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In this disastrous aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, emerging details about supply chain repercussions both locally and nationally have finally begun to paint a fuller picture.
With Houston and its greater regional area comprising such a significant industrial hub, trucking, freight and petrochemical supply have all been frozen to varying degrees, as reported by my colleaguesNick Heinzmannand悉尼拉撒路斯。即使是金属世界也被摇摇欲坠，就像我的同事Fouad Egbaria一样reported for MetalMiner。But perhaps the biggest hit is the massive uncertainty over the full extent of the medium- and long-term impact.
I caught up withriskmethods' Bill DeMartino, general manager of North American operations, and Heiko Schwarz, the firm's founder and managing director, for a quick Q&A about what procurement professionals have been — and what they should be — thinking about in the wake of the disaster's fallout.
What have you heard procurement practitioners saying or asking about the effects of Hurricane Harvey thus far?
In general, we see folks scrambling, and as they are so busy reacting, we haven’t been able to connect with many of them to get the full story — but we have heard of at least a few instances where suppliers are so severely impacted that they aren’t even responding to inquiries. What this means is that our customers know who is impacted but aren’t even able to get a response from the suppliers, let alone assess the extent of damages which clearly are not understood.
This type of large event highlights the importance of a complete risk management process which includes understanding risk exposure across a category holistically. For example, are all of the suppliers for [a certain] category densely populated geographically, or do they use the same transportations hubs? We have also had some initial discussions with enterprises that are concerned about the potential sub-tier impacts to their supply chain and slowdowns from the port closing.
从业者在现在掌握时，从业人员的最大问题是什么？
这是事件的未知影响，这是最大的挑战之一。一个例子是我们的客户，无法理解其供应商的影响，已经开始与他们的设计团队合作的过程对其产品进行轻微修改，以便他们可以利用不同地理的其他供应商的替代部件。危机管理是最好的。并且，未知延伸到可能出现在线的子层和短缺。
What should procurement organizations be doing at this point to mitigate lasting damage to their supply chains and their overall business?
有一件事是确保有计划转移和运输目的地港口的任何东西。现在认为港口将关闭5或6天。随着基础设施如此严重损坏，沟通和协作的正常模式可能不是近期选择，因此利用当地关系将有所帮助。信息是国王。对于那些了解他们的风险简介的人以及配对采购决策和类别风险计划，他们应该能够在一个职位制定他们的BCP [业务连续性计划]。
Any other recommendations for companies in the aftermath of this storm?
It’s unfortunate, but as with the major disruptive events before Harvey, many organizations will finally have their wake-up call for the importance of a comprehensive supply risk management program. Enterprises must be risk aware, making risk an integral part of all decision making. A strong Supply Chain Risk Management foundation and generating sub-tier visibility cannot prevent disasters, but it can help to limit exposure and minimize impact. Supplier risk monitoring can be a quick win and an enabler to build organizational momentum to become risk aware. We have started withpartners like Accentureto help enterprises on these initiatives. Extending visibility to the n-tier supply chain is a journey. Ultimately these types of events highlight why supply chain risk is not about a single organization sitting on top of the chain and tracking their suppliers and trying to map them. It’s about working with them collaboratively to build a more resilient supply network, sharing approaches and information.
任何关于组织如何更好地准备下一次飓风袭击休斯顿的关键送货中心的思考，特别是？
Well, this is a big question as there are many different risk mitigation approaches that can be enacted by organizations. First and foremost, enterprises must understand where the risk is and the potential impact. This information feeds into an overall strategy for a category, including understanding the risk appetite. In the end, it’s not about the event but the impact, your appetite for the disruption, your willingness to reduce that impact by enacting various approaches (such as on-boarding additional supply paths, inventory, etc.) — and then your ability to sense and respond.
更新：Arkema Inc.在Crosby，Tex的植物爆炸，今天早上制作了头条新闻。该公司是一家大型汽车供应商，由汽车领域的许多风险均衡客户监控。由于洪水导致爆炸，他们的紧急冷却系统变得损害。“他们可能能够在其他国家的植物中平衡那个工厂的丢失，Heiko Schwarz告诉在随访中，”但是对上层的一些球员会有一些沉重的影响。“
Don't miss this resource list:Natural Disasters, Risk Management and You.
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