ARLINGTON, VA. — The Consumer Brands Association has created a new Supply Chain Health and Performance Task Force geared toward increasing visibility and easing supply chain pressures across the consumer packaged goods industry.

The new task force comprises 15 CPG companies working alongside real-time supply chain visibility platform FourKites to create an “air traffic control” system giving members a real-time view of their transportation footprint to identify shared bottlenecks and inefficiencies within the supply chain, the CBA said.

The goal of the task force is to prevent delays throughout the supply chain by employing data sharing and bringing new visibility to supply chain routes through the FourKites platform.

“COVID-19 exposed supply chain vulnerabilities across all industries, but also created opportunities to collaborate,” said Tom Madrecki, vice president of supply chain and logistics at the CBA. “No company operates in a vacuum, and the same can be said of supply chains. The Supply Chain Health and Performance Task Force is the first step toward building a modern supply chain system that is resilient and can support the future of the CPG industry.”

Priya Rajagopalan, chief product officer at FourKites, noted that the demand shock from the worldwide reopening has strained global supply chains.

“We’re proud to work with Consumer Brands on an innovative platform that enables data sharing and transparency across organizations to alleviate critical pain points and maximize efficiencies,” Ms. Rajagopalan said.

“In a world where supply chains are more connected than ever, it is critical that industries work together to find solutions that provide increased transparency to reduce disruption,” said Yone Dewberry, senior vice president and chief supply chain officer at Land O’Lakes.

“Every minute of reduced dwell time across the transportation system increases capacity, which stabilizes costs,” said Rob Haddock, group director of planning and logistics at The Coca-Cola Co. “Visibility of bottlenecks advances shipper/receiver of choice initiatives and supports analysis on where to target infrastructure investment. As the supply of drivers continues to diminish, we must focus on keeping trucks rolling via visibility and collaboration.”