Logistics Trends 2023: Securing the Resilience of Supply Chains Digitally and Sustainably
The political events of 2022 have once again demonstrated how important intact logistical supply chains are for the global economy and the population. This is also reflected in the future trends and challenges in logistics. Here, the focus remains primarily on aspects of digitization, but with an increased attention to making supply chains more resilient through transparency, networking, and automation – without sacrificing sustainability. In this outlook for 2023, we present important developments for the coming year.
International Trends in Logistics 2023: Digital in a New Framework
Networking, robotics, Big Data, AI, or Blockchain: As far as the keywords of the logistics trends 2023 are concerned, there are basically no obvious changes compared to the trends 2022 and their innovation approaches. What is new is the experience of the last twelve months. When a major (and in many areas the most important) supplier of raw materials and producer of consumer and industrial goods withdraws from global trade, supply chains come to a standstill. While in 2021 many production sites were shut down, in 2022 closures occurred only in China. Nevertheless, the effects were felt worldwide.
A second, enduring lesson for the logistics of the future has been provided by the Russian attack on Ukraine. If one transport mode fails completely – in this case the sea route across the Black Sea until the grain export deal between Russia and Ukraine – this can even lead to hunger on another continent. Of course, sea freight is not substitutable as such due to its cargo capacity, but a better rail network between Ukraine and Mediterranean, Baltic, or North Sea ports could have at least mitigated the shortfall.
