Claudia of Maine Dye and Textiles was a great resource for me to be partnered with. Though no one’s fault, our communication had some gaps – but it turns out these were due to real-time business problems – and served as a reminder  to me that “life happens and you have to learn to roll with it”. Claudia had some tips and tricks for anymore focused on textile manufacturing in the United States. She recommends someone with this interest have a solid grasp on understanding and learning the principles of supply chain manufacturing.

How will you reduce your transportation costs? Those costs come from souring materials (via mail or local stores) includes gas, shipping costs, and perhaps air fare.

How do you improve collaboration? You should know where your values lie, who you want to collaborate with, and what you’re capable of producing.

How do we improve a “dysfunctional” supply chain? Using this journal, I got a better understanding of what a “dysfunctional supply chain” is. The authors advise against collaborative exchanges with stating “a firm may buy from a supplier over and over again because of low prices, but have no long-term commitment or trust invested in the exchanges.” which in turn “implies governance by trust and commitment”. The keyword is “implies”, because there is no real commitment. For both ends, you never know when you will terminate each other, skimp on a product, or disagree on results. That’s really only a small bite out of this problem.

These are all small snips of bigger problems Claudia wishes to prepare us students, and anyone interesting in this line of business, with down the road. Let’s all take her advice and be better prepared for our next steps in life.