Vending Machine Inventory Control System Proposal

Vending Machine Inventory Control System Proposal

CIS/319: University of Phoenix

April 2, 2008

Vending Machine Inventory Control System Proposal

The ever rapidly advancing technology of this day and age causes many changes throughout the world. Businesses are no exception; the introduction of new technology within a company effects numerous departments. The purpose of our business is to discover ways of saving our company money, time and resources. By implementing a Vending Machine Inventory Control System, the Maintenance department will experience the greatest impact by implementing new hardware and software. By utilizing reusable tracking devices for each vending machine, we can have an accurate, up-to-date inventory. This will allow for us to track each item sold and know when to schedule service for each machine owned. With the rising costs of fuel and manpower, we need to find ways to more effectively service all of our machines. With an updated tracking system we will be able to more effectively coordinate deliveries and ensure that all machines are fully stocked. Let’s examine our decision in implementing this new system with regards business to be resolved, purpose of the project, constraints and assumptions, which options will best suit the needs of the company and why, we will also include the effects cost wise of implementing the system and the expected Return on Investment (ROI).

Business to be resolved and purpose of the project

The vending machine supply industry has traditionally been a labor intensive effort considering the large number of machines, the remote locations of these machines, and the wide variety of product stored within each of the machines. Vending companies generally own the vending machines which they service and employ personnel to retrieve monies collected and replenish the stock of merchandise in the machines on a regular basis. In order to properly balance the amount of money retrieved against the amount of merchandise sold, it is critical that the number of each type of item sold be easily ascertainable by the service person. When considering that particular types of vending machines contain different types and quantities of merchandise, it becomes apparent that to accurately track the inventory for a single machine can be time consuming and difficult. When further considering the large number of machines that each service person is responsible for, it is readily apparent that an inventory tracking system must be employed in order to assure accurate tracking of the merchandise, and efficient utilization of the service person's time.

Assumptions and Constraints

There are many things we foresee happening by implementing a vending machine inventory control system. It is appropriate to assume that by utilizing this type of system there would by an obvious increase in revenue. By keeping a close track on inventory, our company would see a decrease in loss of product. Every item would be tracked in a system until delivered to the consumer. When a vending machine runs low or empty on products, there is a loss of revenue for the company. A vending machine inventory control system would be capable of notifying a vendor and prevent this. This would decrease the amount of time the products are low, therefore increasing revenue. We would also be able to monitor the most popular items according to the consumers. This would allow for more of the product in demand to be stocked into the machines and replace the products that are not wanted. The constraints that we foresee by implementing this system include a relatively expensive upfront cost that will be spent on the necessary hardware and software to be installed. Bt installing this system we will need to have individuals trained in how to properly utilize the tracking system and monitoring devices which will take time and money to be paid in order to train them. The last constraint includes the implementation of a central inventory control system that will demand numerous computers and servers that will read the transmitted data from the machines and rewrite the data received from the machines into information that is easily read and understood.

Hardware and Software Options

The Just-in-time system is able to be carried out efficiently due to the usage of bar coding. Bar coding has streamlined the inventory process in all sectors of the economy. Numerous retailers now use automatic scanning computer registers to record sales and track inventory immediately. These innovations have had the power of providing instant marketing information regarding the rate of sale or use of products. Once our system is fully implemented, a single employee will be able to check inventory at any machine serviced in seconds. How will this impact our business? Let’s find out.

Proper Inventory Tracking hardware and software is imperative to the continued success of a company when choosing to install a Vending Machine Inventory Control System. Installing a Vending Machine Inventory Control System will allow the company to save on money, time and resources. By utilizing reusable tracking devices for each vending machine it is possible to have an accurate up-to-date inventory. Due to installation of this control system, software updates will need to take place in order to allow the full benefits of the system to occur. Software that features an inventory module an inventory module and provides the ability to track a single item in a group of millions would be beneficial for this type of installation. Our company has specifically created software designed for manufacturing facilities where detailed, real-time tracking is required. Each part is bar coded with a unique serial number used for tracking and traceability. Each inventory record includes serial number, part number, location, status and other pertinent data. Inventory records can be searched and summarized as required to provide real-time inventory reports that can be easily transmitted to support for mobile/wireless handheld units. The software also allows for automatic email notification. This subsystem allows the software notify users automatically when certain events occur. These events include when a machine malfunctions taking someone’s money, when machine is out of a product, etc. Cell phone notification is another module available that will allow automatic contact to a cell phone when certain events occur. An example of this type of events would include the system placing calls to technicians informing them that a machine is in need of maintenance.