Issues Facing the Autonomous Technology Supply Chain in 2021 and Beyond

Today’s supply chain faces several compounding issues that were difficult to predict a year and a half ago. There are numerous short and long-term effects of COVID to deal with, as well as increasing pressure from growing consumer demands, challenges in implementing autonomous technology and a hiring shortage.

On this episode of Ground Truth, a Phantom Auto podcast, host Daniel Litwin talked with Evan Rago, Strategic Sales Manager at Phantom Auto, who’s been in the industry for more than 10 years, about the issues facing the supply chain.

While there’s a current short-term hiring shortage, a more significant hiring issue looms in the manufacturing sector. New research from Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute shows that as many as 2.1 million manufacturing jobs could go unfilled through 2030, which could end up costing the U.S. economy $1 trillion through that year. This will have a domino effect that will eventually end with the customer waiting on goods, and it will affect their wallet, according to Rago.

“Whenever you can’t find labor, your throughput decreases, your operation slows down, you become less efficient and you have to raise costs,” Rago said. “Ultimately, it’s going to be a cost raise and create longer lead times. In today’s consumer-driven market, that’s really not feasible.”

With companies not able to fill positions, the possibility of relying on autonomous technology will move to the forefront. Companies will want to be more flexible when it comes to employment, which will help safeguard them from labor shortages and prepare them for future pandemics and crises.

“A lot of companies are turning to automation, and they’re turning to different innovative technologies,” Rago said.

Listen to hear more about Rago’s thoughts on the supply chain and the issues it faces.

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