EPCIS for supply chain traceability in the automotive industry
The automotive industry is known for its complex and global supply chains, involving various suppliers, manufacturers, and distributors to bring a single vehicle to market. This complexity comes with heightened opportunities for errors and challenges in tracking and tracing products throughout the supply chain. It can lead to delays in response to recalls, a lack of transparency for consumers, and higher costs for the industry.
The Electronic Product Code Information Services (EPCIS) is an international standard that provides a basis for sharing various event and object data among different members of the supply chain. In this blog post, we will discuss how EPCIS can help the automotive industry to achieve better supply chain traceability.
What is EPCIS?
EPCIS is an open standard created by the GS1 in cooperation with industry stakeholders globally. It provides a standard framework for communicating and sharing event and object data across different organizations in the supply chain. EPCIS data delivers a complete picture of supply chain transactions, enabling businesses to improve inventory management, logistics, and customer service, while increasing efficiency and reducing errors.
To put it in simple words, EPCIS is designed to create a common language for businesses to share operational data between them. It enables a standardized format for encoding the meaning of specific EPCIS events such as shipment information, product information, storage information, etc.
What are the benefits of EPCIS in the automotive industry?
The automotive industry is one of the most complex supply chains, with hundreds of suppliers and manufacturers involved in bringing a single vehicle to market. The industry faces several challenges in tracking and identifying products throughout the supply chain, which leads to recalls, transport delays and higher costs for the industry.
Here are some benefits of using EPCIS in the automotive industry:
Tracking Vehicle Parts
With EPCIS, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) can track the parts they receive from suppliers throughout the supply chain. They can also retrieve relevant information like supplier name, lot number, manufacturing date, quantity, and serial number.
This information can be used to detect quality issues or recall defective parts before they become dangerous to the end-user, ultimately improving product quality and reducing costs associated with product recalls.
Supply Chain Visibility
EPCIS provides full supply chain visibility by tracking the movement of products throughout its lifecycle. This includes a comprehensive view of where the product came from, where it went, who handled it, when it is shipped, etc.
This information helps businesses to identify bottle necks, delays, and other inefficiencies in the supply chain. It can optimize processes to improve the speed of product delivery, reduce costs, and improve customer satisfaction.
Improved Collaboration and Communication
EPCIS also improves collaboration and communication within the supply chain. It provides businesses with real-time access to all important information in their supply chains, even if they are working with partners across different regions or countries.
This allows partners to communicate better and reduces uncertainties in the supply chain, enables better relationships and increases the speed of problem resolution. Businesses can also use the data to support strategic decision-making.
EPCIS Adoption in the Automotive Industry
While several leading automobile manufacturers and Tier-1 suppliers have adopted EPCIS for supply chain traceability, but the adoption level of EPCIS is still low in the industry. One of the main reasons is the cost and complexity associated with implementing EPCIS systems.
To overcome these issues, we recommend that the following steps should be taken to increase adoption in the industry:
Training and Education
The adoption of EPCIS requires businesses and their partners to understand the system and the benefits it provides. Manufacturers and suppliers that are armed with sufficient information of EPCIS will be more likely to adopt the technology quickly.
Start Small and Build Momentum
Adopting EPCIS should start small to avoid costly investment in full-scale technology projects. This allows businesses to test the system's capabilities and its effectiveness in a controlled environment. Once its effectiveness is evident, momentum for larger-scale adoption can build.
Collaboration and Standardization
Employee collaboration is needed to create an enterprise level view of EPCIS. It requires the use of standardized data attributes and standard processing workflows. Achieving this standardization requires collaboration from the entire supply chain network.
Conclusion
The adoption of EPCIS for supply chain traceability in the automotive industry enables better supply chain management, better business relations, fewer recalls, and reduced costs. OEMs and their suppliers need to be more open-minded and willing to co-operate to achieve these benefits.
The adoption of EPCIS in the automotive industry has been low due to the cost and complexity of implementing the systems, but with more education to industry and standardization from manufacturers, the benefits of the technology can be realized. EPCIS adoption will improve efficiency, reduce cost, and improve customer satisfaction in businesses in the automotive industry.