Supply Chain

Weeks before states expect to receive their first shipments of Covid-19 vaccines, conflicting messages from the federal government have obscured exactly how many doses may arrive. Some governors, including New York’s Andrew Cuomo and California’s Gavin Newsom, have made splashy announcements about how much of Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE’s vaccines they expect should the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorize them this month. Other states can’t provide a solid answer given how quickly estimates change.

During JD's fourth annual tech summit JD Discovery (JDD) held on November 25^th in Beijing, JD has shared plans to build a digital and intelligent supply chain. JD-Y, JD's supply chain R&D unit (focused on supply chain innovation) shared a relevant breakthrough and application regarding its self-built industry-leading end-to-end replenishment model (E2E model).

Reports of spiking COVID-19 cases and related fatalities have been met with recent news of extremely promising vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna. With the two offerings promising 90 and 95 percent effectiveness against the virus, respectively, attention now turns to mass production and, more importantly, mass distribution. According to Anna Nagurney, Ph.D., Director of the Virtual Center for Supernetworks and professor at the Department of Operations and Information Management at the University of Massachusetts, distribution is where the biggest challenges lie.

With COVID-19 cases rising across the country, the need for a safe and reliable vaccine is increasing. Both Pfizer and Moderna have announced vaccine trials with more than 90% effectiveness. Creating vaccines and getting federal approval are only the first hurdles which are followed by finding ways to transport the highly-perishable vaccines to millions of Americans.

Paper products and other household staples are in high demand in stores and online again as the virus surges and lockdowns loom, but none more so than those essential rolls of soft cotton squares. Photos of bare shelves and public pleas to leave behind a few rolls for other shoppers are overflowing social media. “The toilet paper aisle is CLEARED!” one person wrote on Twitter. “March 2.0 is here folkssss.”

The coronavirus revealed stark vulnerabilities in the supply chains that move products from the raw material stage, through production, and to a customer’s door. As key segments of this system faltered, businesses responded in real time, finding new ways to source materials and keep their products moving. The lessons learned from this experience can help companies transform how they view and build supply chains, says Matthew Elliott, Business Banking Midwest Region Executive for Bank of America.

In Kalamazoo, Michigan, millions of vials of a covid-19 vaccine may soon be rolling off production lines. There are still many hurdles to leap before that vaccine – the candidate from US drug company Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech – or any other is approved and distributed, but governments, manufacturers and shipping firms around the world have already spent months preparing for what happens next.

The airline industry has been a major beneficiary of the vaccine euphoria. First Pfizer, then Moderna announced vaccine candidates with a promised effectiveness of 90% or more. This excited investors and airline executives alike, with visions of pent-up demand creating packed planes with filled middle seats.

Reports of spiking COVID-19 cases and related fatalities have been met with recent news of extremely promising vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna. With the two offerings promising 90 and 95 percent effectiveness against the virus, respectively, attention now turns to mass production and, more importantly, mass distribution. According to Anna Nagurney, Ph.D., Director of the Virtual Center for Supernetworks and professor at the Department of Operations and Information Management at the University of Massachusetts, distribution is where the biggest challenges lie.

With COVID-19 cases rising across the country, the need for a safe and reliable vaccine is increasing. Both Pfizer and Moderna have announced vaccine trials with more than 90% effectiveness. Creating vaccines and getting federal approval are only the first hurdles which are followed by finding ways to transport the highly-perishable vaccines to millions of Americans.