2021 Manufacturing Trends

According to a recent McKinley article, digital collaboration tools are poised to play an incrediblyOEM quality industrial knives and blades from ACE important role in enabling workers to tap into the collective knowledge and experience of the organization, effectively solve problems with experts remotely. Naturally, the ability to do these things translates to the effective use of internal resources to work more effectively both internally with each other and externally with customers.

At ACE, our mission is to make cutting effortless for our customers. In order to achieve this with a hybrid, in-office/remote team, we had to ensure that our workforce was tied into the resources they need on a daily basis and that everyone was able to follow the same processes and procedures regardless of physical location, explains Gregory Billhardt. When you're working with some folks remotely, there's no opportunity to swing by someone's desk and ask a question about how a detail is communicated if it's out of the norm. With fewer employees on-site, it's paramount that everyone is on the same page when it comes to documenting and communicating critical business information, concludes Billhardt.

Resiliency of the Supply Chain

With more than 80% of businesses worldwide indicating that the pandemic impacted their supply chain negatively, it's no surprise that finding a way to build resiliency within the supply chain is a priority for 2021 and beyond. Supply chain resiliency is the supply chain's ability to be prepared for unexpected risk events, responding and recovering quickly to unanticipated disruptions to return to normal service levels. Supply chain resiliency can also refer to the growth of the supply chain to a new and more desirable state to improve customer service, market share, and financial position.

Industrial blades and knives from ACEThere are a number of ways to build supply chain resilience. Two standout for manufacturers:

  1. Diversify Sources “ Working with a manufacturer that has multiple high-quality sources for materials and products can make or break a company during a situation like the global pandemic, says ACE director of supply chain management, Dan Brownfield. When ports were closed in parts of the world, ACE was able to work with other suppliers in various geographic locations to make sure that our customers wouldn't run in to stock-out situations that might impact their ability to keep lines running. Over the years, we've been able to develop solid relationships with our suppliers. As a result, we're more fluid than many knife and blade manufacturers when unforeseen circumstances occur, he concludes.
  2. Build Reserves to Absorb Shock “ Inventory optimization and utilization models can overlook the element of structural risk. The purpose of strategic reserves is to protect against Black Swan events that are extremely rare but can have significant negative impact on an organization. The idea of strategic reserves isn't just applicable to physical inventory of important products. It can also be applied to your supplier relationships. Relationships are everything in business and the more solid the relationship, the better positioned an organization is to reach out for special assistance and favors during the course of an especially difficult black swan event.

Moving Ahead

When you're choosing an industrial knife and blade manufacturer and partner, it's important to takeACE industrial knives and blades manufacturer into consideration one that has a reputation for manufacturing and engineering a high-quality product and provides excellent service. It's equally as important to select an organization that has the business experience and acumen to successfully navigate a black swan event like we've seen over the past year.

ACE was founded in 1965 based on the principle of putting our customers first. Our mission has evolved to the concept of making cutting effortless for our customers. To do so requires a great deal of attention to the backend processes, procedures, and relationships that we have developed over the course of our existence. Our commitment to our customers is to ensure that as times change, as an organization we're ready to meet those changes and challenges with confidence so customers continue to receive the same level of outstanding service and quality products they've come to expect of us. Take advantage of our years of experience and business knowledge by putting us to work for you.