what is inventory control management and how do you apply it in an organization
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INVENTORY CONTROL
It is Supervision of supply, storage and accessibility of items in order to insure anadequate supply without excessive oversupply.
It can also be referred as internal control - an accounting procedure or system
designed to promote efficiency or assure the implementation of a policy or
safeguard assets or avoid fraud and error etc.
Inventory control involves the procurement, care and disposition of
Materials. There are three kinds of inventory that are of concern to
Managers:
Raw materials,
In-process or semi-finished goods,
Finished goods.
If a manager effectively controls these three types of inventory, capital can be
released that may be tied up in unnecessary inventory, production control can be
improved and can protect against obsolescence, deterioration and/or theft, The
reasons for inventory control are: Helps balance the stock as to value, size, color,
style, and price line in proportion to demand or sales trends. Help plan the
winners as well as move slow sellers Helps secure the best rate of stock turnover
for each item. Helps reduce expenses and markdowns. Helps maintain a
business reputation for always having new, fresh merchandise in wanted sizes and
colors. Three major approaches can be used for inventory control in any type and
size of operation. The actual system selected will depend upon the type of
operation, the amount of goods.
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WHAT IS INVENTORY CONTROL
MANAGEMENT AND HOW DO YOU APPLY IT IN
AN ORGANIZATION?
The most important objective or inventory control is to determine and maintain an
optimum level of investment in the inventory. Most companies have now
successfully installed one or the other system of inventory planning and control.
The inventory control models range from very simple methods to highly
sophisticated mathematical inventory models.
In the simplest method, the purchase man periodically reviews the stock, perhaps
visually; to see what inventory items are in short supplies and places order when he
thinks a minimum level has been reached or when the inventory of a particular
item is exhausted. No inventory levels are kept on records. Obviously, such a
method is likely to incur excessive purchasing and carrying costs on the one hand
and stock out costs on the other. While excess purchase would lead to excessive
investment in obsolete or slow moving goods, shortage or inventory may disrupt
production or sales may be permanently lost.
To improve upon the visual method a re-order line may be drawn in the bin or
storage area so that when stock reaches this line, order will be placed. The re-order
line in the bin would be high enough to cover normal usage until the new order
arrives. A variation of this method is to use the two bins systems: an order is
placed when the working stock bin is empty.
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Another inventory control approach is through the perpetual inventory system.
Managers are already familiar with the principles and procedures of this system.
Another method used to assist in the control of inventory is the ABC classification.
Here the inventory items are classified into groups, usually three, according to the
annual cost of the item used and ranked according to the rupee value of the usage.
It may, however , be pointed out here that ABC analysis is not actually a control
system in itself: it shows the way to decide which items are most in need of strict
control system. It is ultimately the management who decides how best to control
each class of items.
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APPROACHES OF INVENTORY CONTROL
1.
Economic purchase order quantity (How much to order)2. Reorder level (when to order)3. Minimum inventory or safety stock.
Economic Purchase Order Quantities: In order to control inventory a decision
model has been developed to determine the optimum quantity of materials to be
purchased on each purchase order. The model determines the optimum working
stock level to be maintained. Each time a purchase order is placed, the company
incurs certain costs. In order to minimize the costs of placing purchase orders, the
company could increase the order quantity to meet the companys entire needs for
the year at one time, incurring only the cost of one purchase order. However, such
a practice will lead to having a large average inventory of working stock, resulting
in increased carrying costs. The costs of ordering and costs of carrying inventory
may be summarized as follows:
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COST OF ORDERING
Preparing purchase or production orders, receiving and preparing andprocessing related documents.
Incremental costs of purchasing or transportation for frequent orders(Purchase in small lots is often costlier and transportation costs also
increase)
Out of pocket costs of postage, telephones, telegrams, cost of stationery,traveling etc.
Extra costs of numerous small production runs, overtime, setups, trainingetc. In addition- fixed costs in form of salaries, wages of employees
connected with this work in purchasing, receiving, inspection and Material
handling Departments.
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COSTS OF CARRYING
Interest on Investment.
Losses from obsolescence and deterioration, spoilage. Storage-space costs, including Rent, Rates, Taxes, Electricity, and etcs. Insurance, in addition- fixed costs in form of salaries, wages etc of
employees connected with this work in stores and Material handling
Departments.
It should be noted that in the consideration of the optimum inventory decision, the
costs of buying the inventory would usually be irrelevant, because it is assumed
that the quantity required for the year would be the same for various alternative.
The important relevant costs to be considered are the costs of ordering and the
costs of carrying.
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MINIMUM INVENTORY OR SAFETY STOCK
In our previous paragraph, we had assumed with certainty that 18 units would be
used per week. In practice, we seldom come across such a situation and demand
cannot be forecast accurately. Actually the demand may fluctuate from period to
period. If, therefore the usage per week at anytime goes beyond 18 units per week,
the company will be out of stock for some time. Hence a rise the need for
providing for some safety stock, i.e. some minimum or buffer as inventory as a
cushion against such stock outs. The recorder point is inter-related with the safety
stocks because as the recorder point is moved upwards, the amount of the cushion
is increased. Thus the recorder point is the resultant of the demand during lead-
time plus safety stock. By increasing the safety allowance the recorder point is
increased by the same amount. It should be noted that the economic order quantity
does not come into the picture and is independent of safety stock analysis.
There are several methods determining safety stock levels. A rough and ready
method followed by many companies is to provide a constant safety stock of say,
one or two months usage requirements regardless of the item. Another method
mainly based on intuition is to have large safety stock when quantity usage is high,
lead time is long or the ordering schedule is frequent. Small safety stocks can be
maintained when there is low usage, short lead time or infrequent ordering.
Another method makes a statistical analysis of the probability of a stock out by
predicting the dispersion of usage around average usage and the dispersion of lead
times around the average lead time. The above discussions of inventory control are
based on the two bins or constant order quantity system.
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THE PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE, DEMAND
UNCERTAINTY, AND INVENTORY
The structure of independent demand and logistical requirements vary by stage in
the product life cycle (introduction, growth, maturity, and decline). During
introduction, logistics must support the business plan for product launch, while
preparing to handle potential rapid growth by quickly expanding distribution. At
market maturity, the logistical emphasis shifts to become cost driven. In the
decline stage, cash management, inventory control, and abandonment timing
become critical. Over-abundance of products in the late maturity or decline stage
will eventually result in obsolete products. The obvious difficulty is predicting how
long each stage will last and how abruptly sales will fall in the decline stage.
The life cycle strategy typically involves getting to profitability quickly
recuperating startup costs, then sustaining high profits for as long as possible, and
finally acting decisively for products in decline to minimize losses. Understanding
this life cycle can help managers select logistical tactics, inventory levels and
supply chain designs. The ultimate goal for companies should be to have just
enough inventory to satisfy consumer demand.
Another life cycle attribute is that demand uncertainty shifts as we progress
through time. Product managers face substantial uncertainty during the
introduction and growth stages, relative stability during maturity, and increasing
uncertainty in decline. This uncertainty drives forecasting accuracy and the level of
safety stock required to meet customer service expectations.
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The coefficient of variation (CV) measures the stability of a product's demand,
comparing the variability in demand to the size of the average demand . High
demand variability in the introductory stage means it is difficult, if not impossible,
to forecast demand. Thus, high levels of inventory must be held to meet even
minimal customer service levels. In contrast, lower variability during maturity
means that demand forecasts are quite accurate. However, inventory levels may
still be large because they are based on larger sales volumes.
In addition to the vagaries associated with product life cycle stage, two other
sources of uncertainty also drive the level of inventory. First, demand can vary
from day to day, week to week, or seasonally. Second, there may be variability in
lead time, or the time from when an order is placed until delivery is made.
Forecasting demand used to be more exact because products stayed in the mature
product life cycle phase for a long time. Today many companies find it far more
difficult to forecast sales because of product proliferation. Product line extensions
result in more products that cannibalize sales and shorten the life cycle. Thus, more
sales are coming from products in the erratic earlier stages of life, as opposed to
sales from products in the mature stage of the life cycle
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SELECTIVE CONTROLS
ABC ANALYSIS
A form of Pareto analysis applied to a group of products in order to apply selective
inventory management controls. The inventory value for each item is obtained by
multiplying the annual demand by unit cost and the entire inventory is then ranked
in descending order of cost. However, the classification parameter can be varied;
for example, it is possible to use the velocity of turnover rather than annual
demand value.
ABC CLASSIFICATION
The classification of inventory, after ABC analysis, into three basic groups for the
purpose of stock control and planning. Although further divisions may be
established, the 3 basic categories are designated A, B and C as follows:
A Items - An item that, according to an ABC classification, belongs to a small
group of products that represents around 75-80% of the annual demand, usage or
production volume, in monetary terms, but only some 15-20% of the inventory
items. For the purpose of stock control and planning, the greatest attention is paid
to this category of A-products. A items may also be of strategic importance to the
business concerned.
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B items - An intermediate group, representing around 5-10% of the annual
demand, usage or production value but some 20-25% of the total, that is paid less
management attention.
C Items - A product which according to an ABC classification belongs to the 60-
65% of inventory that represents only around 10-15% the annual demand, usage or
production value. Least attention is paid to this category for the purpose of stock
control and planning and procurement decisions for such items may be automated.
ACTIVE INVENTORY
Any item or element of inventory which has been used or sold within a given
period. Often set at 12 months.
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AGGREGATE INVENTORY MANAGEMENT
The size of many inventories requires that they be broken down into groupings for
the purpose of control. Aggregated inventory is the further collection of these
groupings into a single entity to enable the establishment of operating policies, key
performance indicators, targets and reports. Aggregate Inventory Management
enables such things as the overall level of inventory desired to be established and
then appropriate controls implemented to ensure that individual operating decisions
achieve that goal, at optimum cost.
Allocated Stock
A part or product that has been reserved, but not yet withdrawn or issued from
stock, and is thus not available for other purposes.
All-Time Order
The last order for a particular product in the last phase of its life cycle. This order
is of such a size that the stock provided will satisfy all expected future demand (see
all time requirement below) for the product concerned. Sometimes known as a life
of type order.
All-Time Requirement
The total requirement for a particular product to be expected in the future.
Normally used for products in the last phase of their life cycles, when production is
(nearly) stopped.
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All-Time Stock
The stock resulting from the assessment of an all-time requirement and delivery of
an all-time order. If necessary, controls can be set for such stock to avoid
consumption of items for reasons over and above those for which usage was
predicted.
Anticipation Stock
Inventory held in order to be able to satisfy a demand with seasonal fluctuations
with a production level that does not fluctuate at all or that varies to a lesser extent
than the demand.
Availability
The primary measure of system performance relating to the expected percentage of
the supported system that will be available at a random point in time and not out of
service for lack of spares.
Available Stock
The stock available to service immediate demand.
Available to Promise (ATP)
The uncommitted portion of a companys inventory and planned production,
maintained in the master schedule to support customer order promising. The ATP
quantity is the uncommitted inventory balance in the first period and is normally
calculated for each period in which an MPS receipt is scheduled. In the first period,
ATP includes on-hand inventory less customer orders that are due and overdue.
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Reference
www.management.hub.com/inventory-management-
intro.html
Book:
Logistic & Supply Chain Management.
(Vipul Publication)
http://www.management.hub.com/inventory-management-intro.htmlhttp://www.management.hub.com/inventory-management-intro.htmlhttp://www.management.hub.com/inventory-management-intro.htmlhttp://www.management.hub.com/inventory-management-intro.html