UK digital technology innovation agency Digital Catapult has launched a new platform for collaboration between manufacturers and digital solution providers.
The aim behind the Digital Supply Chain Hub is to boost the digitization of supply chain operations, improving resilience and sustainability through deep tech solutions.
The hope is that it will help the industry tackle some of the problems around finding suitable supply chain partners, such as siloed operations and ineffective information transfer, by offering bespoke educational modules to address critical skills shortages in the UK.
The hub will also provide services such as the Edge Digital Manufacturing readiness tool and the supply chain resilience navigator from WMG. Both tools, it says, will help businesses make their supply chains more sustainable, resilient, and efficient, strengthening sectors including advanced manufacturing, energy, food and drink, and more.
"Navigating new technologies can be overwhelming and many leaders we speak with don't know where to start or what to do next. Others find it hard to maintain momentum and get their team excited about change with all the other pressing demands on their time," said Ravi Gidoomal, director of Edge Digital Manufacturing
"We've developed the Digital Supply Chain Readiness course to provide real-life examples and practical actions, helping leaders to take their first or next step to digitalize their supply chains."
Another feature of the hub will be a series of community forums, known as Circles, allowing users to discuss supply chain challenges. These circles currently include risk and resilience; logistics optimization; supply chain collaboration; and end-to-end supply chain visibility.
Digital Catapult said it hopes that these forums and educational modules will boost the UK's overall supply chain resilience and efficiency, by bringing a greater understanding of new solutions and enabling technology providers to scale more quickly.
The majority of the UK's logistics industry, it said, is looking for digital solutions to optimize their operations, with 86.5% planning to invest in at least one new digital technology solution over the next two years.
Sustainability is a particular concern, it added, with more than 60% of most industrial companies' CO2 emissions originating from the supply chain.
"The platform marks a significant step towards greater collaboration, cooperation, and communication in the supply chain sector, fuelling innovation and new ideas," said Tim Lawrence, director of the Digital Supply Chain Hub at Digital Catapult.
"By creating a commercially neutral ecosystem, we will enable industry leaders, researchers, and technology providers to address critical supply chain challenges directly, strengthening critical economic sectors and empowering businesses to apply new solutions to transform their operations."
