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AIAG UNVEILS INDUSTRY FIRST GLOBAL SUPPLIER SITE MAP

by Greg Creason | May 21, 2018

AIAG’s newest member benefit – a global supplier site map – allows users to search supplier locations to identify where potential geopolitical and environmental risks to the supply chain exist.  

SOUTHFIELD, Michigan, May 21, 2018 – What you don’t know can hurt you – especially when it comes to identifying suppliers in areas where natural disasters, geopolitical unrest and other disruptive factors have the potential to impact your business. In light of this, the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) today announced a valuable new member benefit: a global supplier site map designed to facilitate greater visibility of information, and help companies identify and manage risk in their extended supply chains.

Free for AIAG members, the Global Supplier Visibility Map (GSVM) is the newest addition to AIAG’s Supply Safe®, a strategic repository of tools, guidelines, best practices and standards developed by the industry, for the industry. This innovative offering speaks to AIAG’s ongoing commitment to provide its member companies with the tools and resources necessary to manage risk and uncertainty. 

“We have made this technology investment to help our smaller member companies manage risk associated with disruptions that may impact their suppliers and/or customers,” explains J. Scot Sharland, CEO of AIAG. “Additionally, the GSVM can also serve as a very cost effective commercial development and marketing resource.”

The map allows users to easily search for their suppliers by simply keying in a city, state, zip code or country, and specifying the search radius, up to 100 miles. Results appear as points on the map, or – in areas with dense supplier populations – as brightly colored circles with numbers in the middle indicating the quantity of supplier sites in the area.

In addition to the visual representation of search results on the map itself, a scrolling side panel allows users to see more detail for each supplier location. While all entries show address information and distance from the search location, three additional icons also appear in results (when applicable): a globe, which serves as a link to the company’s website; a curved road indicating AIAG membership; and a bold “IATF” to show IATF certified suppliers. Most entries also feature Google Maps’ icon indicating Street View capabilities, which provides the user with an interactive image of the facility itself as well as the surrounding buildings, streets, and other points of interest.

“The first casualty of globalization is transparency. As such, resources like the GSVM have become even more mission-critical,” Sharland concludes. “AIAG is pleased to offer this FREE tool to our lower Tier members to help them assess the impact of potential supply chain disruptions and accelerate their recovery planning.”

About AIAG

Established in 1982, AIAG is a not-for-profit organization with more than 35 years of experience working with OEMs, suppliers, service providers, government, and academia. In partnership with its 2,600+ member companies, AIAG focuses on collaborative action to drive down costs and streamline supply chain complexity by developing global standards and harmonizing business practices. Learn more at www.aiag.org.