Dimensioneringsanalys av säkerhetslager under stora variationer i efterfrågan

Abstract

This Bachelor thesis was conducted in order to investigate a matter concerning inventory management at Volvo Car Corporation in Torslanda, Sweden. Specifically, what has been investigated is how variations in demand of spare parts affect the size of the safety stock of the firm’s local distribution center in Russia, as opinions within the firm have raised the question of the safety stocks used eventually being too high. Further on, the aim of the study has been to evaluate the implications of lowering the safety stock in terms of the number of weekly forecasted quantities that the safety stock is set to represent. The practical methodology of the study has been carried out in connection to the facilities of Volvo Car Corporation and the theoretical framework has been built in connection to the School of Business, Economics and Commercial Law. Using quantitative methods on data for 25 articles, re-creations of the historical safety stocks used during the analysed period have been performed. What has been found is that the safety stocks have amounted high quantities. These safety stocks have not been used during the greater part of the period, yet with shorter periods of high demand having excessive effects on inventory service levels. Conclusions and discussions from the study involve exempli gratia smoothing of demand levels, problems related to the used definition for service level measurement and above all the forecast model being harmfully affected by the high variations in demand.