With Brexit having passed 5 months ago, and the final stages of lockdown beginning to lift, there are real signs that the UK economy is starting to expand, with the government forecasting 7.3% growth over the next 12 months.
In addition, there have been national news reports this week of high-profile stock shortages occurring in both food and drinks, and industrial sectors.
To ensure that your business is fully prepared for potential demand increases, and avoids some of the shortage issues recently reported, now is a good time to review your current inventory performance.
- Check that your forecasting system is considering future predicted demand. Manual intervention may be required.
- Ensure your company sales and operational planning process is robust enough to handle the potential growth.
- Review supplier lead times and ensure they are still realistic post-lockdown.
- Where possible re-align supplier base to a more locally sourced product range.
- Re-evaluate safety stocks to allow both for increased supply chain disruption and its impacts on lead time, and demand increases.
- Act now to tackle failing suppliers with inconsistent product supply.
- Ensure master data reflects current lead time and safety stock arrangements.
Inventory optimisation involves getting the right balance of stock in the right quantities. If your business requires support around inventory optimisation, Davies & Robson would be delighted to help. Call us on 01327 349090