It’s not a matter of if disruptions will occur in the supply chain, it’s only a matter of time until the unexpected strikes and creates an exception. An exception does not necessarily guarantee a late delivery; it simply means a roadblock or challenge has arisen that requires immediate attention. This is why end-to-end visibility in a supply chain is so important. The more real-time information you have regarding the location and condition of shipments the more proactive you can be with exception management. Immediately informing customers of any issues and the steps being taken to mitigate them will go a long way toward nurturing customers into brand ambassadors that will help grow your business.

Sleep does not always come easy for product manufacturers or BCOs. Nor for any other stakeholder in a global supply chain, for that matter. Not when a single shipment worth up to millions of dollars could be a total loss due to a temperature excursion beyond the acceptable range. There’s a good chance technology is tracking real-time shipment conditions, including temperature, humidity, light exposure and more. But how will stakeholders know for certain that the tracking sensors are accurately recording the current conditions? This is where NIST calibration can provide the peace of mind that often proves to be so elusive for professionals in food transportation, pharma production and distribution, and other highly regulated industries that rely on strict adherence to specific natural conditions.

The distribution of pharmaceuticals without real-time tracking of shipments is a risky business indeed. Each year, undetected in-transit issues in the cold chain collectively cost companies billions of dollars in lost revenue. If something goes wrong in the distribution process, the bottom line of the company’s balance sheet takes a hit. And while that’s bad enough, the impacts could be much worse if a botched shipment of medicine or vaccine results in harm to someone’s quality of life or even death.

There’s no denying Big Pharma is big business, both here in the US and in the global economy. According to Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PRMA), the biopharmaceutical sector in the United States alone contributes $1.3 trillion to the world economy each year. That also translates into big bucks for the cold chain pharmaceutical transport industry—to the tune of $12.6 billion worldwide annually, according to Pharmaceutical Commerce.

BOSTON and SAN JOSE, Calif., Sept. 30, 2021-- The Open Visibility Network (OVN) is the industry's first data sharing consortium that takes global supply chain visibility collaboration to the highest level. Leading real-time visibility and insight providers Tive, project44, FourKites, Everstream Analytics, TransVoyant and MarineTraffic joined together in 2021 to start the industry's first shipping data sharing network across multiple platforms. As the network continues to onboard leaders it continues to seek cutting-edge data and insight providers to join the explosive collaboration network. 

The pandemic is showing signs of stabilizing. World economies are slowly inching toward recovery. Yet even in the midst of this hope, shippers in food logistics continue to face extreme challenges. When transporting food, shipping guidelines are among the most stringent. That’s why in-transit visibility is no longer a “nice to have” convenience—it’s a requirement. And not just for the shippers. Brokers, carriers and 3PL partners also need to be plugged into the same advanced visibility capabilities to monitor food shipments from the warehouse to final destination. It takes a team effort to stay compliant with FSMA regulations, protect company reputations and keep customers’ trust by delivering on time and in full. Anything less is unacceptable.

Of all the metrics associated with supply chains, OTIF -- on time and in full delivery -- is the ultimate measure of performance.  OTIF is a metric that ties directly to trust in supply chain partnerships and most important of all, customer satisfaction.  

Cold chain logistics is a topic the general public might not give much thought to, yet it’s something that unquestionably has a major impact on societies all around the globe. As such, cold chain logistics service providers must have the tools and technologies needed to provide efficient, proactive freight management to ensure the integrity of cold shipments.

What is supply chain visibility? It’s much more than knowing the location of a shipment. Supply chain visibility involves leveraging the latest track-and-trace technologies and software platforms to gain 100% transparency into dozens of activities that take place from end-to-end.