Assessment of Inventory Management and Control Practicein the case of Arba Minch University

Abstract

Inventory includes raw materials purchased parts, and work in process materials. Inventory affects successful performance of organizations activities. Hence, Problems related with inventory management and control should be addressed for smooth running of the organization activities. The central focus of this study is investigating the inventory management and control practices in Arba Minch University. Descriptive research method is selected to carry out the current inventory management and control practice of the university. The populations of the study are one hundred seventeen employees directly involved with inventory management and control activities of the university. They comprise heterogeneous group (Top management; College deans, Directors and Department heads, property administration, purchase, audit, workshops and library book store personals). To take the sample from each group the researcher used stratified sampling technique. The major finding of this study reveals that: The university inventory purchase plan is not based on scientific inventory replenishment plan; inventory plan lacks consistency with their annual plan as a result, there is rush purchase order. The lead time, of the university is not known. there is no analyzed information about ordering, carrying cost and economic order quantity (EOQ); Depreciation value of fixed assets of the university such as buildings, equipments machineries computers etc is not known; According to the study finding purchase and property management employees don’t have sound knowledge of materials management to provide service of their level best and cope with the dynamic technological advancement to accomplish successfully their assigned responsibility. There is no scientific inventory classification mechanism in the warehouses of Arba Minch University. The warehouse of the university have not adequate internal facility as a result materials are kept everywhere in the available store space. There is shortage of standard warehouses facility in the university. The size of the warehouses is not large enough to accommodate the inventory of the university; as a result various types of inventory materials are kept everywhere outside the warehouse in a situation that expose them to moisture and temperature related factors that can deteriorate them daily (Geography department material, equipments of Chamo campus which are stored at the corridor of the library from 2002- till now and the nuclear moisture density gauge which is buried in the cave like cement structure are good example of this phenomena). No one of the warehouses is secured from incident such as fire and related damage. There is no organized warehouse information management system (WIMS). There is student’s food grains wastage in most of the campus due to lack of flour mill service in the campuses (except main campus and Abaya campus). The university does not have organized data about obsolesce machineries, equipments; according the field observation of the researcher there are enormous obsolete machines, equipments, materials and vehicles which needs disposal. The researcher hopes that the top management and concerned bodies should give immense administrative weight to alleviate the above inventory management and control problems based on the conclusion drawn and proposed recommendation of the study.