Supply Chain

Executive Summary

Supply chain assessments identified significant risks associated with globally sourced inverter-based resources (IBRs) and battery energy storage systems (BESS). Limited visibility into hardware, firmware, and communications capabilities creates opportunities for malicious modification, hidden functionality, and unauthorized remote access.

Key Findings

Undocumented Hardware and Communications

• Hidden cellular, Wi‑Fi, and Bluetooth capabilities were discovered during field assessments.
• Undocumented communications undermine assumptions regarding trusted deployments.
• Hardware configurations did not always align with manufacturer documentation.

Supply Chain Visibility Gaps

• Utilities have limited visibility into sourcing, manufacturing, firmware provenance, and component supply chains.
• Counterfeit or modified equipment remains difficult to identify and validate.

Security Control Weaknesses

• Default credentials remain common across deployed systems.
• Many systems lack lockout, throttling, and credential-guessing protections.
• Security approaches frequently rely on trusted environments instead of technical controls.

Risks

Operational Risks

• Coordinated manipulation of IBRs and BESS could contribute to grid instability.
• Unauthorized remote access may enable coordinated shutdowns and operational disruption.

Cyber Risks

• Wireless communications extend the attack surface beyond facility boundaries.
• Cellular connectivity removes geographic constraints for attackers.
• Supply-chain tampering may remain undetected throughout the asset lifecycle.

Recommendations

Procurement Controls

• Require Software Bills of Materials (SBOMs).
• Require Hardware Bills of Materials (HBOMs).
• Validate vendor secure-development practices.
• Require vulnerability disclosure programs.

Detection and Monitoring

• Perform wireless spectrum assessments.
• Continuously inventory assets and communications pathways.
• Establish supply-chain forensic and investigative capabilities.

Mitigation

• Disable unnecessary remote-access capabilities.
• Eliminate default credentials.
• Implement network segmentation.
• Deploy multifactor authentication where practical.

Supply Chain Industry Trends & Emerging Topics

Supply chains are undergoing one of the largest transformations in modern business history. Organizations are shifting from traditional cost-focused models toward resilient, intelligent, and transparent supply chain ecosystems capable of adapting to geopolitical disruptions, climate events, cybersecurity threats, and changing regulatory requirements.

Supply Chain Control Tower

Executive Summary

Key priorities for supply chain leaders include:

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) and autonomous decision support
• End-to-end supply chain visibility
• Cybersecurity and third-party risk management
• Nearshoring and supplier diversification
• Sustainability and regulatory compliance
• Digital Product Passports (DPP)
• Real-time disruption monitoring
• Supply chain digital twins

Industry leaders increasingly view supply chains as strategic assets that directly impact business resilience, customer trust, and competitive advantage.

Artificial Intelligence in Supply Chains

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Artificial Intelligence Driving Supply Chain Decisions

AI is rapidly transforming supply chain operations from reactive planning toward predictive and autonomous decision-making.

Current AI Applications

• Demand forecasting
• Inventory optimization
• Supplier risk monitoring
• Transportation route optimization
• Procurement automation
• Predictive maintenance
• Supply disruption modeling
• Warehouse automation

Organizations are increasingly deploying AI-enabled scenario planning tools to evaluate disruptions before they occur, allowing planners to simulate tariff changes, supplier failures, weather events, and logistics constraints before making decisions.

Emerging Trend: Agentic AI

The next phase of supply chain technology is expected to include "Agentic AI," where AI systems not only recommend actions but autonomously execute selected workflows based on predefined business rules.

Examples include:

• Automated supplier sourcing
• Dynamic inventory balancing
• Automated logistics rerouting
• Procurement recommendation engines

Questions Supply Chain Leaders Should Ask

• Do we have visibility beyond Tier-1 suppliers?
• Can disruptions be detected before they impact operations?
• Is planning data centralized?
• Are manual decisions creating bottlenecks?

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Supply Chain Risk & Geopolitics

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Global Supply Chain Dependencies

Geopolitical uncertainty remains one of the largest risk factors affecting global supply chains.

Major Risk Areas

• Trade restrictions and tariffs
• Export controls
• Semiconductor dependencies
• Critical mineral sourcing
• Regional conflicts
• Transportation chokepoints
• Customs and trade regulation changes

According to industry risk assessments, geopolitical fragmentation continues to drive companies toward sourcing diversification and regional manufacturing investments.

Resilience Strategies

• Nearshoring
• Friend-shoring
• Multi-sourcing
• Strategic inventory reserves
• Regional manufacturing hubs
• Supplier diversification

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Supply Chain Cybersecurity

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Cybersecurity Within Connected Supply Networks

Digital transformation has expanded the attack surface across modern supply chains.

Common Threats

• Third-party vendor compromise
• Ransomware attacks
• Software supply chain attacks
• Connected IoT device compromise
• Operational Technology (OT) attacks
• Logistics platform breaches

Best Practices

• Supplier cyber assessments
• Multi-factor authentication (MFA)
• Continuous third-party monitoring
• Software Bill of Materials (SBOM)
• Zero Trust Architecture
• Risk-based supplier onboarding

Notable Industry Incidents

• SolarWinds supply chain compromise
• MOVEit third-party data breach
• Software package repository compromises
• Manufacturing ransomware campaigns

Organizations increasingly evaluate cybersecurity posture as part of procurement and supplier approval processes.

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Digital Twins & Supply Chain Visibility

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Supply Chain Digital Twin Example

Supply chain visibility platforms create digital representations of supplier, transportation, inventory, and manufacturing networks.

Benefits

• Real-time inventory visibility
• Shipment monitoring
• Supply disruption analysis
• Bottleneck identification
• Forecast simulation
• Risk scenario planning

Example Simulations

• Port closures
• Supplier outages
• Hurricane impacts
• Transportation delays
• Trade restrictions

Digital Twins help organizations understand the downstream impact of disruptions before they occur.

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Sustainability & ESG Requirements

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Sustainable Supply Chain Management

Environmental sustainability is becoming a business requirement rather than a competitive differentiator.

Areas of Focus

• Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions
• Sustainable sourcing
• Carbon reporting
• Circular economy initiatives
• Supplier sustainability assessments
• Product traceability

Organizations increasingly require supply chain transparency to support ESG reporting obligations and customer expectations.

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Emerging Topic: Digital Product Passports (DPP)

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Digital Product Passport Concept

One of the most significant upcoming developments in global supply chains is the deployment of Digital Product Passports (DPPs).

What is a Digital Product Passport?

A Digital Product Passport is a digital record that follows a product throughout its lifecycle and contains information related to:

• Product origin
• Materials used
• Sustainability information
• Manufacturing history
• Recycling information
• Regulatory compliance
• Repairability

The <ExternalLink href="https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/single-market/digital-product-passport_en">European Commission</ExternalLink> is implementing DPP requirements across various industries beginning with selected product categories and expanding over the coming years.

Why It Matters

DPPs will improve:

• End-to-end traceability
• Product transparency
• Sustainability reporting
• Regulatory compliance
• Consumer trust

Organizations exporting products into European markets should begin evaluating DPP readiness programs now.

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Future Technologies to Watch

Autonomous Logistics

• Warehouse robotics
• Autonomous forklifts
• Drone inventory inspections
• Automated fulfillment centers

Internet of Things (IoT)

• Environmental monitoring
• Asset tracking
• Predictive maintenance
• Cold chain monitoring

Blockchain & Distributed Ledger Technologies

Emerging use cases include:

• Provenance tracking
• Anti-counterfeiting
• Trade documentation
• Supplier verification

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Supply Chain Watchlist (2026-2027)

This section should be reviewed monthly.

Areas to Monitor

Regulatory

• EU Digital Product Passport expansion
• Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)
• Global sustainability reporting regulations

Technology

• Agentic AI adoption
• Autonomous logistics
• Supply chain digital twins
• Robotics integration

Cybersecurity

• Third-party compromise incidents
• Critical infrastructure threats
• Manufacturing sector ransomware

Geopolitical

• Trade negotiations
• Export controls
• Semiconductor regulations
• Critical mineral access

Climate Risks

• Panama Canal water constraints
• Red Sea shipping impacts
• Extreme weather disruptions
• Port infrastructure challenges

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Recommended Reading

• Marsh - Supply Chain Trends 2026
• European Commission - Digital Product Passport
• EU Digital Product Passport Registry
• Resilinc 2026 Supply Chain Predictions
• Supply Chain Resilience 2026
• Supply Chain 2026 Playbook

Resources

• https://www.epri.com/research/programs/112046/results/3002012753