Supply chain vulnerability assessment for manufacturing industry.

Area of Science:

• Supply Chain Management
• Risk Management
• Operations Research

Background:

• Increasing frequency of natural and man-made disasters (e.g., COVID-19) has heightened focus on supply chain vulnerability.
• Practitioners and researchers are actively seeking to understand and mitigate risks within complex supply networks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate and prioritize the key factors contributing to supply chain vulnerability.
• To develop a model for assessing and managing internal, controllable vulnerability factors.

Main Methods:

• Extensive literature review to identify initial vulnerability factors.
• Expert interviews to refine and validate the list of factors.
• Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to assess the relative criticality of identified factors.

Main Results:

• Twenty-six distinct supply chain vulnerability factors were extracted.
• Critical factors identified include critical part suppliers, supplier location, long lead times, undefined process ownership, and misaligned incentives.
• Both supply chain structure (length, complexity) and firm-adopted practices significantly influence vulnerability.

Conclusions:

• The relative assessment of vulnerability factors provides a framework for targeted mitigation strategies.
• Implementing robust practices and addressing identified critical factors can enhance supply chain resilience.
• This research contributes a model for understanding and controlling internal supply chain vulnerabilities.