Northeastern University
DAmore-McKim School of
Business
Supply Chain Data Visualization
by Mapping and Geographic
Analytics (GA)
Sandeep Kumar Karumuru
04/19/2016
Image1
Research Paper submission for Supply chain management (Spring 2016)
To Distinguished Professor of Supply Chain Management
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Dr. Nada R. Sanders
Table of Contents
Abstract
Overview
Background
Supply Chain Visualization
Supply Chain Mapping
Geographic Analytics
8-11
Business Example
12
Future Trends
13
Benefits and Challenges
14
Conclusion
15
Bibliography
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Abstract
The focus of this research paper in on the process of how workflow is
handled in a typical supply chain environment. There are numerous areas of focus that
come to mind when we talk about improvements for a supply chain but the process itself
is not given enough significance. The research paper covers the most popular process in
use, from spreadsheets to its immediate future evolution i.e. visualization tools for supply
chain data. There are several tools that exist in the market, each of them have their
advantages and disadvantages when used in a certain environment.
Supply chain mapping is one such tool that many companies are already
utilizing but the mapping tool which gives a visual representation of the entire supply
chain network is only an abstract network map and so it has its shortcomings. In contrast,
supply chain mapping can be utilized alongside geographic analytics giving us the
geographic context of a region allowing us to take other intangible factors into
consideration, factors that cannot be quantified can be incorporated into our decision
making process allowing faster and well informed decisions.
Supply chain visualization tools are a dream come true for a supply chain
manager. The way data is perceived and information is extracted from multiple datasets
changes drastically. The capacity to include many factors into their cognition grows by
many folds compared to working on spreadsheets. Actionable reporting can greatly
improve a supply chains overall performance. Visualization tools are a dire need in
supply chain analytics and it holds the power to leaner, agile and resilient supply chains.
Overview
Vast advances have been made in business analytics through computational
analysis, visual analysis and information visualization but these advancements did not yet
have a significant effect on the supply chain industry. Today several thousand supply
chains and logistics companies mainly use spreadsheets to keep track of their operations
which is seen as the best way to analyze operational data. Most small and medium size
enterprises (SME) do not upgrade their operating platform from spreadsheets to a
sophisticated software designed for SCM due to lack of resources, capital and awareness.
However, circumstances are changing quickly and managers are finding it
difficult to deal with the immense amount of business data on a spreadsheet as it takes a
lot of time and effort even for their trained eyes to find the hidden insight amidst the raw
data. Spreadsheets are difficult to maintain, prone to errors, vulnerable to failure and an
archaic methodology that often leads to analysis paralysis' and consequently decision
paralysis'. Spreadsheets with large sets of data (more than 150 rows) are often found to
contains numerous errors due to multiple reasons2. Spreadsheets can use who', how' and
when' aspects of operations but it immensely underutilizes the where' part of it.
This is where supply chain visualization can make the difference by
extracting insight from visual representation of supply chain data in a dynamic way.
Supply chain data is laid out for a person focused in a format the person can better
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comprehend, transforming data into insight. The focus of this paper is on visualizing
supply chains through supply chain mapping and geographic analytics.
Background
In an analogy, Human minds experiencing new information in their daily
lives was compared to firehose cracking of a porcelain saucer. It is said that our eyes
come across thousands of words each day through multiple mediums such as TV, Radio,
Newspaper, the Internet etc. An equivalent of 174 newspapers each day per person 3. If
you think you are under information overload, that is exactly where the rest of mankind is
right now. We create about 5 Exabytes of data every two days (1 Exabyte is a billion
Gigabytes) that is equal to the amount of data humans have generated since the advent of
civilization. Analyzing data in this scenario has been nerve-racking.
Fields such as data visualization and visual analytics have become critical to
our understanding of the information contained within that large amount of data produced
from fields such as physics, biology, and business. Physicists and biologists are
collaborating with data scientists to extract this hidden information by scientific
visualization, businesses have also begun focusing on the data produced by customers
from their online activities and buying habits etc. Supply chains of today's businesses
worldwide, however, are yet to fully reap the benefits of our advances in these fields.
Few top-tier companies that understand the importance of running an
efficient supply chain have made progress using technologies such as geospatial
technology, geographic information systems and geographic analytics. Supply chain
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visualization has been emerging since the past few years and is considered to be the
future for handling complex supply chains.
Supply Chain Visualization
Supply chain data visualization means visualizing supply chain data either
graphically (abstract network design) or geographically, plotting a focal companys
network including its suppliers, sub-suppliers, manufacturing facilities, distribution
centers and its retail outlets on a map. Researchers say that a graphical or a geographical
representation of supply chain data is a better way to understand the complex interrelationships of the focal company and its supply chain network.
Todays complex supply chains require a single sophisticated platform that
can deliver tailored information from multiple sources such as information on inventory,
supplier inventory, finance, transportation modes/rates and weather forecast. This can
dramatically enhance employee performance by providing in depth relevant information
on every aspect that they examine for decision making thereby improving overall supply
chain performance.
Visualization of a supply chain can quickly identify how much transparency
a company has in its supply chain data. Building a proactively risk managed, resilient
supply chain can be very difficult especially when working to achieve it without
visualization tools. Supply chain risk events are growing in number and also becoming
increasingly expensive mistakes for companies that do not act pre-emptively.
Visualization enhances visibility, flexibility, collaboration and control of a supply chain
externally and internally as well4.
Supply Chain Mapping
A picture can say a thousand words but a map is a thousand pictures. Supply
chain mapping is the process by which companies visualize their supply chain network in
order to analyze and improve their options from every node in the network. Supply chain
map is a living system of a network whose data is constantly changing. It is a continuous
process as new data is continually added. In order to handle this living system, a database
needs to be maintained in the backend to support it. Once the complete data is plotted on
an abstract map then information on the existing interrelationships also can be added.
Adding additional attributes can quickly increase the complexity of the
supply chain maps such as financial relationships, transportation aspects, product
information, and partnerships5. It also allows for sharing of the same supply chain data by
all departments within an organization and work in unison. By adding a dynamic time
component to this visualization the product flows can be tracked, inventory levels at
every node can be closely examined and tier 1, tier 2 supplier levels can also be kept in
check.
This is how multi-tier supply chain visibility is achieved. It can be a crucial
competitive advantage in the market while handling disruptions. Supply chain mapping
facilitates
faster
and
better
communication,
effective
inventory
management,
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procurement, distribution management, routing analysis, lead time calculations and
returns. . Calculated stock redundancies can strategically be located to optimize the
supply chain and reduce inventory costs. Managing supply chain risks and handling
disruptions effectively thereby avoiding losses due to calamities and having an end to end
supply chain visibility.
Geographic Analytics (GA)
Humans beings are visual thinkers. We are very good at reading patterns in
a visual representation. We tend to get better results when we analyze graphical
representations rather than large sets of data points on a spreadsheet. Geographic
analytics allows us to visualize (supply chain) data with a geographic context that helps
to identify problems and mitigate risks. Adding other layers to a map for analysis is
possible. Studying the aftermath of an event such as a calamity can also be performed.
Government agencies and other non-profit agencies use GA to forecast
epidemics, tracking global forestry and deforestation. It can also calculate damages by
plotting a regions financial data, population density and adding an overlay of a storms
path over the region. This dynamic visual can give insight into the financial damage
caused by a natural calamity.
Businesses can use this to determine their technique to provide for customer
requirements or market trends during these phases. Geographic analytics can also help
with the rerouting of inventory pre-emptively to an unaffected region for product safety
and avoid losses due to damages. In contrast, spreadsheets have no provision for the user
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to predict or react to disruptions. Todays complex supply chains requires us to anticipate
events before it is too late. The process of identifying a point of concern for correctional
measures itself is simplified with geographic analytics. The meaningful actionable
information from the supply chain data is extracted very efficiently as the data is
presented in a way humans can intuitively understand at an intricate level6.
Tools such as Flex Plus, Tableau, LLamasofts Sherpa, Deloitte HIVE and Sourcemap are
all renowned tools. Companies have seen significant results from utilizing these
platforms.
Deloitte Consulting LLP employee using Deloitte HIVE4.
Flextronics International Ltd employees working on Flex Pulse, supply chain visualization tool 1.
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Starbucks global supply chain mapped on Sourcemap5
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Tableaus platform showcasing overlays of routing and weather11.
Business Example
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Hewlett-Packard used geographic analytics to deal with the disruptions that
occur twice or thrice each year in their global supply chain 7. The software, Lagos' was
developed in-house by the company, plots the locations of HP's manufacturing,
distribution centers, service and retails outlets on google earth and uses symbols such as
traffic lights to describe inventory levels etc. Timely inputs from all departments are
required therefore involving all of the necessary people into the loop from the initiation
of the project.
For instance, Brazil has different tax policies for different states and in most
cases taxes are negotiable. These non-quantifiable parameters are also required to be
taken into consideration while planning or decision making. HPs tax consultant from that
region inputs the data and the planning is done perfectly taking this information into
consideration.
Geographic analytics was the key to HP's success in optimizing their supply
chain through visualization. Their traditional analysis was time consuming where
employees had to wait overnight in some cases to get the output the next morning. The
result was not always the best answer to the problem since many intangible parameters
are not considered in the traditional analysis methods.
Numbers, for their obvious absolute values do not always tell us the true
story hence the solution implementation is time-consuming and often capital intensive.
Geographic analytics allowed HP to shutdown 200 physical locations which turned out to
be redundant and ineffective and also allowed for saving 4500 man hours per year in
handling disruptions and thereby saving a total of $1 billion.
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Future Trends
Numerous organizations are gearing up towards supply chain visualization
to keep up with the complexities of global supply chains. Increasing number of
professionals are using visualization for strategic and tactical decision making processes.
Researchers say the future of supply chain analytics is visualization of supply chain data.
There are also many companies that are struggling to improve the performance of their
supply chains. Today, only a mere 11% of companies have the capability of evaluating a
what-if (scenario) analysis.
On the other hand, technological advancements made way for plenty of
supply chain visualization platforms in the market, subsequently open source software
began surfacing. In fact, many open sources already exist such as Apache OFBiz,
OpenBoxes, Odoo all of which are open sources for supply chain visualization. Some of
them have integrated CRM and ERP tools into their systems to make it effective.
Functions such as warehouse management systems, e-procurement, manufacturing
management, tracking of stock, expiration date tracking, support of multiple facilities and
demand forecasting based on historical order quantities have been included8.
Introducing new features such as multi-sourcing of data and predictive tools
are making these platforms very appealing to the business community. From my intense
research on supply chain visualization, I can confidently affirm that this is the next step
for supply chains. This is a transformative evolution radically changing the way we
perceive data and solve our problems.
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Benefits and Challenges of Supply chain visualization
Benefits
Challenges
Contextual data visualization
Data availabillity
Actionable reporting
Data Integration
Informed, faster decisions
Data disclosure
Collaboration
Supplier Cooperation
Integration
Backend Database support
Time to insight
Long setup process
Scalability
Regular updates & Maintenance
Location feasibility
Capital investment
Cloud computation
Platform development
Inventory management
Employee Training
Supply chain intelligence
Experienced Personnel
Supply chain optimization
Testing phase
Supply chain risk management
Cyber security
Supply chain transparency
Supply chain performance
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Conclusion
Supply chain visualization is the way forward for every business that deals
with physical flow of products. In order to better compete, businesses must harness the
power of techniques such as supply chain mapping and geographic analytics to improve
their supply chains. The business world today competes on the supply chain level more
than any other level.
Lack of resources, capital and awareness should not stand in a companys
way any longer to create an agile, resilient supply chain. Entrepreneurs should be willing
to explore tools and upgrade their operating platforms to the next level since it does not
necessarily need an investment. Automation of this whole process with artificial supply
chain intelligence is still a long way out. On the other hand, problems are growing in
frequency and complexity.
Therefore, to keep up with these rapid changes in the ever evolving world
of supply chain, entrepreneurs have to provide their supply chain managers with tactical
and strategic weapons which can amplify their capabilities and performance in processing
raw data and extracting deeply hidden insights. External factors such as circumstances,
current events, risks and flaws in their supply chains can also be dealt with efficiently.
This helps in avoiding unnecessary use of resources, avoiding huge damages from
calamities, staying competitive in the market segment, better customer service, carbon
footprint record, leaner and agile supply chain that are responsive to disruptions. All of
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these advantages add up to a sustainable business. Hence, supply chain data visualization
plays a crucial role.
Bibliography
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at:
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