Author(s): Mukesh Kumar, Dixit Garg, Ashish Agarwal
In the recent era of the modern business environment, an effective and optimal SCM is a key necessity to business endurance. Supply chains replaced the traditional competition between the companies and shifted the modern business environment. Combinations of lean and agile inventory attributes are advocated as a foundation to sustain competitive Leagile Supply Chain Inventory (LASCI) attributes. The upstream part of lean inventory practices based on push system and downstream part of agile inventory practices based on a pull system. The accurate positioning of Decoupling Point (DP) stock is a key necessity for achieving surplus inventory (safety inventory), the value of quick replenishment and effective customer response by reducing delivery lead time. In such circumstances, surplus capacity (safety inventory) increases then surplus inventory may provide the agility characteristics of effective response to changes demand and overcome the market uncertainty of demand variability. Two case studies considered a namely first application of telecom network, which is based on a hybrid planning approach Kanban-type functionality with a push system. Upstream and downstream operational activities emphasized that Customer Order Decoupling Point (CODP) into strategic consideration, where designing supply operation and production based on customer requirement to fulfil the delivery responses. A second application of elevator manufacturing company purchasing of inventory items based on lean, agile and leagile supply related. The two case studies shown that inventory management in LASCI is the key role play for effective-cost reduction and more responsive to achieve the service level. Cause and effect analysis to observe that combined leagile inventory attributes have a significant impact on positive and negative indicators such as frequency, replenishment frequency and integration level, the negative indicators such as production lead time, transportation lead time and inventory level. The cause and effect analysis has identified the leagile inventory attributes on the SC Performance. The surplus inventory (safety inventory) to achieve the agility at downstream direction more customer satisfaction. The effective inventory management is a key necessity for an order to fulfil and positioning of CODP to decide for customer order production and supply chain network.