Procurement and Pre-production Inventory Management

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Problem:

A tier one supplier wanted to increase production capacity without enlarging plant size. Inventory costs for raw materials and finished products had become excessive, and cycle time was unacceptably long.

The Crowley Solution:

Purchase production parts on behalf of the customer. 

Crowley assumed purchasing responsibilities for components in the United States, where we consolidated them before shipping to Venezuela, handling all customs clearances and transportation management: air, sea, and inland trucking. In Latin America, parts were deconsolidated and processed at our warehouse for secure storage until the client needs them, then repackaged in their kanban containers and transported to the clients plants on request

Result:

Because Crowley maintained ownership of components until they were delivered to the plant, the customers manufacturing space increases. Owning the raw product for less time lowers the customers inventory costs. And this combination of increase efficiency and pre-positioned raw materials inventory also lowers cycle times.