By: Keith Schneringer | August 11, 2021
Part three of a series analyzing the continued impact of COVID-19 on the facility supplies and foodservice disposables industries
We've covered the current state of the worldwide supply chain and the elements that have led to the "perfect storm of ugliness"1 we are encountering when trying to order our "stuff" in the first two articles.
So what does all of this information mean for products in the facility supply and foodservice disposable categories? In short, most products are expected to continue to experience longer lead times and rising prices as the supply chain works to rebalance itself after the prolonged hibernation and interruption of manufacturing activities which resulting from the pandemic.
Sanitary Paper Products – Impacted by rising cost of pulp, packaging, and transportation, as well as a shortage of raw materials and available labor, this product category is expected to experience longer lead times and rising prices.
Plastic Can Liners – Impacted by rising cost of resin, packaging, and transportation, as well as a shortage of resin and available labor, this product category is also expected to experience longer lead times and rising prices.
Cleaning Chemicals – Impacted by rising cost of raw materials, packaging, and transportation, as well as a shortage of raw materials and available labor, this product category is expected to experience longer lead times and rising prices, and some products may be subject to allocation in the future.
Cleaning Equipment – Impacted by rising cost of raw materials, packaging, and transportation, as well as a shortage of microchips, batteries, other raw materials, and available labor, this product category is expected to experience longer lead times and rising prices.
Cleaning Accessories – Impacted by rising cost of raw materials, packaging, and transportation, as well as a shortage of available labor, this product category is expected to experience longer lead times and rising prices.
Foodservice Disposable Products – Impacted by rising cost of raw materials, packaging, and transportation, as well as a shortage of available labor, this product category is expected to experience longer lead times and rising prices.
The supply chain has never seen anything like the dramatic dips and spikes in demand which have been associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, and it will take some time for everything to even out. And we have come to learn that while the supply chain deliveries maximum efficiencies, it is prone to falling short when it comes to resiliency.
“We’ve never really had anything quite that violent and rapid, both in terms of the change down and the change back up,” said George Calhoun, Director of the Quantitative Finance Program at the Stevens Institute of Technology. “It’s clear that (the economic rebound) created a lot of disruptions, not just in supply chains, but in business models.”2
So what can we do?
By partnering with your wholesale distribution and manufacturing partners to help communicate and forecast your anticipated future demand, and by maintaining a touch of patience and understanding to our mutual business interactions, together we can all help each other to navigate these turbulent times and source the supplies needed to help keep the facilities in our communities cleaner, healthier, greener, and safer.
Keith Schneringer is WAXIE’s Director of Merchandising + Sustainability. He is a LEED AP O+M and CIMS-GB ISSA Certification Expert who has been a consultant on a variety of LEED and CIMS-GB projects, and has presented to audiences at USGBC, BOMA, IFMA and CHESC events (among others). He enjoys learning and sharing information on topics related to sustainability and green cleaning and can be found on Twitter @kschneringer.
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