Executives from Nestlé, McCain, The Source and Lexmark share supply chain experiences
May 17, 2013
by
MM&D staff
MISSISSAUGA, Ontario—No matter the improvements in forecasting, demand planning and predictive modelling made over the last 40 years, there is one figure that refuses to improve: eight percent of items are out-of-stock and not available on store shelves at any given time, and during promotions that number jumps to approximately 15 percent.
Mike Doherty, a partner at Cambridge, Ontario-based Demand Clarity Inc, and André Martin, vice-president of flowcasting for JDA Software Group Inc in Scottsdale, Arizona, presented those figures at a technology session held during the 2013 Supply Chain Canada conference.
The pair told the audience in Mississauga, Ontario that although the out-of-stock figure hasn’t changed in decades, there is no reason for that situation to continue. They believe that by using the flowcasting methodology, the out-of-stock number can be reduced to zero (or near zero).
Flowcasting collects data at the retail point-of-sale (POS) and uses it exclusively as the sole source information throughout the entire supply chain. Rather than having multiple forecasts (one compiled by the retailer, one by the distributor, one by the manufacturer, etc), the flowcasting process sends one POS forecast throughout the entire supply chain.
Doherty and Martin provide a more complete explanation of flowcasting, and discuss the advantages it brings and the challenges it presents in the video below.
To see more MM&D original videos click here for the full list.
In addition to the flowcasting session, delegates to the conference had the opportunity to listen to a wide variety of industry experts including:
For more Supply Chain Canada coverage, see the coming May-June issue of MM&D magazine.