How is Aspen future proofing its operations through agility and innovation?

The once in a lifetime events of the Covid pandemic and the Russia/Ukraine war have exposed weaknesses in global supply chains across many industries and as a consequence shortages and rising inflation are commonplace.

Historically the pharmaceutical industry has relied on keeping several months of stock coverage for each product to counteract the typically longer manufacturing lead times in comparison to the FMCG industry and the high degree of complexity caused by different country by country regulations that exist, which often result in unique packaging at a country level.

Even with such an approach Aspen experienced unprecedented demand for some of its products during the height of the pandemic which, for example in some instances, necessitated these products being supplied in one country using a non-native language pack. Such an event had never happened before due to the strict regulations around packaging and would never occur again during “normal” times.

Going forward it is clear that whilst the traditional model of robust stock coverage still has its place, there is a need to ensure Aspen become more agile and flexible to respond to changing demands.

To do so requires close collaboration between the regional Commercial teams throughout the world and the Supply Chain within Mauritius. This close collaboration can be implemented through traditional and existing close and frequent contact between the two partners. 

From the Commercial side it is important to provide an understanding of the key drivers within their territories such as whether products are expected to grow or decline and whether they are expected to be short term e.g., promotional activities leading to growth or longer term. From the Supply Chain there is an expectation to clearly highlight whether there any short- or long-term supply constraints on the various products or indeed if there are definite opportunities to better utilize existing supply capacity. Only once all such key drivers are known can effective collaborative strategies be defined for the business.

To enhance this collaboration further, Aspen has embraced more advanced Business Planning systems. These systems can hold up-to-date information on all the key indicators of the supply chain e.g., when exactly an order will be available in the marketplace or the stockholding levels in a country for a specific product. Consequently, this drives an expectation not only of quicker decision making but also decisions that are the best for the business.

Alongside the enhanced Business Planning system there will be a need to further upskill staff, especially around Business Acumen. No longer should this primarily be the domain of Executives or Senior Managers. Rather with the improved systems at their disposal and with effective training this can be an ability all employees can aspire to and attain.

With such systems and training in place, coupled with the close collaboration with the Commercial teams, the team in Mauritius can be at the epicentre of major decision making impacting the products it supplies.