Before our project was launched, the stock control process was managed manually (by the stock control officer) based, essentially, on a periodic re-order point method. The inventory positions ( that comprised only stock on hand, without considering planned receipts) were reviewed weekly (every Friday); if stock on hand was below an arbitrarily specified re-order point, an order was placed for a quantity that represented the average demand over a certain number of previous weeks. The prespecified re-order quantities were suggested years a go by the Managing Director and never updated since then. This means that recently introduced codes are not even associated with a suggested re-order level rendering the ordering process even more arbitrary in nature. In addition to the weekly re-ordering system, if stock is urgently needed for a particular item to facilitate an order, the corresponding transaction would occur on the day the problem was experienced. The process involved the use of a paper-based report generated by the data system utilised
by the company, called Opera. Opera also facilitates the company’s administrative and financial procedures and it supports the whole information related infrastructure. In terms of stock ordering, data on all transactions carried out against each item is available. Similarly, additional information, like current stock levels, quantity on order, etc., may also become available, if necessary, in order to inform the ad hoc decisions made by the stock control officer when re-ordering items.