# Logistics and supply chain architecture decision matrix (AWS)

Pick **visibility layer** (tracking), **planning layer** (forecast/rebalance), and **integration
pattern** (ERP ingest) by shipment volume, partner count, and whether you own fleet assets.

> Reflects **July 2026** AWS Supply Chain (N-Tier Visibility, ML lead-time predictions),
> Well-Architected Supply Chain Lens, and Location Services + IoT Core fleet patterns.

## 1. "What is the primary pain?"

| Pain | Default stack | Escalate when |
|------|---------------|---------------|
| No unified inventory view across DCs | **AWS Supply Chain** (SCDL ingest from ERP/WMS) | < 5 SKUs and one warehouse — QuickSight on Athena may suffice |
| Real-time truck/last-mile ETA | **Amazon Location** + **IoT Core** + mobile app | < 50 daily routes — partner TMS API polling may be cheaper |
| Supplier lead-time drift | **AWS Supply Chain** ML lead-time + watchlists | Custom Prophet on SageMaker if you need proprietary features |
| Cold-chain compliance (temp/shock) | **IoT Core** + Greengrass edge + Timestream | Paper loggers only — digitize sensors first |

**Opinionated default:** **AWS Supply Chain** for enterprise-wide inventory risk maps; **custom IoT + Location** for owned-fleet tracking. Do not build a data lake before you have a single ERP extract schedule.

## 2. "When NOT to buy AWS Supply Chain"

| Situation | Build lighter |
|-----------|---------------|
| Single ERP, one region, < 10k SKUs | Glue + Athena + QuickSight on nightly S3 extracts |
| You only need TMS webhook fan-out | EventBridge + Lambda + DynamoDB status table |
| Partners refuse cloud data sharing | EDI/SFTP landing zone + batch — N-Tier requires partner onboarding |

## 3. Integration pattern

| Source | Ingest | Latency | Pitfall |
|--------|--------|---------|---------|
| SAP / Oracle ERP | AWS Supply Chain connectors or S3 CSV | Hours (batch) | Stale snapshot if extract fails silently |
| WMS (Manhattan, Blue Yonder) | API or Kinesis from middleware | Minutes | Duplicate location IDs across DCs |
| TMS (project44, FourKites) | Partner API → EventBridge | Near real-time | Rate limits — cache last-known position |
| Telematics (ELD) | IoT Core MQTT | Seconds | Device cert rotation at scale |

## 4. KPI baselines (model before procurement)

Use [kpi-baseline-worksheet.csv](./kpi-baseline-worksheet.csv) — teams that skip
**OTIF** and **days-of-supply** baselines buy visibility tools they cannot operationalize.

## Related posts

- [High-throughput event processing](/blog/aws-high-throughput-event-processing-tier-selection-2026/)
- [Event-driven async boundaries](/blog/aws-event-driven-async-messaging-boundaries/)
- [OT/IT convergence patterns](/blog/ot-it-convergence-aws-architecture-patterns/)
- [Data analytics services](/services/aws-data-analytics/)