Supply Chain Resilience

Supply Chain Resilience

• The expected value of the threat from an electric outage

According to i-AM, Inc’s design manager, unplanned downtime occurring for more than a day could cost the business about $1.5 million (Pettit, 2014).

• Jim’s investment in a standby generator was a right business decision

Indeed, Jim’s decision to invest in a standby generator was right as the generator could mitigate the adverse effects of prolonged power outages. For instance, the company could lose data and experience process setbacks in the event of a power outage lasting for more than 24 hours. Besides, unexpected outages could result in circumstances from which the company could find it hard to recover (Pettit, 2014).

• Potential risks facing i-AM, Inc.

Some of the potential preventable risks facing i-AM, Inc. include risks resulting from disruptions in routine operational processes and the inability to distribute assets effectively. Some of the possible strategy risks facing the company include lack of strategies necessary to restore the normal state of operation quickly, poor policies, and lack of well-defined human resource structures. Some of the potential external risks facing the company include frequent power outages, supplier disruptions, regular changes in the prices of competitors’ products, changes in customers’ purchasing behavior, and unfavorable political climate.

• An event that can impact a supply chain similar to that of i-AM, Inc.

A low-probability yet high-consequence event which could affect such a manufacturing supply chain as the one that i-AM, Inc. is part of is responding rapidly to external pressures without a clear strategy. Indeed, this could lead to technical problems or engineering failures.

• The people Jim MacDonald called into the SCRAM session

Jim drew a manager and a technician from each division of the company to the SCRAM session.

• Top 3 vulnerabilities for i-AM, Inc

The first vulnerability is low sensitivity. An example of this vulnerability is minimal carefully controlled situations for process or product integrity. The second vulnerability is resource limits. An example of this vulnerability is limitations on outputs due to the limited availability of factors of production. Finally, the third vulnerability is the presence of deliberate threats. An example of this vulnerability is the existence of intentional attacks, which are intended to disrupt its operations, thus causing financial or human harm.

• The top 3 capability strengths for i-AM, Inc.

The first capability strength for the company is anticipation. An example of this strength is the ability to determine potential future situations or events. The other strength is adaptability and innovation. An example of this strength is its capacity to change products and operations in response to opportunities or challenges. The third strength is visibility. This is the ability to comprehend the status of operating assets or surroundings.

• The top 3 weaknesses for i-AM, Inc.

The first capability of weakness is low flexibility in manufacturing. An example of this capability weakness is its inability to change the type or quantity of its outputs quickly. The second weakness is organization. An example of this weakness includes poor culture, policies, skills, and human resource structures. The third weakness is capacity, and an example of this is the limited availability of assets necessary for sustained levels of production.

• Patterns that i-AM, Inc. can take advantage of

Based on the resilience gaps from the SCRAM tool, the models which i-AM, Inc. could exploit include having many strong capabilities to overcome the vulnerability related to turbulence, sensitivity, and reliance on external entities.

• Recommendations for the three RED resilience gaps

A recommendation for the red gap with a value of -5.7% is an improvement of the flexibility in manufacturing to be able to adapt quickly to changes in the external factors affecting production. A recommendation for the red gap with a value of -5.2% is an improvement of the rate at which the company modifies processes or products in response to external pressures. A recommendation for the red gap with a value of -10.0 % is becoming more flexible when adjusting the type or quantity of outputs whenever there are carefully controlled situations for process or product integrity.