Lorraine Balog

Manufacturers across chemicals, life sciences, and consumer packaged goods lose more than $120 billion annually through inventory write-offs, but those losses are often the end result of material risks that began months earlier. Forecast changes, supplier delays, quality events, aging inventory, and shifting production priorities can quietly compound into shortages, excess inventory, scrap, and lost margin when they aren’t identified and addressed early enough. The State of Material Risk & Recovery explores how leading batch manufacturers are moving beyond traditional inventory management to identify risk earlier, coordinate decisions across functions, and protect the value of materials throughout their lifecycle. Discover the Prevent, Mitigate, Recover framework and how AI-enabled decision intelligence can help teams connect signals across systems, understand root causes, prioritize the highest-impact actions, and intervene before operational risk becomes financial loss. Download the report to learn how to: Spot material risk earlier, before it turns into excess and obsolete inventory, production disruption, or a write-off. Close the gap between ERP visibility and actionable decisions by understanding not just what happened, but why and what to do next. Apply the Prevent, Mitigate, Recover framework to improve material readiness and unlock more recovery opportunities. Use AI to turn scattered signals into…

From Grocery Innovator to Global Tech Enabler At Manifest 2026, Scott Luton spent time with David Scheffrahn, Vice President of Sales with Ocado Intelligent Automation, to explore how fulfillment technology is evolving in an era defined by volatility. While Ocado is widely known in the UK and Europe for its e-commerce grocery leadership, Scheffrahn explained that the company’s North American focus is different. Over 25 years of building its own advanced grocery e-commerce and fulfillment operations, Ocado developed a powerful technology stack to drive efficiency. “What we’ve done in the last five years,” he shared, “has taken the tech stack that we built for our own use, and now we’re offering it to other companies to buy and use for their operations.” Today, Ocado supports 3PLs and global brands with end-to-end automation solutions that enable companies to maintain greater control over their omnichannel fulfillment, especially those looking for alternatives to marketplace giants.   Volatility Hasn’t Gone Away When asked about dominant supply chain themes heading into 2026, Scheffrahn was direct: “Volatility has not gone away.” He described 2025 as “a massive shock in the system,” with tariffs and shifting trade policies forcing customers to pause projects and reassess strategy. “Almost…