Take a holistic view with end-to-end planning
As with many complex supply chain challenges, a more innovative planning approach is needed. Automotive supply chain leaders need a more dynamic, integrated approach to production planning for both finished EVs and their battery components. Integrated, parallel supply chain planning and execution along the n-tier battery supply chain provides a significant competitive advantage to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
Securing a supply of raw and refined battery materials is key to mitigating risk for OEMs and effectively scheduling EV production. Rolling master planning—tightly integrated with EV scheduling—is necessary to rapidly generate, and regenerate, feasible and optimal plans in-line with actual supply chain execution.
With the Demand and Supply Planning solution on Blue Yonder Platform, automakers can accurately sense demand and develop accurate forecasts for finished vehicles, while also creating dependent demand plans for batteries, cells and raw materials. They can create a new, AI-enabled forecasting process that models the entire battery value chain, accounting for risks such as materials scarcity along the way.
By integrating two Blue Yonder capabilities on Platform, EV manufacturers can install dynamic, rolling supply and demand planning processes that reflect real-time changes. As exceptions and disruptions occur, AI powers optimized product and production allocations for batteries, cells and finished EVs simultaneously.
While this analytic challenge exceeds human cognition, Blue Yonder AI easily ingests real-time data from across the supply chain network and applies predictive analytics. Then, in seconds, it makes optimal decisions that match demand with all the complexities of supply, including batteries and their materials.
Blue’s Yonder’s solution is straightforward and value-added: Bring together real-time, multi-enterprise data—including insights from component suppliers—on an end-to-end platform to create a single version of truth. Then act dynamically and intelligently on that truth, to maximize availability and capture sales opportunities, while also driving down costs and excess inventory.
Our approach is enabled by Blue Yonder Network, an innovative collaboration solution that connects all partners in real time for visibility and awareness. Blue Yonder’s data cloud and supply chain platform are delivered on Snowflake’s cloud architecture, resulting in a 10x improvement in processing speed. The result? Unmatched responsiveness to any changes across the entire value chain. While Network is useful for any business, it’s especially valuable for multi-tier, multi-enterprise supply chains such as those in the worldwide automotive industry.
When there’s a problem like a rare-earth material shortage, all stakeholders know immediately. Blue Yonder AI works to quickly find an optimal solution, like a new source of supply, to keep balancing supply with demand. And production continues, to keep meeting demand profitably.
