UPS releases medical supply chain report
UPS released its fourth annual Pain in the Supply Chain report recently, and there’s talks swirling that the logistics leader is seeing plenty of innovation among supply chain professionals across the healthcare industry.
Through phone surveys earlier this year of almost 250 supply chain executives in the United States, Europe and Asia, UPS is witnessing “a complete rethinking of supply chains,” UPS Director of Healthcare Strategy John Menna told FiercePharmaManufacturing.com.
Supply chain executives are looking for “step changes, not incremental improvements. They have an increasing appetite to do things differently,” Menna said.
You can read UPS’ full Pain in the Supply Chain report by going here.
The No. 1 business concern for healthcare executives globally is change in healthcare legislation/reform, which was cited by 52 percent of the respondents. Healthcare executives are focusing on investing in their supply chains to increase their competitiveness.
“Change is the only constant in healthcare today and it is happening on a global scale, driven by factors such as cost, regulatory pressures and global expansion,” Bill Hook, Vice President of Global Strategy for UPS Healthcare Logistics, said. “Going forward, companies have to find new ways to innovate and adapt to rapid market changes, and this is where the supply chain plays a pivotal role.”
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The survey found that 86 percent of respondents said that they will turn to new technologies in the next three to five years, and that 72 percent have made supply chain investments in the last 18 months.
“They’re looking at tracking technologies,” Menna said, “radio frequency identification tags, and integration of corporate systems with UPS tracking systems.”
That being said, UPS thinks they’ve found a supply chain niche in the healthcare industry.
“UPS helps healthcare companies leverage logistics to do things such as expand into new markets faster, implement greater supply chain efficiencies and improve the customer experience, leading to competitive advantages,” Hook said.
