Data Visualization Training – Aug 29 Minneapolis
“Ralph, you said that open-source languages like Python and R can be used for data visualization and descriptive analytics. We’re using Tableau now for our supply chain data. What would be a sign that we should switch to open-source?” I was asked this during a conference recently. I firmly believe in the power of using […]
Data Flow in California Ports
“Data was essential to navigating supply chain disruption … analytics from that data allows us to see around corners, which is not just a competitive advantage, it’s now a public necessity” — Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka Following on the heels of the Department of Transportation-created Freight Logistics Optimization Works (FLOW) program, […]
Paper: Modeling port risk due to weather events
https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-022-00656-7 Fascinating paper that attempts to model and quantify financial risk to ports and associated logistics assets (e.g., terminals, road, rail) due to weather events. It can be a bit dense at times, so it helped me to print out and highlight. Worthwhile reading for anybody interested in supply chain risk, supply chain modeling, or […]
Happy New Year
Happy New Year everyone! 2022 was my first full year of running my business, Data Driven Supply Chain LLC, after spending 15 years in the corporate world and military. I learned a tremendous amount. I met and worked with great people. I read a lot and wrote some. I am grateful to have consulted for and trained […]
End-to-end supply chain simulator
This is a guest post by Linnart Felkl M.Sc. and originally appeared on Supply Chain Data Analytics It has been more than five years now that I graduated from university and entered the corporate world. Since then, I have dedicated most of my time to production and supply chain planning. Besides ERP-based model implementations, such […]
Success Story!
Another client success! If you’re interested in learning how Data Driven Supply Chain LLC can help you navigate the uncertain supply chain waters with supply chain modeling and advanced analytics, please email me for a free consultation: ralph@datadrivensupplychain.com. I recently was brought in to help a client, a B2C segment leader with double-digit annual growth projections, facing major decisions […]
Announcement: Tool To Validate Your Latitude / Longitude
When I start a project with a new client, I request the locations of their facilities and, if applicable, their customers. Usually, the data I receive includes street address, ZIP code, and latitude and longitude. Unfortunately, the latitude & longitude are not always correct. I take a “trust but verify” approach, mapping the locations using […]
Why Is Everybody Parking Near My Car? And Other Adventures in Discrete-Event Simulation
Note: This content is an introduction to simulation, a powerful tool for analyzing complex supply chain decisions. Simulation allows allows decision-makers to test scenarios, assess risk, and optimize systems without disrupting real operations. To be accessible to a wide audience, this content is not supply chain-specific. However, simulation can be used to improve supply chain applications […]
Longest Run of Heads in 100 Coin Flips
If you flip a coin 100 times in a row, what’s the longest run of heads or tails you will see? This is surprisingly difficult to answer with a mathematical equation but is a cinch for #simulation in #rstats using #shiny. Running the experiment 10,000 times, we can see that the mode (most common value) is 4 heads in a row […]
Webinar: R in Supply Chain Management
I recently had a great time speaking at RStudio’s R in Supply Chain Management meeting. I talked about the basics of supply chain network design, and demo’d a Shiny app that can be used for supply chain network design. If you didn’t get a chance to join live, it’s on YouTube: