INVENTORY MANAGEMENT

INVENTORY MANAGEMENT

Wal-Mart also made the use of bar- coding and radio frequency technology to manage its inventories. Using the bar codes and the goods could be directed to the appropriate dock. Wal-mart developed his own ability to satisfiers his personal needs of its shop. The shop can choose from numbers of plans make it comes true.

For example, there was an increasing delivery system by which stores located within a certain distance of a geographical center could receive replenishment within a day.(explaining the benefits of the system Walton said” I can walk in the satellite room, where our technicians sit in front of the computer screens talking on the phone to any stores that might be having a problem with the system, and just looking over their shoulders for minute or two will tell me a lot about how a particular day is going.” ) and it’s easy for our customers choose products in wal-mart.

Wal-Mart does some investment very heavily in IT industry and communications systems to effectively make sales and merchandise inventories in shops across the whole country. Wal-Mart set up its own satellite communication system in 1983.

The order management and the replenishment of products is help with the computers through point- of – sales system. Through this system we can see the level of merchandise stock and its track the sales.

Wal-mart also has the use of sophisticated algorithm system which is for forecast the exact quantities of each item to be delivered. And the centralized inventory data system is using for the personal at the whole stores could find out the level fo inventories and the product in different location. If the product isn’t on the system, the system will update every to check every product.

Wal-mart also made the use of bar- coding and radio frequency technology to manage its inventories. Using the bar codes and the goods could be directed to the appropriate dock.

Wall-mart uses a bar-code system to do its business.

First of all bar-code system is a network of hardware and software, consisting primarily of computers, printers, scanners, infrastructure, and supporting software. Barcode systems are used to automate data collection where hand recording is neither timely nor cost effective.

Bar coding systems are not radio-frequency identification (RFID) systems even though the companies that provide barcode equipment will often also provide RFID equipment and many companies use both technologies as part of larger resource management systems.

Bar-code system of Wal-mart

Process: the first step in bar-code system of wal-mart is seek the materials from suppliers. Because the company always regard how to give customers the reasonable price, so they spent a significant amount of time to meeting suppliers or vendors and understand their cost structure to make sure each supplier they chose can cut down their total cost.

After that, their employee make a record for each product, which include that one is identify the pallet, the other is identify the location from where the stock had to be picked up. Besides, the distribution centers should ensure a steady and consistent flow of product to support the supply function.

Then, Due to different barcodes were used to label different products, shelves and bins in a center. So each merchandise barcode in the data base can guide employee check their inventory clearly.

At last, when the inventory wants to turn into the real goods, they also should experience this process. And according to the difference between two barcodes of product to confirm whether the goods is right or wrong and concern it is a defective goods or not. We show the details process by a flow as following.