Manufacturers in the U.S. have also cited delays, longer lead times, lack of supplier visibility and difficulty sourcing parts as a result of the outbreak. But factories on in North America could see a bigger impact in one to three weeks, according to Yossi Sheffi, director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Center for Transportation and Logistics.
"It takes about six weeks on the ocean to get to the United States," Sheffi said in an interview with Supply Chain Dive. "So the reduction in shipment from Chinese factories is just getting ready to hit the U.S."
Some manufacturers are straying away from forecasts to guide production and are instead relying on real-time orders to determine what to produce, and looking at their mix of products to determine if they should focus on lower-priced items. Some are also classifying products and customers by priority level in the case not all orders can be fulfilled, he said.