Uncertainty about the length of backlogs for IT hardware means both vendors and enterprises are changing their purchasing strategies.
The past three years have been an unprecedented period of disruption in the semiconductor industry. The Covid pandemic and ensuing lockdowns shut down manufacturing, there were interruptions in shipping, and then the war in Ukraine adversely impacted supplies of critical raw materials.
The first half of 2022 saw 46% more supply chain disruptions than the first half of 2021, according to a research report released this fall by Resilinc, a supply chain resiliency company.
2023 looks like it might be a little bit better, in some sectors. Consumer demand, for example, is down due to inflation, rising interest rates and reprioritization of consumer spending. So networking equipment that serves both consumer and enterprise needs may become more widely available.
