Redesigned supply network
A rebalanced footprint of plants, hubs, and lanes built for resilience.
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Supply Chain Resilience and Optimization
We redesigned an end-to-end supply chain to improve resilience, cut cost, and shorten lead times.
The Challenge
The client was a global consumer-goods company that sourced much of its production from contract factories across Southeast Asia. When a sudden wave of factory shutdowns swept the region, it lost close to ten weeks of output and had to cancel tens of millions of units of orders. As production restarted, ocean logistics seized up: door-to-door transit from Asia to North America stretched from roughly 40 days to 80, and container freight rates spiked nearly tenfold. The result was whiplash—thin shelves through the peak season, then a wall of late stock landing all at once that had to be discounted. The company was never short on effort or inventory; it was short on visibility, flexibility, and a network built to absorb shocks.
What was going wrong
- Around 80% of production concentrated in two countries, with no qualified backup factories when they closed.
- Asia-to-North-America transit times doubled—about 40 days to 80—so replenishment was planned three months blind.
- Container freight rates rose close to 10×, turning expedited shipping from a rounding error into a margin problem.
- No shared, real-time view of inventory in transit and in-market, so both the shortage and the later glut came as surprises.
Our Approach
- End-to-end network design and footprint diversification
- Demand planning and inventory optimization
- Multi-sourcing and supplier risk management
- Logistics, fulfillment, and control-tower visibility
How We Did It
From diagnosis to scale.
A structured path that turns analysis into measurable, lasting change.
- 01
Diagnose
Mapped the multi-tier network end to end and flagged every single-source, long-lead, and high-risk part.
- 02
Design
Modeled multi-sourcing, nearshoring, and buffer-stock scenarios to balance cost, service, and risk.
- 03
Pilot
Qualified backup suppliers and set two-to-six months of buffer on the most critical components.
- 04
Scale
Stood up a control tower and monthly S&OP so the network could see and react to shocks.
“We now have a supply chain that can absorb shocks and still deliver for our customers.”— Chief Supply Chain Officer
What We Delivered
Practical work. Lasting capability.
Each engagement is designed around decisions leaders must make and capabilities teams must sustain.
End-to-end visibility
A control tower giving real-time signal across the network.
Optimized inventory
Right-sized buffers and policies that free working capital.
Resilient supplier base
Diversified, tiered suppliers with active risk monitoring.
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