How Samsung has Supported Its Suppliers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The global COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating for many industries, but those businesses responsible for essential supply chains have had a particularly tough time of it. However, electronics giant Samsung has been innovating with its suppliers and making sure they would still be around to support its business operations for many years to come.

To achieve this, Samsung has supported its suppliers with $830 million in business operation funds at zero to low interest rates and made advanced payments to them to the tune of $1.3 billion, as part of what it has dubbed a co-prosperity program.

“We've used the strength in our global supply chain and our decision-making approach to manage the supply chain in these critical times,” said Karan Seth, Senior Manager at Samsung Electronics. “We realise the pressures associated with Covid-19 cause a direct impact on the thousands of our upstream and downstream partners.”

Samsung has also been assisting suppliers with freight costs and has been simplifying its parts approval process. On top of all this, the company has also provided consulting for when diversification of parts supplies and raw materials has been required.

Samsung has also been operating a more flexible operation when it comes to production sites in in North and South America, Asia, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and more, to reduce its reliability on Chinese manufacturing.