Page 41 - PEN Ebook March 2021

MARKET Market

shortages worldwide which, in turn, have result- Digital tools are not foreign in our industry. Long

ed in a range of operational challenges. Original used by engineers in the design process, Elec-
Component Manufacturers (OCMs) and Original tronic Design Automation (EDA) and Product
Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) simply could Lifecycle Management (PLM) tools are a daily part
not account for such a catastrophic world event of the work. However, what is missing in these
as the coronavirus. It disrupted their original tools is a deeper integration with essential mar-
business plans, forecasts and caused shortage ket data. Such an integration would tell the fuller
issues for 2020 and now, as a consequence, 2021. picture of what is occurring in our industry at a
global level.
As the industry now enters a new year, the need

for digital tools aligned specifically to the com- Like EDA and PLM, BOM management tool plat-
ponents industry is needed more than ever. Every forms are also a necessary part of the procure-
single company and manufacturer has to start ment equation. Coupling such powerful tools
improving each step of the supply chain, making with market intelligence and data would lead to
it transparent to avoid speculation and a lack of an inexorable amount of information for pric-
The Transformation information. ing, sourcing, potential shortage issues and even

more important, alternates solutions.
of the Semiconductor THE NEED FOR DIGITAL TOOLS For those working on the NPI side, you have to

Market Post-Covid by With shortages abounding and component orders change your approach on how you provide FAEs
support through franchise manufacturers and
surging around the globe, such things as E-com-
merce marketplaces and market data can be a
distributors. The almost instantaneous informa-
Using Digital Tools and Big real game-changer for sourcing, forecasting and tion supplied by market intelligence tools would
speed up the transfer of information, allowing for
even maintaining product life cycles.
Data to Break Barriers in the moment decisions that can not only react

By Jens Gamperl, CEO, Sourceability

When the coronavirus first broke out of China infection and spread. That was the last time our
and into the surrounding world, no one could offices would be open.
have imagined it would have such an effect on
our daily lives and, of course, our business life in Like so many other companies, our personnel

the fast-paced semiconductor industry. distributed to a remote work force. Digital tools
became our lifeline as a company. Zoom, Slack
In February of 2020, Sourceability’s offices were and Microsoft Teams, which were already in use,
still open and business was going on as usual, were now considered indispensable to our daily
with the occasional eye being kept on what was existence and work efforts.
happening in Southeast Asia. By the beginning of
March, our offices in America had already insti- Covid-19 has uprooted life for all of us, and it
tuted a fifty-fifty split of personnel working in has posed specific problems within our industry.
teams; a shift rotation as a precaution against It has disrupted business by causing material

40 MARCH 2021 | www.powerelectronicsnews.com MARCH 2021 | www.powerelectronicsnews.com 41