Inventory Mngement Delivering Profits through Stock Mngement Arti Deveshwr nd Dhwl Modi Tody s business environment is competitive mrket with every orgniztion ligning its resources towrds chieving niche position in the mrketplce, nd in the minds of its customers. With the entry of more nd more compnies in the mrket offering similr products, the mrket shre of existing orgniztions hs reduced. Every new entrnt comes with new ides, techniques nd technologies. The mrket then witnesses competition in every function of the orgniztion. Growth nd survivl depends on microscopic nlysis of Opertionl Process nd Mrketing Effectiveness. Mny Orgniztions re now directing their efforts towrds retining existing customers to increse profits. To chieve this objective, compnies re chlking out strtegies to reduce ny instnces of Customer disstisfction. Inventory Anlysis hs, therefore, ttined limelight considering the investments involved in mintining nd mnging Inventories. It hs been observed tht n increse in the profits is possible through reduction of losses due to Stock Mismngement. The highlighting of Stock Mngement hs opened numerous venues of profits reliztion with negligible investment. This pper focuses on these techniques, intended to help orgniztions chieve Incresed Profits nd n Enhnced Customer Service Experience. Field Of Reserch: Mngement, Supply Chin Mngement 1. Introduction Any stock tht firm keeps to meet its future requirement of production nd sles is clled INVENTORY. The bsic reson for holding inventory is to keep up to the production ctivities unhmpered. It is neither physiclly possible nor economiclly justifible to wit for the stock to rrive t the time when they re ctully required. Therefore, keeping of inventory is must for the efficient working of business unit. Rw mterils represent goods kept by mnufcturing firm prior to their being utilized in the production process. Supplies generlly include tools nd consumbles which re consumed in the production of goods nd services. Goods in process represent the semi-finished goods; they include those mterils tht hve been *Dr. Arti Deveshwr, Asstt. Professor, Deen Bndhu Chhotu Rm University of Science nd Technology, Murthl-131039, Sonept, Hryn, Indi. rti.deveshwr@gmil.com Mr. Dhwl Modi, Corporte Triner, Hero Mindmine Institute Ltd, Gurgon, Hryn, Indi, dhwl.modi@gmil.com
committed to production process but hve not yet been converted into finished goods. Finished goods re completed goods witing sle in mnufcturing concern; they re the finl output of the production process. The nture of inventory depends upon the type of ctivity crried on. In the cse of mnufcturing unit, inventory will generlly include ll types of inventories mentioned bove, while in the cse of trding concern, it will comprise only finished goods or stock-in-trde owned by it for sle to customers in the norml course of business. Inventory needs proper control s it is one of the lrgest ssets of business. Inventories should neither be excessive nor indequte. If inventories re kept t high level, higher interest nd storge costs would be incurred; on the other hnd, low level of inventories my result in frequent interruption in the production schedule resulting in under utiliztion of cpcity nd lower sles. The objective of inventory mngement is therefore to determine nd mintin the optimum level of investment in inventories which help in chieving the required objective. Inventory mngement softwre helps crete invoices, purchse order, receiving lists, pyments receipts nd cn print br coded lbels. An inventory mngement softwre system configured to your wrehouse, retil or product line will help to crete revenue for your compny. The Inventory Mngement will control operting costs nd provide better understnding. Objectives of the study To study the wreness level of Inventory Mngement Fundmentls in vrious Orgniztions To nlyze the orgniztionl effectiveness in hndling their respective inventories To highlight the key resons cusing Inventory losses in n Orgniztion To focus on Bsic Inventory Mngement Techniques for Orgniztions not following SOPs in IMS Reserch Methodology Well defined questionnire hs been prepred nd vrious prmeters of inventory mngement were discussed with personnel involved in hndling inventory. Dt for this study ws collected by mens of mil questionnire distributed to two hundred selected firms from Automobile, Auto Ancillry Industry. A comprehensive literture review of rticles ppering in logistics nd SCM journls is conducted in order to identify the prctices relevnt in the Inventory Mngement domin. An nlysis of these theories in Inventory Consumption Dt nd
Wrehousing Techniques is presented to explin the focus res for Orgniztionl Improvement in their Inventory Mngement System. Inventory Mngement System Evlution Questionnire - Orgniztionl Review 1 Is there SOP document for IMS? 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Is it communicted to the stff responsible for inventory mngement? Are there different types of Inventory your compny crries? Wht is the verge Vlue of Inventory Held? Does mngement review nd follow up reports of inventory turnover, geing, nd inventory djustments? Is there proper lyout pln of the inventory storge fcility? Is there seprte re for receiving nd distributing inventory? Are tgs plced on goods fter they re plced in storge indicting detils of shipment? Is there defined process nd documents involved in distribution of Goods? Are there controls in plce ensuring ll inventory leving the premises hve vlid invoice? Is there documented procedure for stocktking? If yes, is it shred during stock tking? Is the frequency of Stock tking defined by the mngement? Is the cycle dherence checked? Is the n SOP defined for vrious types of Inventories identified during the counting process? Is there n SOP for mking djustments in Inventory fter the counting process is completed? Are inventory loctions customizble? Are pick lists used for picking? Comment on the pick list genertion? Is dequte provision mde for obsolete nd inctive items in inventories? Are perpetul inventory records updted promptly? Are discrepncies between physicl nd perpetul records
19 20 investigted nd resolved? Does internl control pper dequte for the inventory system overll? Is there forml Trining Curriculum for Inventory Mngement Personnel? 1 Inventory Mngement System Evlution Questionnire - Stff Review Inventory control is the ctivity which 2 Ordering cost consists of 3 4 5 6 7 Inventory Turn Rtio is rtio of ABC nd FMS nlysis is possible in DMS? Wht is the Purpose of Wll to Wll Inventory? Wht re the two gols of inventory mngement? Effective stock control depends on 8 Wht re A Clss items? 9 Supply led time includes 10 Inventory Check is done for 1 Orgnizes vilbility of items 1 b Blnces conflicting requirement The Mximum SKUs b 2 11 c Reduces stock levels per loction cn be c 4 d Reduces led time d Customized Sttionery, typing b Advertisements, tender costs Obsolete or Ded Stock b Destroyed leglly 12 c Trvel Costs, telephone bills needs to be c Sold t lower costs Destroyed illeglly d Rent, deprecition on spce d Removed from System & liquidted Cost of Sles vs. verge stock Minimum once Yer b Annul Consumption Wht is the frequency 13 to conduct Wll to Wll b Minimum once Qurter c Totl Inventory vs. Totl Assets Inventory? c Minimum once Month d Cycle Count Frequency d Minimum once Week ITR Wht re the two b b ABC 14 primry nlysis which c t Applicble re done on Inventory? c SKU d Don't Know d FMS Mtch Physicl & System Stock Prts to be counted everydy b Accurcy of on-hnd stock Perpetul Inventory 15 System crete b Regulr Orders to suppliers c Regulr check of selected items schedule of c Continuous increse in SKUs d Crete sequentil pick lists d Monthly Mngement Review Customer Stisfction b Profitbility Inventory Clssifiction b Knbn 16 c Minimum Inventory is bsed on c Preto Anlysis d Mximum Inventory d EOQ Reorder level Helps orgnize inventory better Wht re the b Sfety Stock b Reduce inventory crrying costs 17 dvntges of Cycle c Delivery Quntity Counting? c Increses Work Lod d Led Time d Curbs pilferge Fst Moving Items b 10% items giving 70% revenue Wht fill rte should we b 95% + fill rte 18 c 70% items giving 10% revenue provide? c 100% fill rte JIT 90% + fill rte d High Vlue items d 100% + fill rte Trnsport time b Goods Inwrding time Low Inventory Turnover b More Fst moving Items 19 c Order review time Rtio indictes c Good Rottion of Funds More Ded Stock d Demnd Anlysis d Poor Rottion of Funds Fst Moving Items Increse in Interest incurred b Slow Moving Items Excess inventory b Low prts mintennce 20 c All the items cuses c High Lbor costs d A Clss items d High Customer Stisfction Wht re the primry gols of the Inventory Tem? 2 How is the fresher cquinted with the IMS in your orgniztion? 3 Is there trget schedule for completing cyclic counting nd Wll to wll Inventory check by mngement?
How re lost sles hndled? Kindly point out steps tken, if ny? 4 How mny physicl loction number re updted in the system? 5 Literture Review Brent D. Willims nd Trvis Tokr, (2008) in their study A review of inventory mngement reserch in mjor logistics journls: Themes nd future directions", discussed tht logistics reserchers hve focused considerble ttention on integrting trditionl logistics decisions, such s trnsporttion nd wrehousing, with inventory mngement decisions, using trditionl inventory control models. Logistics reserchers hve more recently focused on exmining inventory mngement through collbortive models. C. Clifford Defee, Brent Willims, Wesley S. Rndll, Rodney Thoms, (2010) in their reserch pper "An inventory of theory in logistics nd SCM reserch", nlysed the theoreticl ctegories nd presented to explin the type nd frequency of theory usge. They concluded tht over 180 specific theories were found within the smpled rticles. Theories grouped under the competitive nd microeconomics ctegories mde up over 40 per cent of the theoreticl incidences. This does not imply ll rticles utilize theory. The reserch found tht theory ws explicitly used in pproximtely 53 per cent of the smpled rticles. Vikrm Tiwri, Sringesh Gvirneni, (2007) in their rticle ASP, The Art nd Science of Prctice: Recoupling Inventory Control Reserch nd Prctice: Guidelines for Achieving Synergy focused on the widening disconnect between inventory-control reserch nd prctice, people debte the vlue of incrementl theory building. While prctitioners mke decisions in complex nd uncoordinted environment, reserchers often dopt simplistic environment for the ske of rigorous nlysis. The stkeholders mismtched objectives nd motivtions my cuse this lck of synergy. Controlling nd reducing this disconnect would benefit both prctitioners nd reserchers. The existing empiricl nlysis of compnies business improvements bsed on cdemic inventory-mngement theories is inconclusive. Even so, some businesses hve successfully implemented inventory theory; however, in most cses, they hve gretly modified the inventory models developed by cdemics.
Richrd Pibernik, (2004) in his study Advnced vilble-to-promise: Clssifiction, selected methods nd requirements for opertions nd inventory mngement gives the theoreticl frmework for the development of models nd lgorithms supporting order quntity nd due dte quoting. At first, lterntive generic AATP systems will be identified on the bsis of relevnt clssifiction criteri. Bsed upon this clssifiction, the AATP plnning mechnisms will be detiled for two generic AATP types. On the bsis of the introduced AATP types nd the description of selected models we finlly derive requirements, which opertions nd inventory mngement hve to meet in order to ensure successful ppliction of AATP. B.J. Grblowsky, (2005) in his pper Finncil mngement of inventory surveyed smll business inventory mngement prctices nd compred with techniques commonly employed by lrge corportions. It ppers tht smller firms rely on simple controls. Lrge businesses rely more on quntittive techniques, such s EOQ nd liner progrmming, to provide dditionl informtion for decision-mking, while smll firms re more likely to use mngement judgment without the quntittive bck-up. Of those smll firms which did not use quntittive methods for determining inventory order nd stock levels, the most common qulittive methods were "pst experience" nd "executive judgment,". S. M. Disney nd D. R. Towill (2003) in their reserch The effect of vendor mnged inventory (VMI) dynmics on the Bullwhip Effect in supply chin compres the expected performnce of vendor mnged inventory (VMI) supply chin with trditionl serilly linked supply chin. The emphsis of this investigtion is the impct these two lterntive structures hve on the Bullwhip Effect generted in the supply chin. We py prticulr ttention to the mnufcturer's production ordering ctivities vi simultion model bsed on difference equtions. VMI is thereby shown to be significntly better t responding to voltile chnges in demnd such s those due to discounted ordering or price vritions. Inventory recovery s mesured by the integrl of time bsolute error performnce metric is lso substntilly improved vi VMI. ise bndwidth, tht is mesure of cpcity requirements, is then used to estimte the order rte vrince in response to rndom customer demnd. Finlly, the pper simultes the VMI nd trditionl supply chin response to representtive retil sles pttern. The results re in ccordnce with rich picture performnce predictions mde from deterministic inputs. Julius A. Shrm, Dinesh K. Shrm, Hri P (2004) discussed Supply Chin (SC), which involves the configurtion, coordintion, nd improvement of sequentilly relted set of opertions in estblishments, integrtes technology nd humn resource cpcity for optiml mngement of opertions to reduce inventory requirements nd provide support to enterprises in pursunce of competitive dvntge in the mrketplce. This pper ddresses the structures of supply chin mngement (SCM) nd the ctivities involved in SCM decisions tht help promote profound improvement in efficiency nd effectiveness in business opertions. In broder context, the pper exmines the types of ctivities involved in SCM
decisions; the dynmics of the trditionl SCM, the complementrities of technology in chieving effective mngement of opertions through enblers of electronic dt interchnge (EDI) nd quick response (QR) disciplines to implement Just-in-Time (JIT) mngement techniques; nd integrted SC nd inventory control s it reltes to cpcity imblnces nd trnsction costs. Findings Inventory Mngement system provides informtion to efficiently mnge the flow of mterils, effectively utilize people nd equipment, coordinte internl ctivities nd communicte with customers. Inventory Mngement does not mke decisions or mnge opertions but provides the informtion to mngers who mke more ccurte nd timely decisions to mnge their opertions. A successful business relies on mny fctors, one of which is relible inventory mngement system. Inventory mngement consists of everything from ccurte record-keeping to shipping nd receiving of products on time. An Inventory mngement tht is properly mintined cn keep compny s supply chin running smoothly nd efficiently. Inventory mngement problems cn interfere with compny s profits nd customer service. They cn cost business more money nd cn led to n excess of inventory overstock tht is difficult to move. Most of these problems re usully due to poor inventory processes nd out-of-dte systems. There re number of problems tht cn cuse hvoc with inventory mngement. Some hppen more frequently thn others. Here re some of the more common problems with inventory systems. Some Common Chllenges fced by orgniztions in Inventory Mngement re: 1. Unqulified employees in chrge of inventory. Too mny compnies put people in chrge of their inventory distribution who either don t hve enough experience, re neglectful in their job, or don t hve dequte trining. 2. The processes they use re not wide enough nd do not encompss ll the spects nd fctors in the compny. 3. A flwed or unrelistic business pln for business for the future. To predict how well compny my do in the future, you hve to collect enough dt nd ccurtely nlyze it. This ffects inventory mngement becuse if compny predicts more growth thn they ctully experience, it cn led to n overstock of inventory. 4. A supervisor in chrge of inventory mngement filed to look over their inventory on regulr bsis to mke sure enough products re in stock. Identifying shortges hed of time is n importnt fctor in chieving Customer Stisfction.
Witing for the shipment to come in cn slow down the supply chin process. t hving enough products in stock to meet customer demnd cn led to bd customer reltions. 5. Bottlenecks nd wek points cn interfere with on-time product delivery. This mens tht if too mny orders come in for outgoing shipments nd do not get hndled in n efficient mnner, they cn build up, or bottleneck. 6. Flling victim to the bullwhip effect. This is n over-rection by compny to chnges in the mrket. As the demnd of mrket chnges, compny my pnic nd order n overstock of inventory, thinking the new mrket conditions will move the inventory. 7. Too much distressed stock in inventory. Distressed stock is products or mterils in inventory tht hs or will soon pss the point where it cn be sold t the norml price before it expires. This hppens ll the time in grocery stores. As prticulr food product ners its expirtion dte, the business will discount the item in order to move it quickly before it expires. 8. Excessive inventory in stock nd unble to move it quickly enough. This is probbly the most common problem for most businesses. Csh-flow comes from moving inventory. If compny buys n mount of product for their inventory nd they do not move it, the compny ends up losing money. 9. Computer ssessment of inventory items for sle is inccurte. thing is more frustrting thn going to business tht sys it hs product, but it turns out tht they do not. The quntities re off nd the ctul items re not vilble. Too mny people ssume tht the computer records re infllible. Inccurte inventory records cn esily result in loss of money nd strined customer service. 10. Computer inventory systems re too complicted. There re mny inventory softwre progrms vilble for business use. The problem is tht mny of these progrms re not user-friendly. A compny does not lwys hve the time nd money to invest in trining of personnel to use softwre effectively. 11. Items in-stock gets misplced. Even if the computer ccurtely shows the item s in stock, it my hve been misplced somewhere t the wrehouse, or in the wrong loction within store. This cn led to decrese in profits due to lost sles nd higher inventory costs becuse the item must be re-ordered. Plus, the compny must spend the time for employees to trck down the misplced item. 12. t keeping up with the rising price of rw mterils. This flls more into the ccounting end of inventory mngement. By not keeping current with the rising price of rw mterils, compny will lose profits becuse they re not djusting the price of their finished products. Finished items in inventory must be reltive to the cost of rw goods.
Impct of Improper Mngement of Inventory Inventory Mngement hs emerged s focl point in orgniztionl efforts to reduce losses. The mngement of cpitl within n orgniztion hs substntil contribution towrds profits nd Inventories re usully n orgniztion s lrgest sset. Inventory Mngement ctivities impct the following: o o o o o Sles Forecsting or Demnd Mngement Sles nd Opertions Plnning Production Plnning Mteril Requirements Plnning Inventory Rottion The emphsis on ech re vries depending on the compny nd how it opertes, nd wht requirements re plced on it due to mrket demnds. Ech of the res needs to be ddressed in some form or nother to hve successful progrm of Inventory Mngement nd Inventory Control. Orgniztions re not stisfied with the contribution inventory mkes towrds the overll success of their business. The mny resons cited for this re: o Wrong quntities of the wrong items re often found on wrehouse shelves. Even though there mybe lot of surplus inventory nd ded stock in the wrehouse(s), bckorders nd lost sles re common. The mteril compny hs committed to stock isn t vilble when customers request it. o Computer inventory records re not ccurte. Inventory blnce informtion in the orgniztion s expensive computer system does not ccurtely reflect wht is vilble for sle in the wrehouse. o The return on investment is not stisfctory. The compny s profits, considering its substntil investment in inventory, re fr less thn wht could be erned if the money were invested elsewhere. o Mny compnies tke n inventory of their supplies on regulr bsis in order to void running out of populr items. Others tke n inventory to insure the number of items ordered mtches the ctul number of items counted physiclly. Shortges or overges fter n inventory cn indicte problem with theft or inccurte ccounting prctices. o Possessing high mount of inventory for long periods of time is not usully good for business becuse of inventory storge, obsolescence nd spoilge costs.
However, possessing too little inventory isn't good either, becuse the business runs the risk of losing out on potentil sles nd potentil mrket shre s well. o Chnges in the mrket demnd, new opportunities due to worldwide mrketing, globl sourcing of mterils nd new mnufcturing technology mens mny compnies need to chnge their Inventory Mngement pproch nd chnge the process for Inventory Control. Ides for Improvement Inventory mngement simply mens the methods you use to orgnize, store nd replce inventory, to keep n dequte supply of goods while minimizing costs. Ech loction where goods re kept will require different methods of inventory mngement. Keeping n inventory, or stock of goods, is necessity in retil. Customers often prefer to physiclly touch wht they re considering purchsing, so you must hve items on hnd. In ddition, most customers prefer to hve it now, rther thn wit for something to be ordered from distributor. In mnufcturing, inventory mngement is event more importnt to keep production running. Every minute tht is spent down becuse the supply of rw mterils ws interrupted costs the compny unplnned expenses. Counting Current Stock All businesses must know wht they hve on hnd nd evlute stock levels with respect to current nd forecsted demnds. You must know wht you hve in stock to ensure you cn meet the demnds of customers nd production nd to be sure you re ordering enough stock in the future. Counting is lso importnt becuse it is the only wy you will know if there is problem with theft occurring t some point in the supply chin. When you become wre of such problems you cn tke steps to eliminte them. Mnging Smll Items Inventory control simply knows how much inventory you hve. It is mens to control loss of goods. Businesses tht use lrge quntities of smll items often use n 80/20 or ABC rule in which they keep trck of 20 percent of the lrgest vlue inventory items nd use it to represent the whole. A items re the top vlued 20 percent of the compny s inventory, both in terms of the cost of the item nd the need for the item in the mnufcturing or sles process. Controlling this top 20 percent will control 80 percent of their inventory costs. B items re those of midrnge vlue nd C items re chep nd rrely in demnd. The retiler or mnufcturer cn now ctegorize ll items in the inventory into one of these three clsses nd then monitor the stock ccording to vlue. "A" items would be counted nd trcked regulrly, while "B" nd "C" items would be counted only monthly or qurterly.
Cyclicl Counting Mny compnies prefer to count inventory on cyclicl bsis to void the need for shutting down opertions while stock is counted. This mens tht prticulr section of the wrehouse or plnt is counted t prticulr times, rther thn counting ll inventory t once. In this wy, the compny tkes physicl count of inventory, but never counts the entire inventory t once. While this method my be less ccurte thn counting the whole, it is much more cost effective. Controlling Supply nd Demnd Whenever possible, obtin commitment from customer for purchse. In this wy, you ensure tht the items you order will not tke spce in your inventory for long. When this is not possible, you my be ble to shre responsibility for the cost of crrying goods with the slesperson, to ensure tht n order plced ctully results in sle. You cn lso keep list of goods tht cn esily be sold to nother prty, should customer cncel. Such goods cn be ordered without prior pprovl. Stock Control Approvl procedures should be rrnged round severl fctors. You should set minimum nd mximum quntities which your buyers cn order without prior pprovl. This ensures tht you re mximizing ny volume discounts vilble through your vendors nd preventing over-ordering of stock. It is lso importnt to require pre-pprovl on goods with high crrying cost. Keeping Accurte Records Any time items rrive t or leve wrehouse, ccurte pperwork should be kept, itemizing the goods. When inventory rrives, this is when you will find brekge or loss on the goods you ordered. Inventory leving your wrehouse must be counted to prevent loss between the wrehouse nd the point of sle. Even smples should be recorded, mking the slesperson responsible for the goods until they re returned to the storge fcility. Records should be processed quickly, t lest in the sme dy tht the withdrwl of stock occurred. Mnging Employees Buyers re the employees who mke stock purchses for your compny. Rewrd systems should be set in plce tht encourge high levels of customer service nd return on investment for the product lines the buyer mnges. Wrehouse employees should be educted on the costs of improper inventory mngement. Be sure they understnd tht the lower your profit mrgin, the more sles must be generted to mke up for the lost goods. Incentive progrms cn help employees keep this in perspective. When they see difference in their pychecks from poor inventory mngement, they re more likely to tke precutions to prevent shrinkge. Inventory mngement should be prt of your overll strtegic business pln. As the business climte evolves towrds green economy, businesses re looking for wys to leverge this trend s prt of the big picture. It cn lso men putting in plce recycling procedures for pckging or other mterils. In this wy, inventory
mngement is more thn mens to control costs; it becomes wy to promote your business. Implementtion nd Execution Building better solution from strt to finish will yield results for Incresed Inventory Mngement. More efficient opertions provide bottom-line results. Improving Inventory Mngement is n ctivity-bsed solution designed specificlly to crete mximum efficiency nd optimum cost-control throughout your deprtment, which will: o Define inventory processes, ctivities nd controls from results-driven stndpoint. o Define tsks nd inventory process prmeters in mesurble nd verifible terms tht emphsize efficiencies to produce desired results. o Vlidte tsk performnce to ttin the highest efficiencies in inventory processes through tsk monitoring, mesurement nd vlidtion, put the right people in the right jobs. o Continuously provide rel-time, rel-performnce tsk nd process dt for efficiency s well s inventory micro-djustments. o Implement ll ctivity-bsed mngement inititives through to full execution in inventory for mximum efficiency, productivity, cost-continment nd profitbility. References Alde, Julius A.; Shrm, Dinesh K.; Shrm, Hri P, 2004 Role of supply chin mngement decisions in effective inventory control, Journl of Acdemy of Business nd Economics Autry, C. W., & Bobbitt, M., L. 2008 Supply chin security orienttion: conceptul development nd proposed frmework. Interntionl Journl of Logistics Mngement, 19(1), 42-64. Brent D. Willims, Trvis Tokr, 2008 "A review of inventory mngement reserch in mjor logistics journls: Themes nd future directions", Interntionl Journl of Logistics Mngement, The, Vol. 19 Iss: 2, pp.212-232 Brry, J. 2004 Supply chin risk in n uncertin globl supply chin environment. Interntionl Journl of Physicl Distribution & Logistics Mngement, 34(9), 695-697.
B.J. Grblowsky, 2005 Finncil Mngement of Inventory Interntionl Journl of Production Economics, Volumes 93-94, Pges 239-252 C. Clifford Defee, Brent Willims, Wesley S. Rndll, Rodney Thoms, (2010) "An inventory of theory in logistics nd SCM reserch", Interntionl Journl of Logistics Mngement, The, Vol. 21 Iss: 3, pp.404-489 John Storey, Croline Emberson, Jnet Godsell, Aln Hrrison, 2006, Supply chin mngement: theory, prctice nd future chllenges, Interntionl Journl of Opertions Production Mngement Volume: 26, Issue: 7, Pges: 754-774. Mry J. Meixell, Vidyrny B. Grgey, 2005 Globl supply chin design: A literture review nd critique, Elsevier Ltd. Omer Khn, Bernrd Burnes, 2007, Risk nd supply chin mngement: creting reserch gend, The Interntionl Journl of Logistics Mngement, Volume 18, Issue: 2 Pge: 197 216 S. M. Disney, D. R. Towill,2003, The effect of vendor mnged inventory (VMI) dynmics on the Bullwhip Effect in supply chins, Interntionl Journl of Production Economics Volume 85, Issue 2, 11 August 2003, Pges 199-215 Vikrm Tiwri, Sringesh Gvirneni, 2004 ASP, The Art nd Science of Prctice: Recoupling Inventory Control Reserch nd Prctice: Guidelines for Achieving Synergy, Interfces, Vol. 37,. 2, Mrch-April 2007, pp. 176-186