The supply chain will grind to a halt if the transportation routes are not working, with the recent snow showing just how susceptible the Irish supply chain is to external forces. However, lessons can always be learned, assuming there is the will to learn them, so that the increasingly sophisticated transport and logistic sector can, perhaps, better withstand a little frozen water in the future. ‘‘It’s a little scary how a cold snap tends to slow the supply chain, but the reality is that with ‘just in time’ models, any interruption to the supply chain can result in a lack of products on the shelves,’’ said Edward Sweeney, director of Learning at the National Institute of Transport and Logistics (NITL), based at DIT.

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