Blue Yonder: Focused on Discrete Manufacturing Supply Chains

Global manufacturing seemingly becomes more complex every day thanks to geopolitical issues, sustainability pressures and growing supplier networks. 

Supply chain management specialist Blue Yonder is laser-focused on helping discrete manufacturers optimise results in what is a volatile supply chain environment.

Its report, Explore the Future of Industrial Manufacturers, examines ways manufacturers can reshape their supply chains and ensure long-term survival in the process. 

The wider issue

Manufacturing supply chains are so precise that single delays can prove costly.

The report states: "Across the industry’s vast network of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), warehouse and distribution centres, multiple tiers of suppliers and third-party logistics providers, any disruption, in any node, can send a bullwhip effect throughout the entire supply chain."

In recent years, discrete manufacturers have had to make changes to their operations due to material shortages, rising energy costs, weather disruptions, labour shortages and other halting-events. 

In response, Blue Yonder now offers a range of supply chain-strengthening solutions for discrete manufacturers, helping them to digitally transform end-to-end chains to work more strategically and more profitably. 

Industrial companies are having to make thorough changes throughout their supply chains in order to meet demand and beat competitors.

There exists growing pressure to integrate sustainability, invest in modern technology and to be ready to adapt to change. 

Blue Yonder's solutions

Blue Yonder aims to connect business strategy, financial strategy, supply chain strategy and operational strategy in a singular business plan, showing how all these focuses are interconnected. 

In doing this, it creates stronger, more resilient supply chains where sustainability and adaptability can be prioritised. 

Crucially, Blue Yonder helps industrial manufacturers "gain a holistic view of the supply chain by breaking down data siloes and streamlining the process of generating and sharing insights". 

Through Network Design and Optimisation, manufacturers can focus on customers' evolving needs, increase visibility and collaboration, prevent supply gaps and optimise end-to-end decisions, all through digitising operations. 

With Integrated Business Planning, manufacturers can respond to disruption in a way which is beneficial to them, rather than just reacting to an issue. Using real-time visibility, enabled by AI, throughout the supply chain, companies can act rather than react to potential issues. 

Blue Yonder also offers Integrated Demand & Supply Planning, which senses accurate and actual demand and can predict future demand. This allows discrete manufacturers to balance inventory levels and production capacity with changing customer needs.

Supplier Collaboration encourages trading partners to share market forecasts, logistics insights and other critical information using Blue Yonder's Luminate Control Tower which delivers end-to-end supply chain visibility using AI and machine learning.

Using Omni-Channel Fulfillment means that every channel receives total transparency. This helps companies optimise inventory, minimise costs, maximise services and still make a profit. It encourages accuracy and reliability, as well as personalised experiences to each customer.

Elsewhere, connected Warehouse and Labour Management streamlines efficiency and communication, reducing delays and out-of-stocks. 

With upgraded Transportation Management, including smarter transportation capabilities using real-time data, manufacturers can respond to changing conditions such as extreme weather or geopolitical tensions. 

Manufacturers must be able to act on real-time supply chain shifts, meaning Real-Time Visibility & Collaboration is key to an efficient operation, as it can identify bottlenecks and manage execution throughout the product lifecycle.

By implementing these solutions, discrete manufacturers can enjoy greater resilience and enhanced efficiency. 

Ute Strohmaier to lead discrete manufacturing

To help guide these solutions, Ute Strohmaier has been appointed as Global Field Marketing Director of Discrete Manufacturing at Blue Yonder.

In her role, Ute will guide discrete manufacturers in their development, helping them build more resilient supply chains to avoid being hit by global instability. 

Commenting on her new position, she said: "I’m very excited to work with an amazing team to share our vision and accelerate growth across the automotive, high tech and industrial manufacturing industries.

"I'm proud to partner with a dedicated team of experts at Blue Yonder that focuses on delivering a powerful, end-to-end supply chain platform built on a unified data cloud – enabling exceptional scalability and real-time collaboration across a multi-enterprise network.

Providing 25 billion AI/machine learning predictions per day, leveraging solutions powered by agentic AI for cognitive planning, advanced planning and scheduling and execution, we empower clients to forecast, plan and execute with precision and agility.

"I look forward to contributing to a future where organisations can harness predictive intelligence and network-wide visibility to drive resilience, profitability and truly optimised supply chains."

Ute joined Blue Yonder in 2024 to become EMEA Field Marketing Director for the Manufacturing Industry. 

She has previously worked in marketing and public relations at Le Creuset, follow red and flexis, until its acquisition by Blue Yonder.