supply chain
noun
plural supply chains
: the chain of processes, businesses, etc. by which a commodity is produced and distributed : the companies, materials, and systems involved in manufacturing and delivering goods
The pandemic has disrupted nearly every aspect of the global supply chain—that's the usually invisible pathway of manufacturing, transportation and logistics that gets goods from where they are manufactured, mined or grown to where they are going. At the end of the chain is another company or a consumer who has paid for the finished product.—
Peter S. Goodman
Peter S. GoodmanEveryday life in the United States is acutely dependent on the perpetual motion of the supply chain, in which food and medicine and furniture and clothing all compete for many of the same logistical resources. … [W]hen a finite supply of packaging can't keep up with demand, when there aren't enough longshoremen or truck drivers or postal workers, when a container ship gets wedged sideways in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes—the effects ripple outward for weeks or months, emptying shelves and raising prices in ways that can seem random. All of a sudden, you can't buy kettlebells or canned seltzer.—Amanda Mull
Amanda MullExamples of supply chain in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But most routine disease surveillance happens at the end of the supply chain.
—Linda Qiu, New York Times, 20 May 2024
Nuclear energy proponents are confident there’s been enough technological advancement to prevent previous disasters, although communities along the supply chain for uranium are still on edge.
—Justine Calma, The Verge, 14 May 2024
That value comes in large part from the way in which natural products are woven into supply chains.
—Justin Worland, TIME, 13 May 2024
The union has even filed charges against Mercedes-Benz in the United States with the National Labor Relations Board and in Germany under a relatively new supply chain law.
—Eric D. Lawrence, Detroit Free Press, 13 May 2024
In 2022, 81 percent of respondents had been worried about sourcing glass; 19 percent had no supply chain worries.
—Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 May 2024
An understanding as to how resilient ICEs are is spreading across the automotive supply chain, with many in the industry quietly stepping back from earlier commitments to go fully electric within the next five to 10 years.
—Patrice Haettel, Fortune, 8 May 2024
Huawei doesn’t rank in Qualcomm’s list of top 10 customers, according to Bloomberg supply chain analysis.
—Mackenzie Hawkins, Fortune Asia, 8 May 2024
The offshore wind industry has recently been hit by a perfect storm of rising inflation, higher interest rates and supply chain delays.
—Andrew Stuttaford, National Review, 6 May 2024
Linda Qiu, New York Times, 20 May 2024
Nuclear energy proponents are confident there’s been enough technological advancement to prevent previous disasters, although communities along the supply chain for uranium are still on edge.
—Justine Calma, The Verge, 14 May 2024
That value comes in large part from the way in which natural products are woven into supply chains.
—Justin Worland, TIME, 13 May 2024
The union has even filed charges against Mercedes-Benz in the United States with the National Labor Relations Board and in Germany under a relatively new supply chain law.
—Eric D. Lawrence, Detroit Free Press, 13 May 2024
In 2022, 81 percent of respondents had been worried about sourcing glass; 19 percent had no supply chain worries.
—Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 May 2024
An understanding as to how resilient ICEs are is spreading across the automotive supply chain, with many in the industry quietly stepping back from earlier commitments to go fully electric within the next five to 10 years.
—Patrice Haettel, Fortune, 8 May 2024
Huawei doesn’t rank in Qualcomm’s list of top 10 customers, according to Bloomberg supply chain analysis.
—Mackenzie Hawkins, Fortune Asia, 8 May 2024
The offshore wind industry has recently been hit by a perfect storm of rising inflation, higher interest rates and supply chain delays.
—Andrew Stuttaford, National Review, 6 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'supply chain.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near supply chain
Cite this Entry
“Supply chain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supply%20chain. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
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