When Bombardier Inc. recently announced it will be laying off 40 workers at its Thunder Bay plant, the workers’ union blamed the company’s global supply chain and problems getting parts from Mexico. Professor Fraser Johnson spoke with Lisa Laco from CBC Radio’s Superior Morning show about the drawbacks and advantages to manufacturers going global as well as the supply chain management issues at play.
“Fifty years ago the model for most manufacturing organizations was to do as much in-house as you possibly could. Issues in terms of communication and supplier management were a lot more complicated. Today it’s much more common for an organization to have a global mandate for its manufacturing operations,” he said. “The opportunity to look around the world to find the best possible supplier does have advantages in terms of access to new technology, processes, and capacity.”
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