Episode 22

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Published on:

17th Aug 2026

AI, Supply Chains, and Global Logistics: How Manufacturers Can Build More Resilient Operations with Phil Rees

What happens after your product leaves the factory may determine your profitability just as much as what happens inside it.

In this episode of The Manufacturers Network Podcast, Lisa Ryan talks with Phil Rees, founder of ShipMax and a supply chain strategist with more than 20 years of experience helping manufacturers, retailers, and global brands improve fulfillment, warehousing, customs compliance, and international logistics.

Phil explains why many manufacturers focus heavily on production efficiency while overlooking logistics decisions that quietly increase costs, delay shipments, and create unnecessary risk. He also shares how artificial intelligence is transforming warehousing and fulfillment, why companies should rethink inventory strategies, and what changing global trade regulations mean for manufacturers expanding into international markets.

If you're responsible for manufacturing operations, supply chain management, distribution, procurement, or business growth, this episode offers practical strategies for building a more resilient, efficient supply chain.

In This Episode You'll Learn

  • The biggest logistics mistakes manufacturers make after products leave the factory
  • Why HS (Harmonized System) codes have a major impact on customs clearance and import costs
  • How manufacturers can reduce supply chain costs by minimizing border crossings
  • When reshoring, nearshoring, or regional inventory makes financial sense
  • How AI is improving warehouse management, fulfillment, inventory forecasting, and logistics planning
  • What manufacturers should know about tariffs, customs regulations, and global trade changes
  • Why supply chain strategy should be reviewed continuously instead of treated as a one-time project
  • Practical ways manufacturers can begin using AI immediately to improve operations

Key Topics Discussed

  • Manufacturing supply chains
  • Global logistics
  • Warehousing
  • Fulfillment
  • Distribution strategy
  • Customs compliance
  • HS Codes
  • International shipping
  • Tariffs
  • Reshoring
  • Nearshoring
  • Fourth-party logistics (4PL)
  • Warehouse automation
  • Robotics
  • Artificial intelligence in manufacturing
  • AI for supply chain management
  • Inventory optimization
  • Manufacturing operations
  • Global trade

Memorable Quotes

"Supply chain compliance is a journey, not a destination."
"Every time you cross a customs border, you add cost."
"If you put garbage into AI, you'll get garbage out."
"Manufacturers that aren't experimenting with AI risk falling behind."

Why This Conversation Matters

Manufacturers spend enormous resources improving production efficiency, yet many overlook opportunities to optimize what happens after products leave the factory.

As tariffs evolve, customer expectations change, and artificial intelligence reshapes logistics, manufacturers need supply chains that are flexible, data-driven, and globally competitive.

Phil explains why resilient supply chains depend on more than transportation. They require smarter inventory placement, better customs planning, AI-powered decision-making, and continuous adaptation to changing global markets.

Whether you're shipping across the country or around the world, these strategies can help reduce costs, improve customer experience, and strengthen your competitive advantage.

About Phil Rees

Phil Rees is the founder of ShipMax, where he helps manufacturers, retailers, and growing brands optimize fulfillment, warehousing, logistics, and international distribution. With more than two decades of experience in global supply chain management, Phil specializes in helping organizations simplify complex logistics while preparing for future growth through automation and artificial intelligence.

Connect

Learn more about ShipMax:

https://www.shipmax.co.uk

Connect with Phil Rees on LinkedIn. 🎯Phil Rees | LinkedIn

Connect with Lisa Ryan:

https://www.LisaRyanSpeaks.com

Learn more about Smart Plant: Aligning AI, Automation, and People

Amazon.com: Smart Plant: 9798995174707: Ryan, Lisa: Books

Listen to more episodes of The Manufacturers Network Podcast:

https://www.manufacturers-network.com/

Recommended For

  • Manufacturing CEOs
  • Operations Leaders
  • Supply Chain Directors
  • Plant Managers
  • Logistics Managers
  • Procurement Professionals
  • Distribution Leaders
  • Warehouse Managers
  • Manufacturing Executives
  • Business Owners
  • Industrial Engineers
  • International Trade Professionals
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About the Podcast

The Manufacturers Network
Real conversations with leaders in manufacturing, automation, and workforce retention.
The Manufacturers’ Network is where manufacturing leaders, plant managers, and industry innovators come to talk straight about what’s working and what’s not, on the shop floor and beyond.

Each week, host Lisa Ryan sits down with people who live and breathe this business: operations executives, HR directors, engineers, and founders who are building stronger teams and smarter systems in the face of nonstop change.

Listeners gain real-world insights on:
• Employee retention and workforce engagement
• Automation, AI, and the future of skilled trades
• Supply chain and operations leadership
• Safety, sustainability, and company culture that lasts

If you’re tired of generic “leadership talk” and want practical conversations from people who get it, this podcast is for you.

New episodes drop every Monday and are short enough for your commute, sharp enough to shape your week.

Subscribe and be part of the conversation that’s connecting manufacturers across industries, one story at a time.

About your host

Profile picture for Lisa Ryan

Lisa Ryan

As a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP), an award-winning speaker and author of ten books, Lisa Ryan, CSP, works with her clients to develop employee and client engagement initiatives and strategies that keep their top talent and best clients from becoming someone else’s.
Lisa’s expertise includes: strengthening workplace culture, improving employee engagement, increasing customer retention, and initiating gratitude strategies (“Grategies”) for personal and professional benefit. Lisa’s participants enjoy her high energy, enthusiastic delivery and quick wit and they leave the session with ideas they are committed to acting on immediately to make positive workplace culture changes.
Lisa costars in two films with other experts including Jack Canfield of “Chicken Soup for the Soul.” She is the Past-President of the National Speakers Association, Ohio Chapter and holds an MBA from Cleveland State University.

Relevant Experience

• Keynote, breakout or workshop speaker at more than 100 national and international conferences
• Thirteen years of industrial marketing and sales experience, including seven years in the welding industry – and yes, she does weld
• Host of “Elevate Your Engagement Levels: What You Need to Know” on the Elite Expert Network and the C-Suite Network
• Creator of “The Seven Mistakes Managers Make to Crush Company Culture” video series
• Best-selling author of ten books, including “Manufacturing Engagement: 98 Proven Strategies to Attract and Retain Your Industry’s Top Talent”
• Award-winning speaker