In the event of a product recall, one of the most important parts of solving the problem is locating the root cause and taking appropriate steps to make sure that it doesn’t happen a second time. For this reason, traceability is a major issue of concern for manufacturing companies. To navigate these issues, an organization must have complete visibility into the inner workings of its supply chain.

A perfect example of how traceability is essential in manufacturing can be observed in the most recent quality control incident in China. The Chinese government ordered the U.S. company Fonterra, a subsidiary of U.S. based Abbott Pharmaceuticals, to recall its baby formula after the product had been found to be tainted with botulism.