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The government often imposes requirements on their contractors for the purpose of monitoring and control. Many government contractors utilize a matrix organization structure to help cope with the government's ever changing and challenging requirements. It is both the government requirements and this matrix organization which lead to the need for special information and features in a government contractor's manufacturing/material control system. This report specifically addresses those features which would be desirable in a government contractor's MRP system. These features involve the operation of the master schedule, the bill of material, the MRP software, the inventory files, purchasing, and shop floor control. No single government requirement is in direct conflict with the intent of an MRP system. However, the interpretation of these requirements vary within the government agencies and between government contractors. The contractor, the appropriate government agency, and the software vendor, if applicable, need to work together to implement a system which satisfies both internal management needs and government requirements. This report contains features and considerations which should be evaluated when a government contractor is implementing an MRP system.

Title:  Purchasing 4.0: An Exploratory Multiple Case Study on the Purchasing Process Reshaped by Industry 4.0 in the Automotive Industry Authors: Simon Gottge, Torben Menzel Background: Rapidly transforming technologies and changing customer expectations trigger the fourth industrial revolution. This development, often referred to as ‘Industry 4.0’, is characterized by autonomously communicating and interacting technologies throughout the supply chain. Simultaneously, the importance of efficient purchasing processes in the automotive sector keeps growing as outsourcing and globalization tendencies increase. While Industry 4.0 publications are on the rise, little research is carried out on the impact on related supply chain functions, especially purchasing, calling for scientific investigations. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to explore the influence of Industry 4.0 on purchasing at automotive manufacturers and further derive a visionary model of the reshaped purchasing process within the adjusted Purchasing 4.0 context. Method: The deductive research is carried out as exploratory multiple case study. In three cases, qualitative data from four dyads is analyzed. Interviews hereby were conducted with 23 participants representing different perspectives, also including case-independent experts. Findings & conclusion: Considering the influence of Industry 4.0 on purchasing, the research reveals, that new technologies and changes in manufacturing, integration and business context will impact the purchasing scope, collaboration, structure, and infrastructure. These changes include new components and different suppliers, a cross-functional and deeper supplier integration as well as collaboration platforms, holistic networks and assisting IT-systems. In the reshaped purchasing process, strategic sub processes will become highly integrated and technology supported, leading to a co-creation of specification, explorative supplier selection, parameter-based quotations and negotiations, and autonomous re-negotiations of changes. The operative purchasing process on the other hand is strongly shaped by real-time data usage, creating interactive call-offs, real-time tracking, proactive trouble shooting and holistic supplier evaluations. Keywords: Purchasing; Industry 4.0; Purchasing 4.0; Purchasing Process; Automotive

<p><strong>Title:</strong> Efficient purchasing in an organization: the importance of qualified purchasing personnel (A case study of ABB, Västerås)</p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong>Purpose:</strong> The purpose of this research is to learn and present how ABB (Västerås) perceives the role of the purchasing function, and the importance of involving qualified purchasing personnel in the purchasing process. By evaluating their:</p><p>·           Level of participation in the overall corporate planning process,</p><p>·           Relationship to suppliers and other internal units,</p><p>·           Responsibilities toward the organization, for determining how they contribute to its efficiency</p><p> </p><p><strong>Method:</strong>  This thesis is a case study on ABB (Västerås). We have used a qualitative method to conduct the research. We have also obtained primary data through face-to-face interviews and secondary data by an extensive literature search using peer-reviewed articles, textbooks, search engines, and the MDH database.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Conclusion:</strong> Subsequent to our findings, we are of the opinion that there is a positive perception concerning the role of purchasing function and purchasing personnel in ABB. We assert this is due to the recognition that purchasing, contributes significantly to the organization’s profit, helps in making savings and reducing costs compared to what was obtainable a few decades ago. We have also found that there is also a realization on the part of management that the skills and knowledge of the purchasing personnel in devising strategies, coordinating with other internal functions, and dealing with suppliers etc. are major factors responsible for the benefits that purchasing provides to ABB (Västerås).</p><p> </p><p>We have observed through our findings that the efficiency of the purchasing function in ABB is rooted in its purchasing personnel. In our opinion purchasing personnel high involvement in the corporate planning process in ABB, cooperation with top management, and liaison with other functional units are what makes purchasing efficient in the organization.</p>

Title: Efficient purchasing in an organization: the importance of qualified purchasing personnel (A case study of ABB, Västerås)     Purpose: The purpose of this research is to learn and present how ABB (Västerås) perceives the role of the purchasing function, and the importance of involving qualified purchasing personnel in the purchasing process. By evaluating their: ·           Level of participation in the overall corporate planning process, ·           Relationship to suppliers and other internal units, ·           Responsibilities toward the organization, for determining how they contribute to its efficiency   Method:  This thesis is a case study on ABB (Västerås). We have used a qualitative method to conduct the research. We have also obtained primary data through face-to-face interviews and secondary data by an extensive literature search using peer-reviewed articles, textbooks, search engines, and the MDH database.   Conclusion: Subsequent to our findings, we are of the opinion that there is a positive perception concerning the role of purchasing function and purchasing personnel in ABB. We assert this is due to the recognition that purchasing, contributes significantly to the organization’s profit, helps in making savings and reducing costs compared to what was obtainable a few decades ago. We have also found that there is also a realization on the part of management that the skills and knowledge of the purchasing personnel in devising strategies, coordinating with other internal functions, and dealing with suppliers etc. are major factors responsible for the benefits that purchasing provides to ABB (Västerås).   We have observed through our findings that the efficiency of the purchasing function in ABB is rooted in its purchasing personnel. In our opinion purchasing personnel high involvement in the corporate planning process in ABB, cooperation with top management, and liaison with other functional units are what makes purchasing efficient in the organization.

The environment of medical industry in Taiwan is unprecedented rigorous. Except the finance pressure of medical expense billing and the increasing demand of the quality of medical service, recently due to the change of government health insurance policy, each medical organization strives for the rare resource and limited customer, not only start changing the type of the medical service, but also emphasis on improving the function of hospital management and controlling the cost. Formerly, purchasing simply means buying goods; but now, for the rigorous medical management environment and the rapid pace of innovation, purchasing clerk is required constant skill upgrading, such as leasing, loaning, BOT and outsourcing by contract, to obtain the use of goods and to satisfy the aim of demand. Additionally, the way to obtain the operation or ownership of goods is different from the former way. Contributed to the change, it presents its importance in business management. So, this research wants to investigate the relationship of human capital, knowledge sharing will, purchasing ability and purchasing performance. We applied exploratory and confirmatory analysis to investigate the relationship involved. The samples were purchasing clerks of hospital, including medical centers, regional hospitals and area hospitals. Out of 400 questionnaires were sent, the valid questionnaires returned were 114. Factor analysis , variable analysis, regression analysis were used to process the data acquired. The major findings of the research are summarized as follows: (1) the human capital of purchasing clerk is positive effect to purchasing ability and purchasing performance. (2) knowledge sharing will is positive effect to purchasing ability and purchasing performance (3)purchasing ability is positive effect to purchasing performance (4) purchasing ability has the mediate effect among human capital and knowledge sharing will with purchasing performance.

abstract: I present a new framework for qualitative assessment of the current green purchasing practices of U.S. state governments. Increasing demand from citizens for green public purchasing has prompted state governments to adopt new, and improve existing, practices. Yet there has been little assessment of public green purchasing in academic research; what has been done has not provided the conceptual support necessary to assess green purchasing practices as a single component of the procurement process. My research aims to fill that gap by developing a conceptual framework with which to assess the status of green purchasing practices and by applying this framework to determine and describe the status of green purchasing in the five most populous U.S. states. The framework looks at state purchasing practices through the lenses of policy, policy implementation, and transparency. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Sustainability 2012

Collectively, US public transportation systems operated 137,047 vehicles per peak period in 2008 (American Public Transportation Association 2010). Buses accounted for the largest segment among these vehicles, and the passenger van segment was second. Together, they accounted for 78% of the vehicles operated per peak period (American Public Transportation Association 2010). Due to their pervasive use in the public transportation industry, buses and vans have been the focus in various academic research studies. However, very few studies have focused on vehicle procurement. Further, none have focused on the specific vehicle procurement function of supplier evaluation and selection. The over-arching objective of this research is to gain a deeper understanding of the relative importance of vehicle supplier attributes in reference to the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) “best-value” procurement initiative and the influence of these attributes on the evaluation and selction of bus and van suppliers. This research studies vehicle procurement decision-makers at public transportation agencies to determine which supplier attributes they perceive to be the most important when evaluating vehicle suppliers. Results indicate that the top five supplier attributes were quality, reliability, after-sales support, warranties and claims, and integrity. The order of these top five attributes changed according to the type of supplier being evaluated, i.e., conventional fuel vehicle supplier versus alternative fuel vehicle supplier. The reason for this change was explained as being due to the increased engineering and technological expertise required of alternative fuel vehicle suppliers. Utilizing Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), the research showed that the variation in the perception of the importance of particular supplier attributes was not generally influenced by an agency's urban classification, its vehicle fleet size, its capital expenditure level, its decision-makers' education level, or their years of experience. However, FTA region was determined to have an influence on two attributes. Utilizing a conditional logit discrete choice model, the research also found that in practice price and not quality had the highest parameter estimate and was therefore deemed most important. It was followed by quality, after-sales support, technical capability, and delivery. Further, to garner a deeper understanding of attributes' relative importance, participants in the research identified 41 attribute components and provided metrics by which to measure these components and, by extension, the attributes. This research contributes in four areas. These are government procurement initiatives, agency “best-value” procurement practice, vehicle supplier marketing, and academic research in supplier evaluation and selection in the public transportation industry.

Nowadays, manufacturing companies compete as much with their products as with their supply-chain. Within the overarching stages of supply-chain, purchasing is a process that responds to the organizations needs of acquiring raw materials, components and semi-finished products in order to enable the execution of operations. Purchasing is an important aspect of an organization, having a big influence on its competitive positioning. In order to achieve better organizational performance, companies spendings are often separated into discrete groups of products and services, using a combination of supplier-relationship management, category-specific strategies and cross-functional teams. This segmentation is called purchasing category management, and is expected in many cases to improve the overall purchasing performance. Therefore, a case study was conducted with the purpose of investigating how PCM could help a luxury automotive manufacturer facing purchasing problems to improve its operational performance. This thesis presents a framework built on previous studies exposing what factors are linked to purchasing performance and explaining the concept of purchasing category management. The framework shows the importance of purchasing expertise, cross-functional work, clear organizational structures, strategic purchasing and monitoring of performance. The study identifies the problems the case company is experiencing: Lack of cooperation between departments; a troublesome purchasing structure leading to duplicated work and insufficient technical knowledge; a conflictual cross-functional cooperation between purchasers and engineers and lastly a lack of monitoring of the performance of purchasers and suppliers. At last, a discussion is held of how these problems could be mitigated by guidelines found in the literature and the use of category management. This study identifies a gap in research on the topic of purchasing category management. This gap was compensated through the use of complementary literature on the topics of purchasing and purchasing performance. / Numera konkurrerar tillverkningsföretag lika mycket med deras produkter som med deras leveranskedja. Inom de övergripande stadierna i leveranskedjan är inköp en process som svarar på organisationens behov av att skaffa råvaror, komponenter och halvfabrikat för att möjliggöra genomförandet av verksamhetens funktioner. Inköp är en viktig aspekt av en organisation och har stort inflytande på dess konkurrensposition. För att uppnå bättre organisatoriska resultat delas företagens utgifter ofta i diskreta grupper av produkter och tjänster, med en kombination av hantering av leverantörsrelationer, kategorispecifika strategier och tvärfunktionella team. Denna segmentering kallas för Purchasing Category Management (PCM) och förväntas i många fall förbättra den totala inköpsprestandan. Här genomförs en fallstudie med syftet att undersöka hur PCM kan kan hjälpa ett företag som står inför inköpsproblem för att förbättra den operativa prestationen. Denna avhandling presenterar ett ramverk som bygger på tidigare studier som visar vilka faktorer som är kopplade till inköpsprestanda och förklarar begreppet inköpskategorihantering. Ramverket visar vikten av inköpsexpertis, tvärfunktionellt arbete, tydliga organisationsstrukturer, strategisk inköp och prestationsövervakning. Undersökningen identifierar de problem som fallföretaget har: Brist på samarbete mellan avdelningar; en besvärlig inköpsstruktur som leder till duplicerat arbete och otillräcklig teknisk kunskap; ett konfliktövergripande tvärfunktionellt samarbete mellan inköpare och ingenjörer och slutligen brist på övervakning av inköparnas och leverantörernas resultat. Äntligen diskuteras hur dessa problem kan mildras genom riktlinjer som finns i litteraturen och användningen av kategorihantering. Denna studie identifierar ett gap i forskning om ämnet PCM. Denna klyfta kompenserades genom användning av kompletterande litteratur om ämnena inköp och inköpsprestanda.