Chain Reaction

Chain Reaction Podcast SC News Round Up 20th August 2022

All things impacting global supply chains this week.

  • UK Inflation hits 10.1% year on year
  • Wayfair Online Furniture Retailer cuts 870 jobs
  • Tessla cust delivery times to 4 weeks
  • Airbus cuts delivery forecasts
  • Boeing also cuts its forecasts for output
  • Labor strikes adding to supply chain disruptions
  • Wage offers frome employers fall well below inflation
  • Felixstowe and Liverpool two major UK Ports have strike action
  • UK Rail industry strikes continue (40,000 employees)
  • Amazon warehouse strikes
  • Energy costs will add to inflationary pressure
  • Tessla switches EV batteries to cylindrical from prismatic
  • Eve Chinese EV battery manufacturer is building new plant in Debrecan, Hungary
  • Autonomous vehicles
  • VW manufacturing plant in Mexico impacted by labor strikes
  • Plastic bottles switch to 100% recyclable
  • Pepsico building its largest manufacturing facility in Denver
  • Port in a desert to ease pressure on Los Angeles and Longbeach
  • President Joe Biden signs the Inflation Reduction Act
  • GAP  hires out its logistics and supply chain systems – This is a growing trend for big retail.
  • PFAS 'forever chemicals' new science to break them down – 97% of Americans have PFAS in their bodies
  • Catch Up with all Episodes

You can follow Chain Reaction on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

Chain Reaction Podcast Energy

In this episode Tony Hines talks about the global energy crisis and how it is impacting supply chains.  Is it more than supply and demand determining prices and energy inflation. When it comes to energy supply most countries want to protect security of supply. Russia's war in Ukraine has disturbed the balance not only in Europe but across the world pushing up prices and contributing to inflationary pressure. At some point physics demands a return to equilibrium but where exactly will that be? 

China has oil reserves and coal yet it is only able to meet 20 per cent of its oil demand. This was not a problem 35 years ago when China only contributed 1.6% to World GDP. Today, however it is the powerhouse of the Global Economy. It has invested heavily in rare earth minerals and it imports oil from the Persian Gulf and from states bordering its territories including Russia.  Listen to how this is changing the goegraphy and security of South East Asia and the Word.

You can follow Chain Reaction on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

Chain Reaction Podcast SC News Round Up 13th August 2022

All things impacting global supply chains this week.

  • $430 bn approved by the House of Representatives – Inflation Reduction Act
  • Brent Crude down
  • US Inflation
  • Energy Prices
  • Russia's economy in recession
  • Five Chinese companies listed on the NYSE suspended
  • AI to rate company ESG
  • Eastern European inflation on the rise
  • Cuba oil storage facility fire
  • Sri Lanka Port
  • Peloton revise strategy to improve cash flow and revenue
  • Southern Ukraine Nuclear Plant under attack
  • Kahzakstan sell oil through Azeri pipeline to Turkey
  • Heat waves cause fires and drought in Europe

Up next 'Energy' next week
Also listen to the new 'SC Concepts in Under 5 Minutes'

You can follow Chain Reaction on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

Chain Reaction Podcast Service Supply Chains

What is different about service supply chains? Tony Hines discusses differences and similarities between service and goods supply chains in this episode. Service requires the organization to be customer focused not product focused. It is something that some product organizations have difficulty with. Find out how your organization can become customer focused and provide service.

You can follow Chain Reaction on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

Chain Reaction Podcast Just in Time Explained in under 5 minutes

This is a new series of shorts explaining supply chain concepts in under five minutes. In this first episode just as Oscar Wilde said news of his demise was greatly exagerated we can say the same about Just-in-Time (JiT) systems. In this episode Tony Hines explains why he thinks Just in Time is here to stay.

You can follow Chain Reaction on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

Chain Reaction Podcast SC News Round Up 6th August 2022

All things impacting global supply chains this week.

Nancy Pelosi visits Taiwan and China responds angrily
Gasoline prices at the pump going down
Market for electric aircraft growing year on year
Automobile markets for new vehicles are volatile
Electric vehicle makers search for deals to secure rare earth metals for batteries
Re-engineering the toilet can make a contribution to recycling
The first grain ship leaves Odesa destination Lebanon via Istanbul
China acknowledges climate change higher than elsewhere in the world
Interest rates rise in the UK and the Bank of England says recession likely
US adamant that there will not be a recession

You can follow Chain Reaction on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

Chain Reaction Podcast Resilience and Sustainability

Tony Hines says that two of the most important words uttered around supply chains in the past year have been resilience and sustainability and what they mean in differente contexts. In this episodes he revisits some of the episodes in which guests discussed the topic along with some of his thoughts about them and what they mean for leaders in government and in organizations.

He spoke to Professor Wendy Phillips earlier about humanatarian logistics and discusses what resilience means in this context and in healthcare. He also spoke to Professor Eoin Plant-O'Toole about resilience and particular skills needed to become a supply chain professional. He reflects on why the US and Europe have allowed China to dominate the mineral markets that are necessary to build new technologies of the future particularly electric transport.

You can follow Chain Reaction on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

Chain Reaction Podcast SC News Round Up 30th July 2022

All things impacting global supply chains this week:-

  • Inflation and energy costs still rising
  • The US Fed raises interest rates
  • Intel and Media Tech
  • Russia attacked Odesa just hours after signing agreement to let grain sale out of the port
  • Gazprom has cut gas supplies again despite reopening Nord Stream1 again
  • Asian Gasoline prices fall
  • China is expected to raise its oil refining operations
  • Just Eat has hiked commission rates
  • Grub Hub strikes a deal with Amazon Prime
  • Amazon is raising its Prime Subscription rate by £1 in the UK (12.5%)
  • Subscription services will be first to be cut by consumers
  • Boeing Cash Flows under pressure until 2023
  • Unilever has raised prices by 11%
  • BASF cuts ammonia production
  • IMF Global Report expects the UK to have a modest increase in output
  • Lack of transparency in UK Public Procurement Contracts during Covid
  • Rail strikes in the UK with more strikes likely
  • Greenwashing in the Fashion Industry

You can follow Chain Reaction on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

Chain Reaction Podcast Chain Reaction Trailer

I'm Tony Hines and I'm here to tell you about the Chain Reaction Podcast All About Supply Chain Advantage. I've been researching and writing about supply chains for over 25 years. I wrote my first book on Supply Chain Strategies in the early 2000's. Each week we have special episodes on particular topics relating to supply chains and we have a weekly news round up every Saturday at 12 noon all things impacting global supply chains in that week. So come and join us on the Chain Reaction Podcast. I look forward to seeing you there. I'm Tony Hines, I'm signing off, bye for now.

Please share the trailer on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook