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Summary:
- Major orthopedic device companies and a host of different industries have seen a disruption in the supply chain as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Sourcing and Operations leaders are actively investigating options to eliminate supply chain complexity and partner with strategic suppliers that have broad capabilities to service both legacy product and new product introduction using cost-effective innovation and complete service offerings.
- As the market continues to grow and expand, our ambition at Orchid Orthopedic Solutions follows the same path as our customer: to provide cost-effective innovation, reliability and diversified business solutions to the global orthopedic market.
- Our partners expect Orchid to manage the product lifecycle, stabilize cost and reduce their need for overhead expansion.
As the global orthopedic market begins to grow and expand, providing cost-effective, reliable and diversified business solutions is more important than ever. We must look at manufacturing and supply with fresh eyes and implement new concepts to prepare for a brighter future. A key component of these ambitions is understanding current and future needs of customers and streamlining the ways in which we communicate and work together as partners.
Customer needs have undoubtedly changed over the years. The expectation is that suppliers will be well-prepared, organized and aligned to ensure that these expectations, such as leveraging qualified and responsive supply partners, are met. Orchid Orthopedic Solutions continues to work diligently to develop a standardized process in which customers can depend upon teamwork, partnership and professionalism to achieve their goals and expectations.
Optimizing the Supply Chain
In response to the shifting economy, Orchid Orthopedic Solutions continues to develop processes to optimize and consolidate services for OEM customers. Utilizing this approach, customers can expect Orchid Orthopedic Solutions to handle all necessary steps throughout the supply chain, including new product introduction and manufacturing through sterile packaging. In addition, customers can expect that Orchid will continually evaluate future demand to ensure that capacity is available to meet our customers’ needs. In short, this process eliminates unnecessary steps in the supply chain for the customer in a cost-effective and timely manner.
As part of an overall supply chain shift, OEMs will also look to reduce overhead expansion and mitigate cost management of product lifecycle within their supply chain. To meet these expectations in a demanding market, suppliers will need to manage product from start to finish and minimize the steps within that process to offer customers a bundled rate. In short, suppliers will need to provide more bang for their buck. Orchid Orthopedic Solutions has been on the vanguard of this trend for many years and has proudly offered a bundled service approach. Customers provide one order for multiple services that we manage through our Orchid Supply+ program. Additionally, a Vendor Managed Inventory program reduces carrying costs and provides rapid results through 24-hour order replenishment. Orchid also promotes design support for efficient and reliable manufacturing, allowing customers to reallocate engineering capital to invest in more advanced technologies and new products. Now, more than ever, these approaches will be crucial services to stabilize increasing costs and optimize our complex and fragile supply chains.
Orchid Supply+ allows OEMs to provide one order for multiple services.
Looking Ahead Together
OEM Sourcing and Operations leaders were looking to minimize supply chain complexities well before the COVID-19 pandemic. While 2020 added new challenges to a strained and evolving orthopedic supply chain, the fallout from the pandemic truly gave us a unique opportunity to see the world through a different lens. To reconsider how we can do better and be better, both for ourselves and the world we live in. With this time has come a chance for reflection and a renewed sense of hope for what we can make of our world. We have learned that we are capable of rising in the face of tremendous adversity. We have proven that we are resilient. By identifying our vulnerabilities proactively, we will only become more resilient in the future. We have risen to the challenge of taking care of one another, and we are recreating a market that illustrates the importance of that. As we reflect on this difficult period, we can look forward to a bright future of innovative ideas, cost-effective product sourcing strategies and enhanced working relationships to make this world a better place for all of us.
Allyson Licht is a Customer Service Representative at Orchid.
