The complexity of supply chains has long been known in the trade sector. The myriad producers and exporters that go into producing technical equipment, and how the end producer has no idea of what is needed at each step has often been commented on, but not much had been done about it. When the system was working, there was no need for change.
But coronavirus changed all that. As medical products and equipment became in urgent demand, this lack of oversight became a real concern. When parts are shipping in from multiple countries, the local lockdowns that were enforced shuttered factories and closed borders. Parts were missing from the manufacturing process, or some became stuck, unable to be shipped.
