A. Authority for
the centralization of management and control of warehousing is set forth in
R.I. Gen. Laws §
37-2-12(1).
1. Under the jurisdiction of the Chief
Purchasing Officer or his designee, action as appropriate shall be taken and
continuously maintained to assure least cost availability of supplies,
foodstuffs, and other commodities necessary to the efficiency of Agency
services and State Government.
2. A
decision to classify a storage facility as a storeroom or as a warehouse shall
be at the discretion of the Chief Purchasing Officer.
B. Each agency, within its jurisdiction,
shall be responsible for assessment of current systems and procedures and to
assure compliance with these regulations. Requests for assistance in the
implementation of these procedures shall be addressed to the Chief Purchasing
Officer.
C. Cost effective
controls, either manual or computerized, shall be implemented and maintained to
achieve appropriate inventory and warehousing objectives.
1. The following inventory control
techniques, as defined in a glossary published by the American Production and
Inventory Control Society (APICS), and held to be widely accepted practices
relative to inventory control, shall be implemented where appropriate.
a. Reorder point determination based on
factors of delivery lead time and safety stock to assure timely order without
incurring stock-outs of critical supplies, foodstuffs, or other
commodities.
b. Inventory
classification procedure to stratify inventory items by value based on factors
of unit cost and usage, with controlling inventory policy dependent upon value.
Such inventory classification is known as "ABC" inventory classification or
"Pareto" distribution.
c. Economic
lot sizing for determination of replenishing order quantity utilizing one or
more of a variety of proven techniques and incorporating factors of usage, lead
time, acquisition cost inventory, carrying costs, and unit cost.
d. Safety stock calculation based upon
inventory cost and criticality of stock-out situations. Factors of even/uneven
usage and varying replenishment lead time shall be determined and applied as
appropriate.
2.
Efficient warehouse operation shall require, but is not limited to, the
following procedures as appropriate:
a.
Physical lot control procedures or methods shall be used to prevent or minimize
economic loss of inventory due to deterioration in storage, obsolescence, or
expired data code or shelf life.
b.
Cycle counting of inventory or periodic physical inventories as prescribed
shall be taken to reconcile inventory balances and assure highest inventory
accuracy.
c. Inventory Accuracy
objectives shall be established based upon inventory stratification by value
(ABC analysis) and accuracy levels. These shall be published and monitored. Any
required corrective action as a result of these procedures shall be taken by
appropriate supervisory personnel.
d. Inventory location systems as appropriate
shall be implemented to maximize space utilization and efficiency of order
picking, inventory accessibility, and prevention of accidental
injury.
e. Safety rules shall be
developed, communicated and enforced to prevent accidental injury due to
improper operation of material handling equipment, to ensure routine use of
personal safety equipment, and to preclude other breach of safety
rules.
f. Housekeeping and general
warehouse cleanliness shall be maintained to a high standard.
g. Security of warehouse facilities shall be
of a quality to prevent loss of inventory due to theft or pilferage, or damage
or destruction to facility due to fire or other external causes resulting from
failure to properly secure the facility.
D. At any time, the Chief Purchasing Officer
may direct or require reports, presentations, or field audits to measure levels
of compliance and shall direct correction of deficiencies discovered.
E. As required under routine established
procedure or as directed by the Chief Purchasing Officer or his designee, user
agencies of supplies, foodstuffs and other warehoused commodities shall prepare
periodic forecasts of requirements to identify and report upward or downward
shifts in projected usage, thereby mitigating inventory surpluses or shortages
resulting from inventory replenishment decisions or techniques based solely on
historical usage.
