Rapid Reconfiguration of Supply Chains with Simulation as a Support to Public-Private Partnerships during Pandemics

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many medical device manufacturers faced a significant and unexpected increase in demand. To handle this sudden spike in demand, a ramp-up of production and inbound material flow had to be organized. At the same time, the pandemic caused issues in the supply of materials for their medical products. Due to disruptions in global transportation, local unavailability of parts, and the urgency of the demand, companies established public–private partnerships to allow the organization of sufficient part supply for the production of medical products. In order to engage in the public–private partnership and to specify the necessary support, it is required to identify bottlenecks within the supply chain and options to address them. One of the methods commonly used to specify bottlenecks in a dynamic environment is event discrete simulation. To support the sudden simulation requirement by companies, a generalized simulation model is set up as a service to support, in particular, small and medium enterprises. The service allows to identify part bottlenecks and evaluate options in a rapid mode. The resulting service enables companies to address supply chain bottlenecks to ensure a fast ramp-up of production.