IN THE NEWS: Taking Control of the Automotive Supply Chain

Automotive Logistics
October 28, 2025
Marcus Williams

FROM THE ARTICLE: Carmakers and their suppliers are investing in AI-enabled control towers to gain transparency on the magnitude of supply chain data they need to make supply chain logistics operations more efficient, according to experts at this year’s ALSC Global conference in Michigan.

Building flexibility and resiliency into the supply chain relies on data transparency, exchange between stakeholders based on trust, and the integration of that data across the supply chain. Delegates at this year’s Automotive Logistics and Supply Chain Global conference were looking at ways to centralize data and establish control towers to better manage operations and anticipate disruption, as well as make faster decisions. That now includes the prospect of using generative and agentic AI to automate complicated processes, such as assessing the impact of cross-border tariffs.

Put simply, a control tower is a way to compile and centralize a lot of information in one place, providing end-to-end visibility of the supply chain and enabling quick decisions to be made with data on parts and materials shipments. Given the number of information sources and applications feeding into it, a user either has enough data to make decisions themselves or automates those actions, including through the use of artificial intelligence (AI).
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Dorothy Ashford, Vice President of Enterprise Accounts for Automotive at ITS Logistics, said that a control tower is essential to aggregate the data from several systems accrued through its strong growth in automotive over the last four years. “The task is to get all of the systems in one place, [make the data] visible and connect everybody so they can see it,” she said.

“As a carrier and 3PL, we also need to support our customers and add value for them,” added Ashford. “That includes analyzing trends and anomalies, and bringing innovative ideas to the table.”

Read the full article.