The essential ingredient that enables post-pandemic global supply chains to run smoothly has been successful collaborations among the various stakeholders. Today, no entity can effectively manage alone the scale of uncertainty, disruption, risk, and complexity revealed during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic-era supply chain crisis exposed how tightly coupled and fragile logistics networks were, prompting companies to move away from siloed, cost-only strategies toward shared visibility, information exchange, and joint problem-solving across suppliers, logistics providers, competitors, and governments. Prior to 2020, single-sourcing was common to achieve bulk cost reductions; now, collaborative practices such as data sharing, co-investment in logistics capacity, supplier partnerships, and regional alliances help firms anticipate disruptions earlier, reroute flows faster, and diversify risk without duplicating costs.
As the pandemic illustrated, global supply chains were especially fragile when they lacked holistic and collaborative management structures. In these now-antiquated systems, each actor prioritized individual profits, contributing to the “bullwhip effect,” in which small shifts in consumer demand (such as panic buying) became massively amplified upstream. Manufacturers and suppliers consequently overproduced or misallocated inventory, resulting in shortages of critical goods, excess stock of others, higher costs, and longer lead times as companies reacted to distorted demand signals rather than actual consumption. By pooling resources and coordinating decisions, effective supply chain stakeholders now aim to address risks early, reduce bottlenecks, improve trust, and build adaptive capacity, making resilience not only an individual competitive advantage but also a collective outcome. As such, global collaboration has become the post-pandemic norm for building resilient supply chains. These collaborations were especially apparent during the factory tours at the Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW production facilities in southern Germany in May 2026.
The integration of Industry 4.0 and Smart Manufacturing into these German multinational automobile factories and others has accelerated since the pandemic. Today, luxury automobile supply chains are more likely to remain under the control of multinational automobile manufacturers to avoid bottlenecks caused by single-sourcing delays. This has resulted in greater in-house coordination and real-time analytics: if a part is unavailable on the production floor, robots work alongside humans to ensure it is picked and delivered quickly without pausing assembly. Employees increasingly work with cobots while utilizing additive and 3D printing for parts produced on-site. Recently, the trip’s faculty leader published an article entitled “The Essential Model of Collaborations in the Post-Pandemic Automobile Supply Chain to Avoid Bottlenecks, to further explain how supply chain collaborations prevent bottlenecks.
This 3-credit study abroad course, Purdue University’s The Commerce of Cars in Central Europe: From Creation to Cargo (2026), embedded core themes of global supply chains and Industry 4.0/Smart Manufacturing through experiential learning at luxury multinational automobile factories (Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and BMW, see pics below before or after factory tours) and later at logistics centers at the Port of Rotterdam, allowing students to follow the process of a vehicle’s creation to cargo across Central Europe.
Experiences at European multinational automobile factories increasingly provide factory tour guests with additional access to both flagship museums featuring classic models and showrooms presenting future vehicles, creating unique opportunities to explore the intersection of technology, design, history, and culture. Across Europe, leading automotive brands have transformed their factory campuses into immersive destinations where innovation and heritage are presented side by side. Modern showrooms highlight the latest vehicle technologies and forward-looking design, while adjacent museums preserve the legacy, engineering milestones, and cultural influence of iconic brands, also serving as hub for product launches, charity events, enthusiast gatherings, and interactive experiences that connect visitors to the identity and values of the companies. For American undergraduate students and technology enthusiasts alike, they provide valuable insight into the global impact of Central Europe’s influential automotive industry.
A rare phenomenon among global ports during the pandemic is that the Port of Rotterdam did not experience delays in throughput due to its tight coordination of technology and logistics across its highly complex logistics chain, which has been key to its smooth and efficient flow of cargo. As the #1 port on the continent (TEUs/throughput), it processed 320 million tonnes of total throughput in the first nine months of 2025, far exceeding any other European port. It also handled 7.0 million TEU in container throughput in the first half of 2025, more than its nearest European competitors. As one of the most technologically advanced ports in the world, it coordinates constant communication with every cargo vessel among:
- Terminal operators
- Shipping lines
- Tugboat and pilotage services
- Customs and inspection agencies
- Inland transport providers (rail, barge, truck)
- Port authorities
If any supply chain stakeholder at the Port of Rotterdam is out of sync, ships can face delays, terminal congestion develops, and supply chains slow down. Collaboration ensures tight scheduling, real-time information-sharing, and smooth cargo handovers. The students toured the perimeter of the port via bicycle and the interior via boat, allowing them to experience the cargo system from the interior as well as the exterior. The boat tour traveled along the Nieuwe Maas, the same river network that merchant ships used to depart for Asia in the 17th century. Narrators described in Dutch and English how merchant fleets once sailed from Rotterdam and nearby ports into global trade routes and explained modern port amenities such as drydocks, container terminals, and shipyards, new technologies within container vessels, cranes, and oil terminals, and the shipment process for products such as automobiles to the Americas.
American college students, particularly those studying international logistics networks, benefit from studying on campuses in Europe because living and learning abroad immerses them in diverse cultures, languages, and global perspectives that strengthen their adaptability, independence, and understanding of an interconnected world. This trip developed and delivered two undergraduate research seminars via integrated collaborative sessions with international students enrolled in courses on a German campus (by Dr. Andre Krischk; expertise includes supply chain risk management and supply chain design) and a Dutch campus (by PhD Candidate Pieter Zhao; expertise includes maritime trade and geopolitical security challenges). Both included pre-arrival research as well as lunch experiences on campus via their dining halls and food courts.
Hochschule München is a longtime partner institution of Purdue University, and the trip’s host has collaborated with Dr. Andreas Rieger for many years. Students from both institutions have worked together in the past and routinely socialize afterwards, as was the case this year. The trip’s host has served as a guest lecturer for Hochschule München’s MBA students, and this year’s cohort of MBA students took part in the collaborative undergraduate research seminar on the role of AI in cross-cultural business analytics for a global supply chain organization via a lecture by Dr. Krischk.
In class, multi-institution teams conferred/brainstormed after the lecture on a relevant, modern case dilemma. A summary of the lecture/case dilemma in Munich is as follows:
Indian Railways (IR) faced a significant challenge in improving the procurement of non-stock items because its keyword-based search system often failed to identify similar products described with different terminology. This created procurement delays, reduced employee productivity, and triggered unnecessary vendor onboarding processes that could take weeks. To address these inefficiencies, IR explored the use of artificial intelligence, semantic similarity matching, machine learning, and business analytics to improve item retrieval, decision-making, and inventory management within its global supply chain system. The lecture emphasized the growing importance of AI and advanced analytics in reducing uncertainty, automating procurement processes, optimizing inventory, and improving operational efficiency as part of broader digital transformation initiatives. It further highlighted that successful AI implementation depends not only on technical algorithms, but also on strong business understanding, data preparation, and integration into operational processes through effective analytical frameworks. Students were challenged to evaluate the case dilemma facing the protagonist and recommend an effective strategy for implementing AI-driven procurement solutions.
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Pieter Zhao, who has worked with Purdue University students on study abroads since 2021, developed a seminar entitled “Free Seas, World Markets: From the Dutch Republic to the Strait of Hormuz” (see slides below), chronicled the history of Dutch influence on maritime trade, in particular the Dutch East India company. The Rotterdam undergraduate research seminar gave Purdue students the opportunity to work alongside Erasmus University students in their MS Supply Chain club and Honours Association, which has been built over the past seven years of collaborations between the faculty lead and stakeholders at Erasmus University. In addition to the seminar, this program included a trip to the Hague, home of the National Library of the Netherlands, and the SS Rotterdam, a retired ocean liner.
In class, multi-institution teams conferred/brainstormed after the lecture on a relevant, modern case dilemma. A summary of the lecture/case dilemma in Rotterdam is as follows:
Dutch maritime influence has long played a central role in shaping global trade and supply chain management. The Dutch East India Company, founded in 1602, became one of the world’s first multinational corporations and a global logistics powerhouse by the mid-1600s, coordinating sourcing, shipping, security, and distribution across multiple continents. Its maritime innovations included high-capacity, crew-efficient ship designs such as the fluyt, standardized long-haul “return ships,” and trade operations large enough to create monopolistic influence across several merchant industries. The lecture connected this historical supply chain dominance to Hugo Grotius’s argument that the seas should remain open and accessible to all nations, a principle that later influenced international maritime law, the IMO, UNCLOS, and the courts in The Hague. Students were challenged to address the case dilemma by evaluating whether today’s international institutions are sufficient to protect global maritime trade and determine what actions supply chain managers, policymakers, and trade-dependent economies should take if those institutions fail to maintain stability and open access to critical shipping routes.
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The faculty selected the teams whose presentations best addressed the case dilemmas. The non-Purdue students received Purdue swag reflecting American culture, including a beer can koozie and a Bart Simpson/Purdue laptop sticker.
These seminars allowed students to get to know one another before participating in both formal and informal social events. For example, students from the German university joined the Purdue students for a visit to Allianz Arena, while students from the Dutch university participated in the captain’s tour of the SS Rotterdam and organized a pub quiz the following evening at a local venue on Witte de Withstraat, Rotterdam’s well-known arts and nightlife district. These spontaneous, student-led experiences created lasting memories for the Purdue participants. Other highlights of the trip included shared experiences in cafeterias and dining halls, campus tours, and the various activities outside the classroom with students from German and Dutch universities. The intercultural learning fostered through these off-campus interactions is a continuous process and an important component of successful global collaboration.
The train network on the continent is collaborative across countries because rail travel is treated as shared continental infrastructure. EU countries coordinate on technical rules so trains can operate seamlessly across borders, including track gauge compatibility, electrification standards (or multi-system locomotives), and signaling systems such as ETCS (European Train Control System). Rotterdam has been especially attractive due to its efficient regional transportation network. Employees’ daily commute to production facilities (often from far distances) is seamless, allowing for a broader pool from which to select the best employees and forming a solid organizational culture that can be easily built and sustained. The hustle-bustle of the u-bahns and metro systems after work with hurried, professionally dressed locals was a reminder that this capability enhances the region economically.
Reflecting the path a product takes via intermodal transportation from where it is produced to where it is ultimately used, our movements were facilitated by various travel modes, including bicycles, trams, the German autobahn, trains, water modes, and the Metro (subway) system. Travel apps were recommended in advance and tuition paid for daily passes, leading to newfound senses of freedom. Navigating around European cities is essential for American success internationally. Students navigated public transportation and the rail network to attend official group excursions as well as explore on their own upon completion of official group activities. There aren’t many regions in the world that are as passenger-friendly as this one.
Knowledge of public transport allowed the group to undertake a variety of official excursions, including the tour of Munich Bayern’s Allianz Arena, home to the first NFL game in Germany.
It’s estimated that approximately 9k Purdue Alumni live or work in Europe, particularly in London, Paris, Munich, and Zurich, where many graduates work in aerospace, engineering, technology, and multinational research sectors. Purdue’s global impact continues to grow, and the Purdue Alumni Association plays a major role by connecting alumni worldwide through professional networks, mentorship, philanthropy, and international outreach that advances the university’s educational, research, and industry partnerships. This trip’s most enjoyable activities include alumni, who have been hosting events for a number of years, such as nuclear engineer and current PhD student Pavi Ravi, who joined us for radically different events at Dachau concentration camp and at Augustiner-Keller.
Another Purdue alumnus, Sandy Rathod, who has been working in the Netherlands for decades, coordinated a supply chain-themed scavenger hunt via the Amsterdam metro, where student teams were challenged to locate six popular destinations in Amsterdam and take selfies at those destinations. Whichever team arrived at the restaurant where the alumni event was located was victorious and crowed as the trip’s official “Dutch Metro Master Navigators” (see team pic below).
Bicycle and water are key modes of transportation in Rotterdam. With 22.8 million bicycles available for a population of 17+ million, 28% of journeys in the Netherlands are made by bicycle. There are 600 kilometres of bicycle tracks throughout the city of Rotterdam. Residents aged 6 and older make ~4.2 bike rides/week, with the most likely demographic being college students, via a connected system of routes, bridges/tunnels, intersections, parking, safety rules, and behavior, resulting in a layered collaboration between city government, neighboring municipalities, national programs, employers, and cycling advocates. Here, students are touring the perimeter of the port via bicycle. Similarly, Rotterdam water taxis are vital to efficient logistics because they allow students from Erasmus University in Rotterdam to bypass congestion on the roads and quickly navigate the city’s extensive waterways to reach classes, work, and other destinations. Water taxi rides are free for college students in Rotterdam.
Learning about dining culture in other countries, particularly Europe where professional etiquette is important, helps American students build cross-cultural communication skills that are essential for success in today’s increasingly global workforce. Restaurant culture in Germany and the Netherlands features smaller portion sizes with higher-quality food than Americans are accustomed to, with non-alcoholic drinks such as water costing more and being served in glass bottles. In the US, a franchised McDonalds in one area of the country often orders an ingredient from the same vendor as a McDonalds in another area via long-distance, centralized supply chains. By contrast, the regionalized format in Europe allows restaurants to source locally from local farmers, bakers, butchers, and fishmongers, sometimes planning menus around seasonal availability; there is little likelihood of being served frozen food.
The ancient Windmills of Kinderdyk, a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) site, are part of a water-management system that shows how the Netherlands engineered whole landscapes to stay dry. The site includes the windmills plus the surrounding dikes, canals, basins, locks/sluices, and pumping stations as one working ensemble, illustrating centuries of Dutch “living with water.” Their authenticity survived as the result of collaborative restoration and stewardship through which sponsors help fund maintenance and local citizens volunteer labor, keeping the windmills in working order similar to how centuries-old local water boards originally operated the water drainage systems.
Public transport passes and freedom of mobility in Germany and the Netherlands allowed these excursions to be undertaken efficiently. This included the Michael Jackson monument in Munich, Cubed Houses in Rotterdam, Windmills of Kinderdijk in Delft, Dachau Concentration Camp in Munich, Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, Olympic Park in Munich, Royal Palace/Munich Residenz, BMW Welt in Munich, St. Lawrence church in Rotterdam, Mauritshuis Museum in the Hague (which houses Rembrandt’s Girl with a Pearl Earring), the former Dutch Golden Age commerce hub of Delft (home of Hugo Grotius who argued that the seas should remain open and accessible to all nations, see statue below), the world tourist icon Glockenspiel in Munich’s Marienplatz, Markthal in Rotterdam, Stuttgart’s city centre, and the English Garden in Munich’s city centre, among other popular spots. Some of the many student-initiated excursions after the group’s official activities upon mastery of the system provided the most meaningful experiences.
Study abroads provide strong experiential learning opportunities (Hopkins, 1999), and experiential learning is a key indicator of career success (Tiessen et al., 2018). While modern study abroads integrate experiential learning through course-related excursions, the most meaningful learning often occurs outside structured activities, as the most memorable experiences are usually self-initiated side trips. During these experiences, students often learn as much about America as the countries they visit by recognizing what makes the US unique. Although each student’s journey differed, all created meaningful memories in Central Europe through Purdue University.
Final Thoughts
European culture is best understood as a collaborative product of centuries of interaction among diverse peoples, languages, religions, and political systems, shaped by trade, migration, conflict, and cooperation across closely connected societies rather than by a single national narrative. This shared but varied (across nations) cultural landscape has produced common values such as respect for history, social compromise, and cross-border collaboration alongside strong regional identities and workplace norms that differ from country to country. Students quickly realized why German culture is so different from Dutch culture.
For Americans hoping to work in Europe as expatriates, learning this concept is important because success often depends on cultural understanding related to communication styles, attitudes toward hierarchy, work–life balance, and consensus-building reflecting both local traditions and broader European integration. Recognizing culture as collaborative helps Americans avoid assumptions, build trust, and adapt more effectively in professional environments where cultural awareness is seen not as optional, but as a core competency.
Increasingly, luxury vehicles manufactured in Germany are exported via the Port of Rotterdam due to the efficient supply chain pathways and collaborative regional transportation networks. Although stark cultural and organizational contrasts exist, the economies and cultures of Germany and the Netherlands are linked in many ways, as highlighted during this trip. Intercultural competency and efficient multidisciplinary coordination are increasingly crucial to organizational profits, not only between companies in these countries but also for US multinational organizations, such as automobile companies like Subaru, Toyota, and Honda in Indiana, which are led by many Purdue alumni. Most importantly, American organizations and the US economy stand to gain from learning about the knowledge, wherewithal, cultural competency, and efficient global automobile supply chains that Central Europeans have long mastered.
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A special thanks to Dr. Dongming Gan, faculty co-leader of this trip. Dr. Gan’s professionalism, care for students, collegiality, precise nature, and positive outlook were truly appreciated and valued.
About Jim Tanoos: The faculty leader for this study abroad wrote “Central Europe in 12 Days on a Limited Budget: Experiencing political and cultural history doesn’t have to be expensive,” a four-part public transportation guide for travelers on a tourist website. Tanoos’ experience is central to the development of this trip, as he was a lecturer at Purdue Polytechnic Lafayette for five years at the campus of multinational automobile organization Subaru-Indiana of America (SIA) (2004-2008) and has published research and presented at global academic conferences since then on the multinational automobile industry. He takes to heart the Purdue mantra, “We are Purdue. What we make moves the world forward” because of the university’s vital role in international endeavors, and always keeps in mind that it is not any one person or group but Purdue University itself that globalizes students and connects them to the world.