54,000 different car parts kept in stock

Press, 14 October 1976, Page 23

54,000 different car parts kept in stock

Adequate after-sales service is important in today s competitive car market, but even with the best will in the world on the part of dealers, it cannot be provided without a readily available supply of replacement parts. The parts and accessories warehouse of General Motors, in Upper Hutt, is a vast building containing row upon row of

shelves with bins and boxes holding one or more of the many parts. Some 54,000 different automotive parts and 4000 Frigidaire parts are stocked in the 170.0005 q. ft warehouse.

The total number of pieces held number well over five million, and their value is also well over SSM. Spare parts held by dealers throughout the country total a further

S6.M. About 325 orders are received each day at the General Motors warehouse, representing some 5000 items required. These items are dispatched daily in some 600 packages with an average daily weight of 18 tonnes.

This volume of outward goods, together with the 22 sea-freighters, 12 1.5.0. containers and 450 other cases received each month

from both overseas and local sources is handled by a staff of 98 people. As with an increasing number of large parts operations, the G.M. operation relies on computer control of parts lists. Every month the computer prints a stock report several inches thick, and among the information included is the number of parts in stock, their des-

cription. their location in the warehouse, the number of pieces on order, any reference to parts which may have superseded certain components, the model of vehicle to which they apply, and the last two dealers to whom such parts were supplied — in case these dealers may hold a part otherwise out of stock. A more comprehensive

listing is printed out by the computer every month, and this list also shows the sales of each part in the previous six months — from this, trends can be established and overseas orders updated accordingly. Another list, printed weekly, shows outstanding orders, so that delays can be dealt with and weaknesses in supply revealed and corrected. When a model goes out of production — and currently this applies to such models as the Vauxhall Victor and Cresta — parts continue to be held as long as it is felt they are likely to be needed. The distribution of spare parts from the warehouse is handled in two distinct methods. The normal flow is through the basic weekly requests from dealers in order to keep their stocks at an adequate level. The second is the V.O.R. situation meaning, “Vehicles Off Road” and is a signal for the warehouse to obtain a part on an emergency basis. In either instance, the order is fed into the computer, which then prints out a list of the items required in the sequence in which the parts are stocked within the warehouse complex. This means that the storeman can start collecting the various items required from the bins starting at one end of the warehouse and gradually progressing through until he reaches the area in which the goods are packaged ready for dispatch. The computer automatically records the dispatch of the items and amends the stock held records accordingly. The aim of the total operation is to ensure that a part is obtained in the least possible time for any vehicle need.

This aerial view of General Motors’ motor-vehicle assembly plant at Trentham also shows the latest expansion at the left of the building, increasing floor area to more than 450,000 sq. ft. The plant is on an 86-acre site by Trentham racecourse, and was opened by Sir Keith Holyoake in August, 1967.

Forward stock requirement forecasts are based on the sales which have occurred over the last month, three months and six months. To aid in this exercise, the computer is programmed to automatically submit data for this review. Twenty per cent of the total ■ items stocked make up 80 per cent of the items required for order.