IDEALIST Results in Action explores the project’s practical results through questions that matter to European SMEs. This time, the focus is on supply-chain resilience:
Do you know where your supply chain is most vulnerable — and could those vulnerabilities affect your ability to adopt advanced technologies?
For an SME, supply-chain resilience is not only about keeping production running. Access to the right critical raw materials, feedstocks and components can also influence whether a company is able to introduce and operate new technologies.
IDEALIST’s analysis identified supply-chain vulnerabilities as one of the cross-sector challenges SMEs face when adopting Advanced Technologies (AT) and Advanced Manufacturing Technologies (AMT), alongside technological complexity and financial constraints.
Understanding what sits behind technology adoption
A company may identify a promising technology, but its implementation can still depend on materials, components and suppliers that are difficult to access or exposed to disruption.
This is why IDEALIST worked on several complementary supply-chain resources.
The Supply-chain Analysis (D7.1) examines bottlenecks, critical materials, component shortages, feedstock availability and other conditions that can affect SMEs and technology uptake.
The CM&C Supplier Template and supplier mapping (D7.2) provide a structured way to collect and compare information on suppliers of critical materials, components and feedstocks.
The EU Supply Chains Stakeholders Handbook (D7.3) maps European organisations and networks that can give SMEs and clusters access to additional expertise, contacts and supply-side collaboration opportunities.
The project also developed Critical Raw Materials and Feedstock Factsheets, providing practical information on supply dependencies, market trends and potential risks.
For SMEs, this means asking not only “Can we adopt this technology?” but also “Do we have access to the materials, components and suppliers needed to make that adoption viable?”.
Beyond IDEALIST: how this result can continue
These resources can continue to support SMEs and clusters in mapping dependencies, monitoring supply risks and exploring alternative sourcing options.
Some elements, particularly supplier information, market conditions and critical-material intelligence, will need regular updating as supply chains, regulation and geopolitical conditions evolve. The templates, methodology and stakeholder networks, however, can continue to be integrated into cluster resilience and SME support services.
Explore the IDEALIST supply-chain resilience resources
Supply-chain Analysis: [download now]
CM&C Supplier Template / Supplier Mapping: [download now]
EU Supply Chains Stakeholders Handbook: [download now]
Critical Raw Materials & Feedstock Factsheets – go to dedicated webpage
For further information, contact info@idealist-project.eu