Indian B2B SaaS company Locus has released NodeIQ, a smart supply chain decision-making platform that lets companies perform end-to-end network and inventory optimisation.

Locus, which focuses on fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), consumer packaged goods (CPG), retail, home services, third-party logistics (3PL), ecommerce and industrial enterprises, provides products that drive efficiency with AI and machine learning. The intuitive products are said to be simple to use and designed to solve specific problems enterprises encounter when managing complex supply chains.

The aim is to automate decision-making to optimise every facet of logistics, such as route, capacity and network design.

NodeIQ takes this to the next level, automating strategic supply chain decisions that impact four key areas: flow, location, inventory and strategic sourcing. With NodeIQ, users can optimise the movement of goods, from raw materials to delivery of finished products, identify optimal facility locations to address supply and demand gaps, optimise stock levels and improve strategic sourcing.

It factors in real-time constraints such as service levels, lead times, costs and capacity to reduce costs and increase efficiency.

“A black swan event like the pandemic demonstrates the importance of agility in the supply chain,” said Krishna Khandelwal, chief business officer at Locus. “But supply chains are enormously complex and, depending on the scope of the operation, the number of factors to weigh in while making the right strategic decision is truly beyond human capacity. NodeIQ’s AI-powered strategic decision-making capabilities let enterprises make the right strategic choices so they can stay agile and optimise results at every level.”

Locus says its products are gaining users worldwide because the platform is simple to use. Supply chain optimisation is a data-intensive function, but Locus uses AI and other technologies to cleanse data, flag anomalies and deliver clear insights. Following the same product principle of ease and simplicity, NodeIQ uses a digital twin approach to make it easy for clients to test various scenarios and drill down to specific segments of the supply chain to assess potential impact. As a result, users can operate more efficiently and respond quickly when business conditions change.

“When Covid-19 hit, demand supply planners, procurement managers, supply chain analysts, ecommerce and warehousing specialists, and other supply chain leaders at organisations around the world came together to assess how the pandemic was affecting the supply chain and make decisions on how to move forward,” said Khandelwal. “Lack of digital visibility hampered this effort for too many enterprises. Locus NodeIQ and our complete portfolio can provide that visibility.”

Locus aids deliveries across south-east Asia, the Indian subcontinent, Europe and North America.