OEMs in Europe, and especially in its manufacturing centre Germany, face even sharper edges in the supply chain. Limits to gas and oil supply from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, for example, are leading to price spikes and could force energy rationing across industry in central and eastern Europe. Covid lockdowns and logistics issues are disrupting supply and trade with China, where German OEMs have such important sourcing, production and sales footprints. 

For Marco Philippi, head of procurement strategy at Audi since 2019, ongoing supply and geopolitical crises are only accelerating his team’s targets and the business case for initiatives in sustainable material sourcing as well in reducing supply risk –  an important investment in supply chain resilience and efficiency.  

“From a strategic procurement point of view, we are speeding things up. The business case for many topics in sustainability is becoming clearer,” he says.