Digitalization , technology, and infrastructure investment are essential pillars for building more resilient and dynamic supply chains in North America, specialists agreed on the panel ” Keeping Pace with Cross-Border Demands ,” within the framework of Automotive Logistics & Supply Chain.
The panel included Magdalena Pongratz, inbound planning specialist at Volkswagen de México ; Ricardo Álvarez, vice president and general manager of Supply Chain Solutions at Ryder México; and César García, sales director at Uber Freight in Mexico.
The experts agreed that close collaboration, flexibility, and the adoption of technological innovations are key factors in facing current challenges , such as bottlenecks, and anticipating obstacles that may arise in the future in supply chains.
During the discussion, it was highlighted that digitization has ceased to be a trend and has become a necessity that improves transportation processes . As an example, the Transportation Management System (TMS) was cited, along with its evolution into a data exchange tool for a key player in customer service, and Ricardo Álvarez noted his experience in developing the tool.
“We tasked our engineers with developing a new model of our TMS to be 100% applicable and to act as mediators in the process to make it applicable to everyone. So, if someone tells us we want to fail, now the public is reviewing every detail. We are becoming a technology company, and this is part of our integrated solutions,” he noted.
Meanwhile, César García emphasized that investment in technology and infrastructure is a strategic priority for addressing the industry’s challenges . He pointed out that innovation should not be seen as a problem, but rather as the solution that accelerates processes. In his experience, particularly in border regions, alternatives have been implemented to optimize cash flow and consolidate operations, in addition to the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in processes.
“What we need are three direct lines of management and flexible capacity solutions, because only with these can we react quickly and have the right processes in place. These are the two main characteristics for us,” he noted.
Finally, Magdalena Pongratz pointed out that transparency and open communication strengthen strategic transitions , while building a collaborative logistics ecosystem allows for raising the level of service and efficiency.
“In Mexico, it’s all about deep collaboration with our indigenous countries because we see, with all the new volume, with all the change that is happening, that we can build a resilient network that can support service providers in the long term,” he concluded.
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