The SupplyChainBrain Podcast

Face it: There's no such thing as a supply-chain information-technology system that’s completely invulnerable to cyber attack. Hackers are growing more sophisticated every day, and the best ones manage to stay one step ahead of most companies' I.T. security departments. Still, there are some basic steps that companies can take to protect themselves against most kinds of incursions. On this episode, we get advice from Timothy Hall, president of Azorca Cyber Security, LLC. He talks about the real risks that supply chains face today, as well as some of the myths and misunderstandings that prevent them from building strong walls against the invaders. And he explains why so many major retailers have fallen prey to successful cyber attacks in recent months. Hint: It's not just about I.T.

Tired of dealing with slow ships and congested ports to get your product out of China? Why not take the train? That's what Hewlett-Packard Co. did. In fact, the consumer-electronics giant forged a whole new path for getting manufactured goods from its Chinese factories to markets in Western Europe. The move followed a shift by the company of factory capacity into inland and western China, a response to growing congestion within the country's industrial zones along the coast. Then HP had to overcome the additional cost and logistical complexities of sourcing from a remote region of the Chinese interior. The answer: placing its containers aboard the Trans-Eurasia Railway, for a journey of more than 6,700 miles. Ronald Kleijwegt, HP's director of logistics for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, explains how the company came up with the innovative plan, and what it has saved in logistics costs and time to market.

The Ebola crisis has given rise to the usual epidemic of misinformation, overreaction and lack of preparedness by individuals and business. Will we ever learn? The situation is undeniably serious, especially in the African nations of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. Now that the disease has reached American shores, however, we're seeing a public response that doesn't always match up with its actual nature. It’s a case of simultaneous overreaction and underreaction, says John Rose, chief operating officer with iJet International, a provider of risk-management advice to multinational corporations and governmental organizations. On this episode, Rose acknowledges the existence of some unanswered questions about the disease. But he also offers valuable guidance on how companies can craft a proactive business-continuity plan, and respond to the real threat of the Ebola virus. ''Find out why a little fear might not be a bad thing.''

Manufacturing and distribution executives love the idea of slashing inventories. But it's distribution-center managers who must deal with the consequences. Lean is the watchword in supply-chain management today, and inventory isn't immune. All that merchandise sitting around on warehouse racks seems like a prime candidate for cost-cutting. And most of the time, the practice makes sense. Who wants a lot of unneeded product dragging down the bottom line? Unfortunately, D.C.s aren't always involved in the high-level decision to cut inventories. On this episode, we hear from Jeff Primeau, senior manager in the supply chain practice of management and technology consulting firm West Monroe Partners. He talks about how distribution operations can cope with sharply reduced stocks, and keep product flowing efficiently.

Coming soon to a city near you – an Amazon.com store? Don't look now, but the king of e-tailing is inching into the land of brick-and-mortar retailing. Amazon has confirmed plans to open two or three small physical stores in San Francisco, New York and possibly Sacramento in time for the 2014 holiday shopping season. They won't all be performing the same role – New York will host a kind of mini-warehouse for same-day fulfillment, while San Francisco apparently will offer Amazon's own range of branded products, including Kindle e-readers, Fire tablets and smartphones. Still, the move represents a radical step for Amazon, and raises all kinds of questions about how the company will support a traditional retailing venture, and what it means for the entire sector. Offering her views of the development is Maria Haggerty, chief executive officer of Dotcom Distribution, a provider of warehousing and e-commerce fulfillment services for retailers large and small.

By now, all manufacturers are fully up to speed on the Securities Exchange Commission's new rule about disclosing the presence of conflict minerals in their products … aren't they? Not exactly. A lot of companies have yet to determine their use of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold from gang-controlled mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring regions. The complexity of global supply chains makes that a vexing challenge. Still, manufacturers are on their way to compliance. Our guest on this episode is Ryan Lynch, business development manager for the Information Insights division of Underwriters Laboratories (UL). He provides a report card on efforts to ferret out conflict-minerals content, while identifying the obstacles that stand in the way. He also offers a solution for companies that have yet to come up to speed, and speculates about how the SEC requirement, part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, might be expanded in future to cover additional countries and raw materials.

Just how unified is the European Union, anyway? Disunified enough to cause an unemployment crisis that won't go away. The average unemployment rate across the 28-country EU is around 10 percent. It's as bad as 56 percent among the youth of Spain. What's more, a hidden army of part-time workers, and the existence of a massive ''gray economy'' region-wide, is making the situation even worse than it appears. What's the solution? On this episode, we get advice from Robin Chater, secretary-general of the Federation of International Employers. Europe, he says, ''is failing its next generation.'' He outlines the problem, explains how the mighty EU has come to this state of affairs, and suggests ways out of the mess. Whether the political climate and bureaucratic nature of the EU allow for substantive change, however, is another matter.

The nation's infrastructure crisis is crying out for a long-term solution. For years, transportation funding has been falling far short of what's needed to repair, construct and maintain highways, roads, bridges, tunnels and canals. But congressional deadlock has continued to starve the Highway Trust Fund, without devising an alternative means of funding. The federal gas tax hasn't been raised since 1993, and the HTF survives only through a series of stopgap measures, the latest of which puts off the issue until next May. On this episode, we’re joined by Leslie Blakey, president and executive director of the Coalition for America's Gateways Trade Corridors. She puts the infrastructure debate into perspective, and discusses the various plans that might solve the problem once and for all – provided legislators possess the spine necessary for spurring action.

3D printing is one of the hottest technology developments in supply chain today. Is it for real? The answer is a qualified yes, according to Shashank Narain, vice president of account development with The Smart Cube, a professional services firm. He has seen a 3D printer create a component with 20 moving parts, all on different axes. Today, 3D printers are being touted for everything from food to medical devices to complex aircraft parts. (They can even turn out guns.) The advantages are many: cheaper manufacturing, lower cost of entry into markets, the ability to tailor products to individual consumer tastes. Still, the technology has a ways to go before becoming a routine aspect of many production environments. In this episode, Narain discusses how far 3D printers have come (surprisingly far, it turns out), and how far they have to go, in both the consumer and industrial sectors. More specifically, he predicts how 3D printers will impact global procurement strategies.

Delivery drones are on their way to your doorstep. And regulators are right on their tail. Amazon and other e-commerce retailers are preparing a fleet of drones that can rush product to the consumer. The craft are already in the testing stage, but the legal ramifications of their use are far from clear. Issues to be addressed include privacy, security, safety and environmental impact. The Federal Aviation Administration insists that it has jurisdiction over drones today, but others disagree, and the matter is currently being litigated in the courts. This episode features attorney Joshua Dalrymple, a professor in the School of Legal Studies at Kaplan University. He offers his view on how regulators and lawmakers will address the coming of commercial drones, and what it means to businesses and consumers alike.