The Objectives

Dell is a for-profit organization, which is mainly an American multinational computer technology commonly based in the Round Rock, Texas, in the United States of America. The organization deals in the development, sale, repairs as well as supports to computers and computer related products and services Ashby et al.  (2012). The organizations deal in the sale of personal computers, network switches, servers, software, devices for use in data storage, printers, cameras, computer peripherals, MP3 players and electronics among other related products that are built by other manufacturers.  The company is vastly known for its innovation and creativity when it comes to supply chain management and electronic commerce; specifically its model of direct sales as well as it’s built to order or configure to order technique or approach in manufacturing.

Through this approach, the company is able to deliver individual personal computers to the specifications of the customers. For most of its existence, the organization has remained a pure hardware vendor, a situation that changed in 2009 upon the acquisition Perot Systems that saw the organization become part of the market subscribers for IT services. Since then, the organization has managed to make more acquisitions in terms of storage and networking system with an aim of increasing its portfolio from offering just computers to delivering solutions for computers to each of the enterprise customers Othman et al. (2015).

The aim of this task is to establish a plan that an organization may adopt in ensuring that its objectives, both short term and long term remain within the confines of a supply chain function

• To explore the roles of supply chain management
• Create a plan that ensures the supply chain functions are in line with the objectives of an organization
• Explore on the need of negotiation strategies in the procurement cycle
• Discuss BATNA in negotiation Green Jr et al. (2012)
• Establish where BATNA is applicable in the negotiation activities of an organization

Supply Chain Management refers to the active control of the activities of supply chain in order to maximize the value of the customers as well as attains sustainable competitive advantage. It is an illustration of conscious efforts of the firms of supply chain to come up with and run supply chains in ways that are perceived to be as most effective and efficient as possible. Supply chain activities encompass everything ranging from development of the product, production, sourcing, and logistics besides the information systems that are required in the coordination of such activities Rönnbäck (2012).

There are two main ideas on which the concept of supply chain management is based on:

The first concept is that every product that gests to an end user is representative of the cumulative efforts of numerous organisations. These numerous organisations are known as the supply chain.

Literature Review

The second idea is that is as much as supply chains have for a long time been in existence, a significant number of the organisations have only been focusing on what was going on within their four walls. Very few businesses comprehends, much less managed the whole chain of activities that finally delivered the products to the final customer Stadtler. (2015). The result was a disjointed outcome that in most cases ineffective of the supply chains.

The organizations involved in the supply chain are joined together through informational and physical flows. Physical flows encompass change, movements and storage of materials and goods and tend to be the most visible supply chain pieces. Informational flows include such services that permit the different supply Chain partners to cooperate and coordinate their long term plans as well as engage in every day flow of goods and materials up and down the supply chain Ross (2013).

There is a sequence of processes that need to be completed in order to generate and distributes a commodity when it comes to supply chain. The commodity may be either goods or services but whichever way, there is need for a precise and clear manufacturing path for the commodity that is generated Brandenburg et al. (2014). The achievement of this goal significantly relies on a strong supply chain and hence it’s effective management calls for the production of the best results by the supply chain since that is of utmost importance to the health of a business. There are four main elements of supply chain management: integration, operation, purchasing and distribution.

Integration is perceived as the brainwork and heart of supply chain and an oversight of the integration os supply chain refers to coordinating communications between the other parts of the supply chain to come up with timely and effective outcomes. In most cases, this means an exploration of the new software and the means of technology that promote communication among the various departments. Those tasked with the responsibility of ensuring integration are supposed to ensure that things happen timely and within the constraints of the budgeting without having the quality compromised.

Operation offers a link in the supply chain that ensures coordination of the details of the everyday operations of the organization. It aids in the planning of the output of the organization to ensure that all is running well and there is maximization of the advantages. Operations mainly keep an eye on the inventory of the organization and utilize business forecasting in the prediction of the supplies that will be required when and by whom as well as establishing ways that foretell the effectiveness of the products, the approaches to marketing and the results of the end user. In overall, the production of the organisation is overseen by operations.

Elements of Supply Chain Management

Purchasing is the department that is tasked with the sourcing of materials, products and other goods that are required for the production of the products of the organization. Purchasing establishes a relationship with the supplier as well as aiding in the identification of the quantities and qualities of the required items. Keeping an eye on the budget of the things that are to be purchased is an integral aspect of purchasing that enhances costs effectiveness of the company and also fostering adherence to high quality standards.

Distribution involves the processes through which the commodities get to the end user. The distribution department is responsible for the logistics of communication among the various clients, wholesalers and retailers in the supply chain command. These groups must ensure they keep an eye on the shipment to establish not only that which os required in house to produce the desired products but also that final products get to the end user in the desired shape and on time. The discussed elements of supply chain management must work in cohesion for the benefit of everyone. The rewards are reaped by both the end users and the employees and a properly oiled supply chain is integral aspect of a harmoniously working environment since by having everyone do what is expected of them to do, stress is minimized for every individual.

 Commercial negotiations refers to the process of coming together of parties to comes to a consumed over a situation in which there exist conflict of in interest between them. The aim of commercial negotiation is to establish a jointly acceptable agreement. There are negotiation skills that are expected of procurements professionals in order to meet the set objectives of the negotiation process. Below are some of the areas in which negotiation skills I supply chain management and procurement are of utmost importance:

• Negotiation is required in situation in which the terms of sales are inclusive of different clauses or in cases where the buyer feels or suspects that the prices that have been quoted for a commodity are unreasonably high
• Negotiations may be needed as a product of procurement role in creating a challenge to the user identified requirement. This is significance since through negotiation; it is possible to attain the requirements of commercially sound and added value requirements by the procurement professionals.
• Negotiations are also applicable in open specifications or specification that are less prescriptive to reach to an agreement with regard to better benefits, value for money as well as total package.
• In cases where there are opportunities of improving the offer of the supplier, post tendering negotiations are deemed of importance.
• Negotiations serve as channels of resolution of conflicts between the supplier and the buyer and are used in reaching at set agreements which would otherwise spill into serious disagreements.

There are a few tips that can be used by procurement and supply chain professionals to attain the value for negotiations. Among such tips that may see negotiation fruitful include:

• Separation of the individuals involved in the negotiations from the contentious issue
• Concentrate on the interest as opposed to the position. Knowledge on the interest of an individual tend to offer a clue on the reason behind them being in given scenario Knutsson & Thomasson (2014)
• Focus on using objective criteria in the sense that adopting fair standards for substantive question to the use of fair procedure in resolving the conflict of interest.
• Coming up with an option geared towards mutual gain: It is of importance and good if the aim of negotiators is to come up with a win-win result as it has the capability of building on the trust as well as offering an opportunity for improved and better innovation and relationship or association Witjes & Lozano (2016)
• Having and understanding alternative approaches to a negotiation agreement: This aid understands any cases of walking away from the point of negotiation and having alternative ways of securing the interests of the parties involved Moe (2014).

Best alternative to a negotiated agreement or BATNA offers an alternative course of action that can be adopted by a party in cases where negotiations have not been successful and hence reaching an agreement has turned out to be challenging. Among the situations that may result into failure of reaching an agree include diverse situations, an appeal to the ruling by a court of law, change to another negotiating partner, establishment of other forms of alliances as well as the execution of strikes. BATNA forms a fundamental aspect in the establishment of a successful negotiator. BATNA advocates for taking time out for a translation process that is explicit so as to ensure that an individual is not surrendering a good deal for an unknown BATNA. An example of application of BATNA in an organization could be the case where there is needs to renew the deadline of the insurance policy of the organization.

The Importance of Negotiation Strategies in the Procurement Cycle

The organization opts to perform a market check to establish the variations in the prices. The current insurer of the organization, call it Amex, has  been found to be increasing the rates by 8% and 12% every year for the last three years and the urination was not quite certain that it was getting the best deal. After a market price search, the organization n finds a carrier that offers a policy for 25% less than Amex’s renewal rate Kim et al. (2012). Very impressed, the organization moved very close to changing to the new insurer. But upon doing a little bit of digging and having access to some self-interest guidance from the insurer, the organization realized crucial coverage and term definitions that were hidden in the legalese of the two different policies.

Upon going through a process of translation to arrive at comparison of the two prices, the organization noticed that Amex which is its current insurer has been offering a better deal Hsu et al. (2013). From the given illustration, as opposed to assuming that the deal that was being offer matched the BATNA of the organization point by point, the organization took the initiative of fully comprehending the package of the negotiation that was yet to be offered by the alternative insurer.

The procurement and logistics process may be a sophisticated process and strategic procurement tends to be a process that covers the whole organization. It calls for the input from the various departments and the functional segments of the organization. It is for this reason that organization should come up with a strategic procurement team that would adopt the data from the strategic procurement process and use it in the development and implementation of a strategic procurement plan Tayur, Ganeshan & Magazine (2012). The procurement and supply cycle is an ideal tool in the development of the tenders as it offers the main steps that are to be followed during the process of procuring goods or services. The cycle is composed of 13 steps with the first step being understanding the needs and coming up with high level specification while the last step asset management or the end of life step of the asset.

These steps can be summarized into seven main steps. A number of processes are involved in coming up with a successful procurement and logistic plan:

Step 1: Carrying out an internal needs analysis

This is the beginning of the process and involves benchmarking the existing performance and thereafter identifying the targets and needs prior to the development of a procurement strategy. This step involves the collection of numerous varied kinds of data Seuring (2013). Data collection at this step plays a role in the benchmarking of the performance, costs of all the various departments or functions and the resources that have been used in the organisation alongside the existing and current growth and projections

Step 2: Carrying out an assessment of the supplier’s market

In this step, the potential countries are identified by the procurement team based on the feasibility of the sources of the components, raw materials and finished commodities. In cases where there are specific requires, the number of potential countries may be limited. An example can the case where the raw materials that is used by the organization can only be found in one country, then the remaining options remain narrower. For the case of manufactured goods, there tends to be a wider range of potential countries from which selection can be made. On the other hand, the supply of services may be tied to the technological requirements as dictated by the organization.

Step 3: Collection of supplier information

Careful selection of a supplier by an organization is very important as the failure or inability of a supplier to attain the selection criterion can culminate into significant losses for the organization in terms of finances Barney (2012). This thus calls for the evaluation of the performance and business reputation of the supplier as well as its financial statements, references and credit reports which must as well be given a close look. Where possible, the organization may make arrangements and evaluate the site of the supplier and shared with other customers on their experiences with the supplier. This process may also be fostered through the use of agents who have a vast understanding and familiarity with the stakeholder of the market.

In a bid to avoid possible disruption in the supply, the organization may opt to use more than a supplier that will also serve to create a competitive environment. Such a strategy may also be ideal for large multinational organizations as it permits centralized control at the same time enhancing more regional delivery.

Step 4: Establishment of a sourcing or outsourcing strategy

Based on the data that has been collected in the latter steps, an organization should be able to come up with outsourcing or sourcing strategy Christopher (2016). Among the examples of sourcing strategies that may be adopted include:

• Direct purchase which involves sends in a request for proposal or a request for quote to the selected suppliers
• Acquisition which involves making purchases from a desirable supplier
• Strategic partnership which involving engaging in an agreement with a chosen supplier
• The overall strategy of the business, the competitive nature of the supplier market place and the risk tolerance of the sourcing or outsourcing organization and the motivation for sourcing or outsourcing are among the determinant of the right strategy that the organization may adopt.

Step 5: Implementation of the sourcing strategy adopted

Sourcing strategies that encompass strategic or acquisition partnerships tend to be a major part of the undertakings. In such cases, the suppliers may have some characteristics among them:

• Being part of the broader business stagey
• Taking part in the activities that are of greatest importance to the buyer for example the supply of limited raw materials of the main product, gaining access to propriety knowledge treated to be high confidential
• One of a few suppliers with the certain equipment or technology and a pool os skilled labor

For the case of a direct purchase, the organisation may opt to start with an Expression of Interest, then prepare an RFP or in other cases RFQ and finally solicit bids from the suppliers that have been identified to be having the potential of making the supplies as part of a competitive bidding process. The following should be included in the RFP:

• Criteria for evaluation
• Structure of pricing
• Detailed material
• Requirements for service and delivery
• Specifications of the product or service
• Financial terms of the suppliers

Step 6: Negotiation with the supplier and choosing the winning bid

The chosen procurement team must engage in an evaluation of the responses drawn from the various supplier and utilize the criteria for evakuation.in some circumstances, the bidding suppliers may ask  for additional information that they may use to facilitate the most realistic and accurate bid. The organization should be in apposition to supply such inftomation to the entire bidder and offer them an opportunity to respond to the new information offered before they can proceed to making a decision Barney (2012). The received proposals, bids or quotes will be evaluated by the strategic procurement team which will then adopt the selection criteria and a procedure that would be used in the shortlisting the bidders in order to offer more elaborate proposal or make a choice on the first and second successful bidders in the case of viewing RFPs and RFQs. Upon the completion of the evaluation process, the first selected bidder will be involved in a contract negotiation with the strategic procurement team.

Step 7: Implementation of a transition plan or improvements in the contractual supply chain

The winning suppliers need to be invited to take part in the execution of improvements. This calls for the need to come up with a communication plan for determining and examining the performance which would be achieved using a measurable Key Performance Indicator. This is mostly applicable in the early stages when using a new supplier. The transition plans are mostly needed when changing between one supplier and another.

Transfer of information and establishments of linkages to logistics alongside communication systems is required when bringing on board new suppliers which should even include the provision of training and certain physical assets as may be dictated by the prevailing needs. Such transfers require time and expertise in setting and starting up Ahi & Searcy (2013). Agreements should be arrived at during this time frame and the contract negotiations with the time frames for deliveries and full operations Lane et al. (2013).

The transition that takes place between in-house provision of services to a service provider that is outsourced tend to be one of the riskier parts of global outsourcing of the services Jacobs, Chase & Lummus (2014). It is of great importance to check on the progress of transition to the outsourced service. Transparency and preparation are among the key aspects of the sourcing strategy.

[TRANSPORTATION OF ONE POWER TRANSFORMER 70/100 132/66 kV]

[1^ST JULY]

Issued by:

[SIEMENS DUBAI]

Simens Dubai, a for-profit organization that deals in the manufacture and assemblage of transformers is in the interest of transporting one power transformer 70/100 132/66 kV and is thus accepting proposals to those who respond to this Request for Proposal in a bid to find a qualified and skilled source to offer transportation of one power transformer 70/100 132/66 kV. Our goal with transportation of one power transformer 70/100 132/66 kV is to:

• Have the product reach the end consumer, Powered who in Trinidad and Tobago.
• Ensure a unit is 64 tons (64000kg or 141,095 pounds). Dimensions: 7.2m long x 3m wide x 3.55m high
• Ensure a timely delivery of a one power transformer 70/100 132/66 kV
• To enhance sustainability in the delivery process

The main objective of this Request Proposal thus remains to find a source that will offer the best overall value to Simens Dubai. In as much as price remains a significant factor, the other criteria will remain an integral aspect and thus a basis on to which an award decision will be made as more expensively explained in the Evaluation factors parts of this Request Proposal as shown below:

Below are the submission guidelines and requirements which are applicable to this Request for Proposal:

The first thing of greatest priority is that only individuals or firms that are qualified and have prior experience on similar projects as this should hand in proposals in response to this Request for Proposal Tayur et al. (2012)

Bidders who have the intention of making submissions in response to the proposal should ensure they notify the representative who is identified on the cover page on a date that is not later than 30^th June 2018.

Bidders must provide a list of at least five projects that are significantly similar to the project in question as part of their response in which they must as well include reference for each of the projects listed. There should also be a list of the examples of words Dekker et al. (2013).

There should be provided a technical proposal that is at most 15 pages which must be inclusive of a summary of the suggested solution alongside the resumes of all important personnel that took part in the task. Besides, the technical proposal should as well offer a proposal on the schedule and milestone as deemed applicable.

A price proposal that is not longer than 5 pages must be offered. The provided price proposal should be indicative of the entire fixed price of the project alongside the rates per hour and the approximated total number of hours in case Simens Dubai settles on it and awards a contract based on an hourly rate Ren, Skibniewski & Jiang (2012).

Signing of the proposal must be by the representative that has the mandate to commit the company of the bidder

The proposal should be accompanied by a standard set of conditions and terms of the bidder in case there are such. All the terms and conditions are flexible to negotiation.

Proposals must be received not later than 1^st July in order to stand a chance of being considered

The proposal must remain valid for a time period of 14 days

Simens Dubai intends choosing not more than two people or firms to engage in an elaborate discussion and will offer an award to either of these down-selected people or firms Johnson & Robinson (2014).

The purpose of this project os to assist and facilitate the transportation of a one power transformer 70/100 132/66 kV from Siemens Dubai to, Powered who in Trinidad and Tobago.

Simens Dubai specializes in the manufacture, assemblage, repair and distribution of transformers Green et al. (2012). The system in place at the moment does not allow the company to directly distribute the already manufactured or repaired transformers to the designation. This leaves the company with the task of outsourcing the services of an external provider who distributes the finished products at a cost that is met by the company on behalf of the consumer.

The project is the transportation of a one transformer to Power who in Trinidad and Tobago. The goal of the project is thus to ensure timely and effective delivery of a transformer form Simens Dubai to the end user which os Powered that intends to use the power for the generation of electricity that would be used for various purposes Diggs & Roman (2012). The company treats the cost implications of this project with the seriousness it deserves and is ready to pay value for money in return to services that meet the set out objectives and aims.

The scope of this project will be confined within the timely and effective transportation of the one power transformer 70/100 132/66 kV, the weight of the unit is 64 tons (64000kg or 141,095 pounds). Dimensions: 7.2m long x 3m wide x 3.55m high. The transportation must be done in such a way that it enables the client to install the transformer for the intended use not later than 21^st July. The transformer must thus be delivered in a good and functional condition that would aid in saving time in returning it back to the company for repairs or exchange with another due to failure Monczka et al. (2015).

RFP and Project Timelines

The timeline of the Request for Proposal is as shown

Request for Proposal Issuance 3^rd June

Selection of Top Bidders or

Notification to Unsuccessful Bidders 18^th June

Beginning of Negotiation 5^th July

Contract Award or

Notification to the Unsuccessful Bidders 10^th July

The date in which the project is to be completed is 25^th July. Bidders are allowed to suggest dates earlier or later and this will undergo an evaluation as deemed appropriate.

Simens Dubai intends to spend a sum of $45000 for the project.

Simens Dubai Company will gauge the proposals submitted based on a number of factors, as shown below with cost factor having the priority:

• Examples of work
• The responsive nature to the set of requirements that are provided in the Request of Proposal issued
• Relevant expire and performance in the past as captured in the proposal Barney (2012)
• Cost inclusive of an assessment of the entire cost of ownership
• The technical experience or expertise of the bidder and the staff of the bidder

Simens Dubai company reserves the right to offer the award to the bidder that has demonstrated and presented to Simens Dubai company as established solely by Simens Dubai Company in a discretion that is absolutely its.

In case of a conflict between a bidder and the company, the following steps will be adopted in the resolution of the resolution:

Identification of the source of the conflict: This involves searching for as much information as can be obtained on the reason behind a conflict and will be achieved through asking questions in a bid to establish the causes.

Looking beyond the incident: The Company is alive to the fact that in most case, it is not necessarily the situation but the view on the specific situation that results into the development of anger and thus leading to a shouting match Hugos (2018)

Requesting solutions: In this stage, the company will be ready and willing to engage the conflicting party on what to do to make things better than they are moving forward.

Coming up with solutions which can be supported by both disputants: The Company will try as much as it will be able to establish a course of action that is perceived as the most acceptable The merits of the different ideas will be pointed out not just from the views of each other but will regards to the benefits that are accrued to the organization Ross (2013).

Agreement: This tends to be the final step of the conflict resolution guide. It will involve a handshake between the conflicting parties followed by an agreement of working together among the parties. In some cases as would be deemed necessary, the company may extend to coming up with a write contract that bears action and time frames. Various procedures will be applicable in the resolution of the conflicts among them appeals, counselling, mediation, and administrative hearing.

Artificial Intelligence, IA, refers to a section computer science that gives a lot of focus on the coming up with intelligent machines that are able to react and work like humans. Among the activities that computer having the artificial intelligence software installed in them and designed for such include recognition of speech, solving problems, leaning as well as planning. There are two main ways in which artificial intelligence is classified: Weak AI also called narrow AI and strong AI. A weak AI is system designed in such a way that it can only perform a single task. A strong AI, also called artificial general intelligence, on the other hand defines an AI system that has generalized cognitive abilities of the human beings and hence when approached with a unique task, the level of intelligence is high enough to develop a solution.  A typical AI is able to perceive its surrounding and act in such ways that maximize their chances of sacksful attainment of their goals Stadtler (2015).

The intent function of an AI may be simple or complex and the gaols may be induced or explicitly be defined. For example, in the case where the AI is programmed for goals of reinforcement learning, it can be induced implicitly through the reward of some of the behaviour types while punishing others. Still, goals can be induced by an evolutionary system through the use of fitness function in the mutation and preferential replication of AI systems that are scoring high. This is the same procedure that animals followed in their evolution to innately desire some foals among them looking for foods, the breeding of dogs through artificial selection to exhibit various desired traits. Other AI systems among them nearest-neighbour use analogy in reasoning instead and thus are generally not awarded specific goals only for the extent that gaols are to some implicit in their training data Hsu et al. (2013). It is still possible to benchmark such systems should the non-gals system be formed to be a system having its goal as successfully attaining its task that has narrowly been classified.

In most cases, AI revolves around the use of algorithms. An algorithm refers to a group of unambiguous instructions that can be executed through the use of a mechanical computer. Often, a complex algorithm is built on the top of the other algorithm which is simpler. Most of the algorithms have the ability to learn from data and are bale to foster them through learning new strategies or rules that have managed to work well in the past. They also themselves have the capability of writing other algorithms Mishra, Devaraj & Vaidyanathan (2013).

The success of the development of the software would serve to fasten and ease task in the operation of the pharmaceutical plant but will also be accompanied by challenges of equal measure Ross (2013). One of such challenges will be retrenchment of a very large population of the employees of the plant as the work that they would be meant to do will be done using the software that is not only fast but also very accurate. The developed software will aid in solving both simple and complex challenges and problems. By lying off a large population of people, the origination renders the skills and experience of such people useless besides reducing the amount of active labor force in the plant operation. This would in turn tend to shift the operations in the organization to be more of machine based. Errors that result from technical hitches or lapses in the operations of the software may lead to very divesting impacts to the organization in terms of finance that may serve to completely paralyze its operations Ross (2013)

Twitter: The social media platforms are increasingly gaining popularity and becoming primary information sources owing to their availability and ease of access. Among the benefits of twitter include:

• It is able to attract more research due to its capability of receiving more attention
• It makes finding and following conversations simple
• Gathering, sorting and expanding the various searches has been enabled through the use of the hash tag norms
• Ease of retrieval since most of the information is in most cases cantered about a hash tag
• It offers favourable personnel experience.

• Possibility of bias in the information collection
• The level of accuracy of the information depends on the number of rewets which may not necessarily be true and reliable Yin et al. (2014)
• Magazine and newspapers: These are print forms of information that focus on a specific object and may cover the subject over a certain period of time after which such publications are eliminated. Among the pros include:
• Reliable source of information as the printed content is done only after verification of the validity of such information.
• Easily accessible information sources
• Ease of retrieval of the information and hence can be used for future reference
• Among the cons is that the publications are done periodically and may not yield a lot as far as getting to the bottom of the real issue is concerned.

Advantages

• Easily available from other sources and could have been used in the previous research hence facilitating the process of further information gathering
• Saves time
• Saves cost
• A lot of the work required had been executed before

Cons

• Possibility of inaccuracy
• Chances of the data being outdate
• The data might at time not cover the specific samples of interest during data collection

Inventories

• Offer precise and elaborate information on a subject
• Are indicative of the various states of the author
• Offer written, graphic and printed information

Disadvantages

• May at time fail to be a thorough objective source
• Verification of the information is a challenge especially when the author is no more
• In other cases for example those extracted from the government sources could be unclear in terms of the author
• These documents call for evaluation in collaboration with the other available sources of information to establish if the current information is in line with or is exceptional to the preceding established patterns.

10 Question Answers

• What was the production within the last year?
• What was the relation between the production and consumption within the last year?
• How does the consumption last year compare within the other previous years?
• How does the production last year compare within the other previous years?
• What factors influenced demand within the last year?
• Compare the change in the population in within the last three years?
• How has the population change impacted the demand of those last three years?
• How has the population change impacted the production of those last three years?
• What is the trend in the consumption in the last one year through the different months of the year?
• What is the trend in the production in the last one year through the different months of the year?

Inventory refers to the finished profits that are accumulated by a company before they are sold to the final consumers. On another hand, the inventory may mean raw materials that are used in the production of the finished goods as the goods pass through the process of production. There are mainly four types of inventory: raw materials, finished goods, and work in program and MRO goods. The raw materials inventory is used in the process of conversion of the manufacturer in the production of components, finished products or subassemblies. This type of inventory items could be extracted materials or commodities which have been produced or extracted by the firm.

Work in progresses composed of all the assemblies, materials, subassemblies and parts that are under processing or are in line waiting to undergo processing within the system. This category is inclusive of generally all the mayoral ranging from the raw matters to those waiting final inspection. Finished goods inventory defined those that are ready for used by the end user. Inventory management refers to the regulation of the stock and inventory. It aids in the supervision of the flow of goods as they move from the warehouses of the manufacturers to related facilities to their points of sale. It may also refer to the ordering, storage and usage of the inventory of a company: raw materials, finished goods and components.

Stock turnover ratio=cost of goods sold/average inventory

=3466/1433=2.4

Current ratio=current assets/ current liabilities

=8316/6230=1.3348

Acid quick ratio=cash +cash equivalents short term investments+ current receivable/current liabilities

=300+1400+1300+1850+925+1075+1466/ (1200+1400+1700+270+250+230+100+120+60+900)

=8316/6260=1.328

Profit ratios=cost of goods sold/revenue

3466/8316=0.416

Return on Assets=Net income/average total assets

=8316/7445=1.117

Gearing ratio=long term liabilities/capital employed

=9790/7445=1.3150

Stock turnover and liquidity rations are used in measuring how much time on average the inventory has been sold and replacement done during a financial year. It is used in establishing the liquidity of the inventory Loader (2013).

The results of the ratios indicate that the organization is making profits and hence is stable in terms of its business operations. The business is thus competitive and can survive competition.

Just-in Time strategy would be ideal for the organization. It would help the organisation buy only those units that are needed by the customer Ameyaw, Mensah, & Osei-Tutu (2012).

The stock turnover ratio shows that the company is high liquid and thus in a position to easily dispose its resources. Stock turnover ratio is used in establishing the liquidity of the inventory.

Conventional manufacturing strategy would be used in delivery of the output from one department to another upon completing it. It would ensure there are no idling machinery and employees in the organisation Wisner, Tan, & Leong (2014).

References

Ahi, P., & Searcy, C. (2013). A comparative literature analysis of definitions for green and sustainable supply chain management. Journal of cleaner production, 52, 329-341

Ambe, I. M., & Badenhorst-Weiss, J. A. (2012). Procurement challenges in the South African public sector. Journal of transport and supply chain management, 6(1)

Ameyaw, C., Mensah, S., & Osei-Tutu, E. (2012). Public procurement in Ghana: the implementation challenges to the public procurement law 2003 (Act 663). International Journal of Construction supply chain management, 2(2), 55-65

Ashby, A., Leat, M., & Hudson-Smith, M. (2012). Making connections: a review of supply chain management and sustainability literature. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 17(5), 497-516

Barney, J. B. (2012). Purchasing, supply chain management and sustained competitive advantage: The relevance of resource?based theory. Journal of supply chain management, 48(2), 3-6

Brandenburg, M., Govindan, K., Sarkis, J., & Seuring, S. (2014). Quantitative models for sustainable supply chain management: Developments and directions. European Journal of Operational Research, 233(2), 299-312

Christopher, M. (2016). Logistics & supply chain management. Pearson UK.

management (Vol. 17). Springer Science & Business Media

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