The coronavirus pandemic has shown us how easily supply chains can be interrupted for indeterminable lengths of time. As consumers, we’ve all seen stores stripped bare of essentials like toilet paper, bleach and foodstuffs. The problem is exacerbated for manufacturers with global supply chains. They rely on partners to deliver raw materials or sub-components produced in overseas factories to create finished products domestically. That’s never the case with Snake Tray.
If the supply chain is disrupted for any reason—war, disease, natural disaster or trade embargo—resources can suddenly become scarce or not available. Those manufacturers are then at the mercy of their global suppliers, waiting for factories to reopen and container ships to clear customs. In the meantime, assembly lines sit idle and workers are furloughed, causing greater economic damage.
If anything, the global COVID-19 lockdown has taught us that we need to be more self-reliant. We learned that lesson the hard way in the 1970s during the US oil embargo. Now it seems Mother Nature has reminded us again, only this time with hard goods.
One way we can all help each other out of this mess is to Buy American. This will not only improve the reliability of your supply chain, it will put Americans unemployed by this pandemic back to work and heal the economy faster. Snake Tray is among few cable tray manufacturers in the USA who passionately believes in this philosophy and has made a conscious choice to keep all of its manufacturing in-house. Outsourcing part production to overseas factories saves a few pennies during manufacturing, but compromises the overall efficiency of operations. In-house production allows for greater design and scheduling freedom, better quality control and faster job turnaround with reduced shipping expenses. Snake Tray believes this strategy insulates the supply chain from many issues beyond its control, ultimately realizing benefits that outweigh the savings of overseas production. It also affords the opportunity to cross-train employees in multiple manufacturing disciplines, which improves the quality of our products and the upward mobility in employee career paths.
In short, businesses need to know exactly what, when and how raw materials will arrive at the plant or job site in order to maintain just-in-time inventory levels, manage profitability and improve customer service. Any disruption to the supply chain can throw entire production schedules off. But, it’s a lot easier to make up time with an overnight domestic delivery from a local supplier as opposed to waiting two months for the factory in Shanghai to reopen and another few weeks for the parts to arrive.
So when it comes to your next building construction or renovation project that involves cable management systems for data and power distribution, think of Snake Tray. We are one of few cable tray manufacturers in the USA, with our headquarters and manufacturing plant in Bay Shore, New York. We have a wide range of innovative cable conveyance solutions, power distribution systems and enclosures, all made here in the USA using 100% recycled steel sourced from US suppliers. Our national distribution center network is always fully stocked to guarantee on-time delivery. In fact, Snake Tray has been designated a New York State Essential Manufacturer, and we recently pitched in to help build the temporary COVID-19 field hospitals on Long Island in record time. We’re Snake Tray. And we’re doing our part to bring manufacturing home and keep your supply chain intact.
Snake Tray has revolutionized the data and power distribution market with cable management, power distribution systems and enclosures all designed to install quickly, reduce labor and material costs, and significantly drive down the total cost of construction. We have the experience and resources to support any size and type installation from micro data centers to subway tunnels, solar panel arrays, airports and call centers occupying millions of square feet. If you would like to learn more, visit us at Snake Tray. We’re ready to help maximize your supply chain preparedness with products made right here in the USA.
