Question

What distinguishes inventory from a supply? Describe some of the inventory that is maintained where you work. How is it maintained? What methods are used to ensure that the appropriate inventory is consistently on hand and is up-to-date? Be sure to identify the five benefits to having inventory in a healthcare supply chain in your discussion post.

Answer 1

Q1.Inventory is stagnant where as Supply is a moving concept. Basically, we can say that Inventory is created to ensure proper supply of products. Inventory is a support to ensure Supply

Q2.The Inventories which are mentioned in our day to day basis are Raw Materials, Semi finished Goods and Finished Goods . The reason to hold the inventory due the smooth production, better service to customers, Maintain adequate stock in case of Uncertainity, Advantages of Discounts for Bulk Purchase.

Oraganisation need to carefully select the level of inventory ,which it need to Maintain .Say Take an example of Health CARE Supply Chain which is one of the sector of Service Industries. For such Retailers it is important to control the inventory. They maintain many warehouses or Distribution Centers caters catering to specific channels

• the Heath care need to keep in track of the available stocks ( Medicine, injections, needle, equipments) .
• Health care stocking Recent and in demand items ( Medicines, clothes, mattress, gloves, other hygiene products) can improve their standing in the market.
• The Helath care deal with finished goods Inventory which has short Life Cycle such as Medicines or equipments.
• The big retailers often make a partnership with the Channel Suppliers. Example Wal mart tied up with Fingurehut Business services for its online store WAL mart .com

Methods to ensure appropriate Inventory is consistantly on hand:

1. Computerisation of records; It make us possible to retrieve the Information of the inventory from the bulk data. It is easy to make entry and cost effective.

2. Making records of Inventory Turnover: we can check the amount of inventorywhich utilized in operations. by this there is a Transparencies before the shareholders.

3. Statistical Analysis : Inventory requirement should be planned after taking into consideration both the available statistical data and guesswork based on market senerio.

4. Should have proper Ordering system in placer rather than just give the requisation , when stocks is finished.

5. Employees also need to take responsibility for defective and substandard items, delaysin receiving and ordering materials .