Resilient Mobility: Enhancing SME Supply Chains Through Challenges

Mobility is a critical enabler of supply chain performance. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), reliable transport links and logistics networks are often the difference between business continuity and vulnerability. Unlike larger corporations, SMEs usually have fewer resources to absorb delays or reroute shipments — making mobility resilience a decisive factor in their competitiveness.

At the same time, mobility is one of the most exposed links in any supply chain. SMEs face challenges such as:

• Congestion in urban areas, raising costs and delaying deliveries.
  
• Infrastructure bottlenecks, which limit rerouting options.
  
• Cross-border complexities, where differing regulations or checks create unpredictability.
  
• External shocks, such as strikes, extreme weather, or fuel price fluctuations.
  
  

RISE-SME is investigating how SMEs can strengthen resilience in their supply chains by modeling disruption scenarios and identifying strategies that work across diverse ecosystems. Mobility plays a central role in this work: disruptions in transport can ripple through entire value chains, from sourcing to delivery.

The project explores how SMEs can:

• Build redundancy into their transport networks to avoid dependency on single routes.
  
• Leverage real-time data and scenario modeling to anticipate delays and adapt quickly.
  
• Incorporate sustainable transport options, aligning resilience with the EU’s green transition.
  
• Strengthen ecosystem collaboration, where SMEs, logistics providers, and policymakers work together on mobility solutions.
  
  

Why this matters now

Global shocks in recent years — from border closures to blocked shipping routes — have shown how fragile supply chain mobility can be. For SMEs, even a small disruption can lead to cascading risks. By focusing on mobility resilience, RISE-SME highlights one of the most practical and urgent aspects of supply chain adaptation.

Mobility is not just about moving goods from A to B — it is about ensuring that SMEs remain connected, competitive, and capable of responding to the unexpected. As RISE-SME continues to develop models and strategies, mobility will remain a cornerstone of building a more resilient European supply chain landscape.