The pharmaceutical industry has been reluctant to apply digital technologies to improve manufacturing and supply chain operations, but this resistance is becoming a prior hindrance in moving forward & progressing.
The field of pharma is advanced when it comes to applying technology in the workflow & operative procedure. However, the industry has been very careful in getting new technologies implemented, since it still relies on supply chain and manufacturing paradigms that have been around for a long time.
The pharmaceutical industry faces growing challenges, such as globalization, high supply-chain complexity, pricing and cost strains, and personalized medicine.
Digitalization holds tremendous potential for companies to adapt into the new updates. By using digital technology, pharma companies can significantly increase the transparency of their supply chain operations and make better and faster decisions, because digitization enables companies to fully integrate their supply chains and improve operational processes. Thus, making them more adaptable and responsive.
As a result of that, planning accuracy, manufacturing efficiency and productivity, inventory levels and service levels will all increase and improve.
A digital supply chain ecosystem must be built that includes virtual supply chain management tools, cloud-based information architecture, and a digitized physical supply chain to make this movement of use.
When these elements come together in sync, people, machines, and resources communicate as a cyber-physical system, leading to improvements in all phases of the operational value chain: planning, sourcing, manufacturing, and delivery.
Digitization is a complex task since it includes risk factors that include cybersecurity, which is one of the main concerns, but as other industries that are more advanced have shown, digital transformation serves a clear opportunity to gain advantages in the competitive market.
With the continuous-technological changes, pharmaceutical companies must make digitization of their operations and supply chain a priority, starting today to progress on the right path line and maintain their productivity.
It has a high potential rate to fundamentally transform pharma operations, enabling incremental improvements in the industry’s performance.
Pharmaceutical companies should begin this journey by taking immediate steps to digitize their operations and supply chains and develop a strategy for the upcoming years.
Digitizing the supply chain can help pharma companies significantly improve their supply chain and operations performance and ultimately strengthen their financial outlook.
When implemented effectively, digitization of the supply chain gives pharma companies a true source of competitive advantage.