SHOW SUMMARYIn this captivating episode of What the Duck?! Another Supply Chain Podcast, your host Sarah Scudder engages in a candid conversation with Chris Locati, a seasoned supply chain expert with 13 years of Aerospace experience. Delving into his unique journey, Chris reveals how he transitioned from stainless steel fabrication to his current role at Precision Aircraft Solutions. With a focus on the Aerospace industry, he unravels the intricacies of managing inventory and demand planning for aircraft conversions, especially the surging demand for narrow-body freighters. A key takeaway resonates as Chris underscores the relentless pursuit of solutions in the face of supply chain challenges, leaving listeners inspired by his unwavering determination. SHOW HIGHLIGHTSChris’ Experience in Stainless Steel Fabrication to His Current RoleUnique Challenges of Managing Inventory and Demand Never Accept a Dead End with Supply Chain Challenges Crucial Aspects of Supplier Relationship ManagementLabor Shortage Impact on Suppliers Reasons Behind Long Lead Times in AerospaceThe Balancing Act Between Inventory Levels and Obsolescence A Never-Ending Learning Journey MOMENTS TO DUCK AROUNDCHRIS: Seek Solutions and Never Give Up “There are so many times where a vendor will come to you and say, "There's nothing else we can do, you know, this is the best we can do." Sometimes that may be the case, but I've found that rarely it actually is. Like in the situation with those oxygen mask boxes, they had said, "Well, we're reaching out to the vendors, they're not responding, but we're going to just keep trying, that's the best we can do." And what I did was I actually went to the manufacturers. It's called an AOG desk, AOG means Aircraft On Ground, and that's when the aircraft should be running, but it's not and it costs a lot of money for a lot of people. So, they take those very seriously.”CHRIS: Challenge of Maintaining Optimal Inventory Levels “So, we do have to keep a decent level of inventory in order to make sure that we're able to supply our kits. And we did, during COVID, when it was so much more volatile, not knowing whether we were going to get parts on time or not knowing whether we're going to actually be able to get them at all, then we kind of had this strategy. We're going out, we're buying out to this many number of kits. You can bring them in whenever you want to. We can keep inventory on hand and we're just going to do that because we're going to make sure that we have the parts when we need them. And that was a strategy that, you know, normally you wouldn't do that because you wouldn't want to keep that much carrying cost on hand. But we did that in order to mitigate.”  Connect with Chris and learn what he’s been duckin’ around with:Chris Locati |Precision Aircraft Solutions Connect with Sarah and find out more about what the duck she’s up toLinkedIn |Twitter |SourceDay |SourceDay.com Had fun with the podcast? Leave us a like, share our content, and subscribe! See you soon on the next episode of What The Duck?!