You’re Not Solving the Supply Chain Problem, You’re Reacting to It
If your team is constantly in crisis mode, scrambling to fix sourcing issues, inventory stockouts, or last-minute vendor hiccups, pause for a moment. You don’t have a supply chain issue; you have a data issue with constant firefighting in supply chain.
The Hidden Cost of Constant Firefighting in Supply Chain
Across industries like Oil & Gas, Manufacturing, EPC, and Utilities in India, GCC, and the Far East, the cost of poor data quality isn’t just financial. It’s operational. It delays projects, inflates procurement budgets, risks non-compliance, and shakes customer trust.
Here’s a breakdown of how firefighting often masks deeper data failures:
| Impact Area | Firefighting Trigger | Root Data Issue |
|---|---|---|
| Inventory Management | Urgent sourcing & stockouts | Duplicate or missing material masters |
| Procurement | Constant vendor follow-ups | Incomplete vendor data, spec mismatches |
| Project Execution | Delays due to wrong deliveries | Inaccurate BOMs, misaligned asset data |
| Compliance | Reporting delays & errors | Fragmented, outdated information |
The root cause? Poor master data governance.
Firefighting: Industry Use Cases
“We airlifted industrial valves from Germany in a panic—only to find them sitting in our Bahrain warehouse, mislabeled.” — Construction company, UAE
“40% of our engineering hours were wasted chasing missing specs and sourcing errors.” — Oil & Gas company, India
This isn’t just costly. It’s demoralizing, and entirely preventable.
The Data Iceberg – What You Don’t See Hurts You
In most supply chains, the visible emergencies, like urgent procurement or incorrect deliveries, are just the tip of the iceberg. Beneath the surface lie thousands of disorganized material codes, inconsistent units of measure, incomplete vendor records, and outdated specs.
These hidden flaws quietly erode performance, inflate inventory costs, and turn every new procurement cycle into a guessing game. If you only fix the symptoms (urgent POs, escalations), the deeper issues remain and resurface.
Why Does This Happen?
Because your data isn’t built for decision-making.
When material masters are duplicated, vendor details are inconsistent, and asset hierarchies vary across SAP, Oracle, or Maximo, your teams end up working from assumptions, not facts.
Root causes include:
- Lack of naming and classification standards
- Outdated or incomplete data across departments
- Excel or localized systems with no version control
- No data stewardship or governance model
Case Study:
An EPC contractor in Saudi Arabia faced repeated last-minute reordering of critical electrical components. After a CODASOL-led audit, they discovered 22% of their material master was duplicated across projects, with mismatched specifications.
Following a six-month standardization and enrichment initiative using CODASOL’s PROSOL, procurement cycle time dropped by 18%, excess stock reduced by 25%, and vendor delivery accuracy improved significantly.
Get a free master data health check for your ERP systems.
Stop Firefighting. Start Fixing the Data.
Let’s be clear, you can’t fix systemic issues with heroic, last-minute actions.
Instead, build resilience through clean, connected data.
1. Audit Your Master Data
Analyze your material, vendor, equipment, and asset masters for duplication, missing fields, outdated specs, and inconsistent structure. Include fields like:
- Unit of Measure (UOM)
- Manufacturer Part Numbers
- Category/Subcategory
- Classification hierarchy
- Specification completeness
2. Standardize & Enrich Your Data
Platforms like CODA use AI/ML to apply global taxonomy, business rules, and enrich metadata for consistency, usability, and compliance.
3. Centralize with Golden Records
Build a unified source of truth integrated across SAP, Oracle, Maximo, and other systems. No more siloed decision-making.
4. Govern & Maintain
Apply role-based access, version control, automated workflows, and a centralized governance model.
The 3C Framework for Supply Chain Data Resilience
At CODASOL, we use the 3C Framework: Clean, Connect, Control to future-proof your supply chain:
- Clean: Remove duplicates, validate information, and enrich missing fields
- Connect: Link materials to functional locations, BOMs, vendors, and assets
- Control: Implement governance rules, data ownership, and automated workflows
This framework ensures data is not just accurate, but actionable across your supply chain ecosystem.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1: What is constant firefighting in supply chain?
It’s the ongoing need to address urgent, unplanned issues in supply chain operations, usually triggered by missing or poor-quality data.
2: How does bad data lead to supply chain disruption?
Inconsistent naming, outdated specs, and siloed information delay procurement, cause wrong deliveries, and increase risk.
3: What industries are most affected?
Complex, asset-intensive sectors like Oil & Gas, Utilities, EPC, Aviation, and Real Estate across India, GCC, and the Far East.
4: Is software enough to solve the data problem?
Software like CODASOL’s PROSOL enables cleanup and governance, but organizational alignment is equally vital.
5: How soon can we see results from data transformation?
Early wins, like reduced sourcing delays or fewer vendor errors, can often be seen in 3–6 months.
Final Thought
If your supply chain runs on poor data, no amount of hard work will save it from breakdowns.
Data chaos creates operational chaos.
Stop reacting. Start transforming with CODASOL.
“In today’s complex global environment, clean data isn’t a nice-to-have; it’s the foundation for operational agility.”
— Murali K, Supply Chain Expert, CODASOL
Tired of chasing your supply chain? Take control with data you can trust.
Write to us: contact@codasol.com
Visit: www.codasol.com
