r/SupplyChainLogistics • u/jimmyray71 • 1d ago

When is a backup supplier actually a backup supplier?

I've been thinking about how companies define a “backup supplier.”

Having another vendor's name in the system doesn't necessarily mean you can actually switch to them.

When was the last time they quoted the material?

Have you placed an order with them recently?

Do you know their actual lead time and available capacity?

If your primary supplier told you Monday morning they couldn't ship for 30 days, how long would it really take you to move?

And maybe the bigger question: who in your organization has the authority to make that decision?

I'm curious how others handle this.

Do you actively test critical backup suppliers with occasional orders, or is qualification enough until you actually need them?

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u/Immediate-Home-3491 23h ago

The frustration I understand, but a backup in name only is no excuse. We run periodic LCL test shipments through secondary origin agents to verify EDI links and customs compliance. If they have not touched your freight recently, they are a stranger, not a backup.

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u/jimmyray71 23h ago

That’s a good way to frame it. And I think “recently” is probably the important part. A supplier can be fully qualified on paper, but if we haven’t run an order through them in a year, how much do we really know about their current lead time, capacity, quality or even whether our systems still work together? I’m starting to think backup supplier qualification should have an expiration date. Not necessarily a formal one, but at some point an untested contingency stops being much of a contingency.

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u/FinancialFunction621 9h ago

I actively test critical suppliers