2013 SMART Conference

2013 SMART Conference

Come along to the SMART 2013 Conference and hear Horizon Inventory Director, John Allen talk about:

Achieving your full potential from aftermarket inventory optimisation

The Abstract of John’s paper is as follows:

Those lucky enough to have children know that that they are all wonderful in their own way. While we may say we treat them the same, we really know they often respond and develop differently. Why then, in spite of the differences across our inventory ranges, are we often guilty of managing SKUs as if they were all the same?

Consolidated Bearing Company (CBC) and Federal Mogul (FM) really understand the individual personalities of their products and use this knowledge and new optimisation approaches to improve turnover, service levels, profitability and ROA. Even ‘slow movers’ can shine.

Three strategies to help lift your inventory performance are developed:

  1. Clearly Understanding Challenges and Opportunities. CBC has 150,000 items across 60 warehouses, and everyone has to be managed at little cost while being ‘in tune’ with the business climate and linked to the strategies for each segment. Patterns ‘learned’ from millions of orders take inventory management to a new level.
  2. Being Complete and Creative: Over 20 variables need to be factored into optimal inventory decisions. Eliminating processes and automating decisions has helped FM achieve a five fold productivity improvement. At CBC and FM, management now set policies, and details are handled by a ‘bolted-on’ auto-pilot.
  3. Having the Confidence and Courage to Change: ‘One size fits all’ assumptions and traditional wisdom on forecasting and planning have to be discarded. Innovations can take people out of their comfort zone but changes can actually be easier, yield better returns and create strategic advantage.

The presentation will be part of the Network Planning and Optimisation stream.

If you are planning to go to the SMART Conference please come to the session or else look us up during the two days or at the Dinner.

Find out more about the SMART Conference by visiting the SMART Conference web site.