The subject of this thesis is to propose a new inventory management system, that was found in particular company as one of the biggest shortages, which the company currently faces. The first part of thesis contains theoretical background focused on inventory management, expecially on function and types of supplies, ordering systems of supplies and on methods of their inventory. The second part focuses on the analysis of the current state in company processes. Following the theoretical part, there were suggested appropriate inventory management systems to simplify the work in warehousing and logistic, but also to bring economic benefits to the whole company. In addition to these proposals were included also possible solutions of less problematic processes.

This study examines the development process to create new functionality for a fuel inventory management system used by Preem AB. The reason why Preem AB recruited students to take on this challenge was due to the potential improvements that could be made to their exisiting system. This study will explain how the system can be improved by developing new functionality from existing data. The aim of this study is to provide ideas, guidelines and answers on how new functionality can benefit their fuel inventory management system. Preem AB is Sweden’s largest producer of fuel and contributes with about half of all the fuel consumed in Sweden [1]. Therefore, a lot of aspects needs to be taken into consideration. Having good control of the fuel inventory is good for the economic viability. The company risks losing millions because of deficiencies in their inventory management system, which is currently the case. One way to minimize this problem is to apply certain funtionality to their system. The students who participated in the project were given different responsibilities; the areas the project focused on were the development of a new graphical user interface, database management and also the development of new functionality – which is the sole purpose of this study. A specification and prototypes for each function has been developed to clarify how the inventory management system can be optimized. The specifications are intended to describe how the functionality can optimize the fuel inventory management system. The prototypes are programs that are implemented to answer the problem formulation (see section 1.2). The inventory management system can be more efficient and benefit through the innovation of new functionality. One of many benefits may include a function that takes over the role of an employee, meaning it will replace the manual labor usually required for the job. There are many opportunities to create new functionality such as this, which was in fact discovered early in the project. The functionality that were selected to be implemented consisted of those who were most likely to benefit Preem AB. / I denna studie undersöks utvecklingsprocessen för att skapa ny funktionalitet till Preem AB:s lagerhanteringssystem som hanterar drivmedelsvarulagret. Anledningen till att Preem AB rekryterade studenter för att ta sig an denna utmaning var på grund av de potentiella möjligheterna i förbättring av flera komponenter i lagerhanteringssystemet. Studien ska förklara hur systemet kan förbättras genom att utveckla ny funktionalitet från befintlig data. Målet med studien är att ge idéer, riktlinjer och svar på hur ny funktionalitet kan förbättra Preems hantering av drivmedelsvarulagret. Preem AB är Sveriges största producent av drivmedel och bidrar med ungefär hälften av allt drivmedel som förbrukas i Sverige. [1] Preem AB har därmed mycket i åtanke då ansvaret för stora mängder drivmedel är riskfyllt inom många aspekter. Att ha god kontroll över drivmedelsvarulagret är viktigt för den ekonomiska lönsamheten. Bolaget kan förlora miljonbelopp på grund av brister i deras lagerhanteringssystem. Ett sätt att minimera problemet kan vara att applicera ny funktionalitet i deras system. Studenterna som deltog i projektet fick olika ansvarsområden, de områden som Preem AB sökte hjälp i var utvecklandet av det grafiska gränssnittet, databashantering och området denna studie sätter fokus på – utveckling av ny funktionalitet. En kravspecifikation för varje funktion och prototyper i form av kod har tagits fram. Kravspecifikationerna är till för att beskriva hur funktionaliteten kan optimera lagerhanteringssystemet. Prototyperna är program som är implementerade att kunna besvara problemformuleringarna (se avsnitt 1.2). Genom nyskapandet av funktionalitet kan lagerhanteringssystemet effektiviseras och på så sätt erhålla ekonomiska fördelar – en fördel kan vara att en funktion tar över rollen som en anställd har. Det fanns många möjligheter att skapa ny funktionalitet, den funktionalitet som valdes att utvecklas var den som mest troligt skulle gynna Preem AB.

Магистерская диссертация посвящена разработке методического инструментария, направленного на совершенствование системы управления оборотными средствами на предприятии. В качестве научной новизны выявлена обратно-пропорциональная корреляция между рентабельностью оборотных активов и оборачиваемостью запасов предприятия, а также установлена обратно-пропорциональная зависимость между инфляцией и оборачиваемостью запасов. Автором предложен методический подход к определению потребности в запасах материалов на основе календарного плана-графика, разработаны методические основы для внедрения категорийного подхода к управлению закупками на предприятии. Полученные результаты и рекомендации могут использоваться специалистами предприятий при разработке тактических и стратегических мероприятий по управлению оборотными средствами. / The master's thesis is devoted to the development of methodological tools aimed at improving the working capital management system at the enterprise. As a scientific novelty, an inversely proportional correlation between the profitability of current assets and the turnover of stocks of the enterprise was revealed, and an inversely proportional relationship between the turnover of stocks and inflation was also established. The author has proposed a methodological approach to determining the need for stocks of materials based on a calendar schedule, developed methodological foundations for introduction of a categorical approach to procurement management at enterprise. The obtained results and recommendations can be used by specialists of enterprises in the development of tactical and strategic management measures for working capital.

M. Tech. (Department of Process Control and Computer Systems, Faculty of Engineering and Technology), Vaal University of Technology. / Radio Frequency Identification Technology (RFID) technology is increasingly being used in multiple applications due to its low cost and ability to provide a high quality of identification. The cost benefit of RFID system is seen in the reduction in labor required to perform routine tasks such as inventory. With RFID, inventory-related tasks can be done in substantially less time compared to other commonly used auto-identification systems. Recent research has illustrated the application of RFID in multiple application scenarios. RFID can be used for real-time patient identification and monitoring in hospitals, but also for product expiration-date management in retail industries. Some enterprises in South Africa uses a combination of RFID technology and Internet of Things (IoT) to detect misplaced products and to detect low stock levels. Furthermore, RFID is also used for inventory management in libraries as discussed in this dissertation. In this dissertation, a combination of RFID and ZigBee technologies was used to reduce the time spent to perform inventory in libraries. An inventory management system was designed, simulated and built in order to count and locate books inside a library hence improving inventory process time in libraries. The overall results were satisfactory which lead to the achieving of the objectives set in this study.