their production capacity in advance . This also ensures we get the components and materials when we need them .

In addition , we also now agree long term commitments for critical items to give vendors even greater visibility of their future pipeline . These commitments are constantly being updated so we can increase stock levels as needed or develop specific vendormanagement-inventory agreements .

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