Logistics strategies, operations and approaches have a Greco-Latin and military origin. A few decades ago, the term served to encompass a broad set of concepts and processes that range from the handling, storage, dispatch and distribution of the first supplier in a supply chain, to the place and process in which the last consumer takes the finished product. at the point of sale of your exhibition venue, or what you request online (which is the new marketing channel that imposes logistical challenges). (2.4).
Logistics has had to be redefined by the most important institutional centers that bring together professionals in the sector, to frame it within what is the concept of the integral logistics chain, or supply chain or supply chain.
Under current conditions, the institutional definition of logistics is:
The part of the integral logistics chain in which the efficiency in the flow of materials, their storage, and related information services are planned, implemented and controlled, from the point of origin to the point of consumption, in order to satisfy the requirements of the clients. (eleven)
This definition can also be understood as the supply chain, a concept that has allowed us to show that no one does their logistics management in isolation from their suppliers and customers, therefore logistics is, therefore, a substantial strategic and operational part of chain management. supply of any company.
Based on the above concepts, it can be summarized that the supply chain is the related effort in producing and distributing a final product, from the supplier of the suppliers to the client of the clients. Four basic processes, Plan, Buy, Make and Distribute outline these which include managing supplies and demand, purchasing raw materials and components, their production and assembly, storage and inventory management, revenue and order management, distribution through all channels, final distribution to customers. Due to this broad definition, the management of the integral logistics chain or supply chain has complex interdependencies, creating companies that extend beyond the factory doors. Today the suppliers of materials,the partners in the supply channels, wholesalers, distributors, retailers and their consumers, providers of computer systems and program developers, are all key in the entire logistics chain (7, 15).
One of the important work fronts for business administration revolves around sourcing activities, which comprehensively encompass the selection and permanent evaluation of the supplier base, purchasing, transportation of materials and storage of raw materials (8).
The procurement and supply function.
Given the importance of the supply stage for logistics, as it is one of the first and fundamental steps in its execution, since through it the obtaining of inputs is achieved, which through an adequate function of Procurements are obtained from suppliers, the need to have a better command of this procurement function is increasing. But a greater mastery of the procurement function has in turn had an impact on the interest in making a better selection of suitable suppliers. (13, 20, 21)
Purchase management: necessity or simple formality?
Many large companies discovered in the 90s of the last century that it was still possible to make significant savings by improving their purchasing management. But the size of the organization is not always associated with the quality of its performance, although it is indisputable that having more resources is always an advantage. However, most small and medium-sized companies still do not understand the need for well-organized purchasing management (7, 11, 12), or consider that it consists only of communicating with suppliers by telephone to request products or services. required.
If we consider that large companies spend between 50% and 80% of their income on the acquisition of raw materials, supplies and services, it is easy to see that any savings in this area will have a significant impact on the organization.
The first step is to establish which are the critical raw materials, supplies or services for the company, based on the fact that those that affect the quality of the product or service received by customers are considered as such.
The three basic elements that are generally required of the company by its customers are, in turn, what the company must require of its suppliers. These might be:
• The quality characteristics of the product / service.
• The delivery time.
• The price.
But to achieve efficient purchasing management, the entity's supply chain must be well identified. To achieve this, companies must involve in their strategy, the transit through a three-stage path: the functional integration of each area of the organization, the internal integration between the functional areas forming an internal supply chain and the external integration between suppliers., the internal supply chain and customers. Therefore, today, the logistics approach becomes a value generating agent, based on a solid integration of the supplier-company-client triad.
Supplier: a necessary partnership.
The good management of the logistics of any organization begins with the best suppliers, which is why it is mandatory to make an adequate selection of them.
What then is a provider? With a very current conception, a supplier can be defined as (19):
Organization or person that provides a product or service. (Producer, Distributor, Seller of a product or provider of a service or information)
But within this definition, categories are established, which depend on the state of procurement in which it is located, so we can say that we are dealing with a Current Supplier when it comes to those with whom at least one contract has been settled. (In Evaluation, Evaluated and Inactive), and of a Potential Supplier, that new supplier, with possibilities of competing with the current suppliers, of which a behavior superior or similar to that of the current supplier is expected.
A good supplier must be able to supply the materials, equipment, spare parts, services and other supplies that respond to the needs of the requesting company and when they must be received by it, according to its demands and in conditions that allow it to be carried out. carry out the different operations in an appropriate way in order to produce and deliver their products and services with the quality and conditions required by their respective clients, at the established time (10).
Although there are many factors that need to be considered in sourcing or procurement management, one that stands out is supplier relationships. Suppliers, who may be general, when they perform and offer different kinds of services and products, or specialized in one or more product lines, or highly specialized in a single type of product, in addition to contributing with their services and products, usually support The organization's finances through inventories, as well as allow to present news to clients and act as commercial advisers, even participating in the training and training of the sales force, in addition to sharing information on participation and trends and changes in the market (1).
In relation to the administration of suppliers, the trend in the state of the art and practice has shown the need to strengthen relationships, based on true strategic alliances, based on collaborative agreements that facilitate the integration of system processes. Supplier-Client. This trend is currently considered one of the world-class management practices.
A close Customer - Supplier relationship is characterized by:
• Recognition of the importance of the provider in achieving the objectives of the organization
• Development of GANA-GANA relationships
• Adoption of open, trustworthy and honest behavior.
Selection of providers
The preponderant role played by suppliers is indisputable since they are the starting point of all business logistics, so it is necessary to make a very good selection of them. But the selection of suitable Suppliers is not an easy task, because it involves a large number of criteria. This fact involves multiple criteria, which has generated a conflict over which would be the ones that really define the quality of the supplier and which methods are ideal to evaluate its performance. The selection should then be made on very clear aspects, among a large number of them that Álvarez and Calandro (1) point out, they can be considered:
• The products and services themselves
• The quality
• The prices
• Your organization
• The technical support they offer
• The responsibility
• The resources available
• Your business references
• Your customer service
• Your claims acceptance processes
• The handling of your deliveries
• Frequencies of deliveries
• Status of orders
• Reliability and ease of deliveries
• Costs
Vendor Selection Forms
1.- By Public Tender.
2.- By invitation.
3.- By supplier promotion
The ten principles of supplier selection
Principle 1: Both Customer and Supplier are fully responsible for the application of quality control, with reciprocal understanding and cooperation between their quality control systems.
Principle 2: The Client and the Supplier must be independent of each other and respect that independence reciprocally.
Principle 3: The Customer is responsible for supplying the supplier with clear and adequate information on what is required, so that the supplier knows precisely what to manufacture.
Principle 4: Before entering into business transactions, the Client and the Supplier must enter into a rational contract regarding quantity, quality, price, delivery conditions and method of payment.
Principle 5: The Supplier has the responsibility to supply a quality that is satisfactory to the Client, and also has the responsibility to deliver necessary and updated data at the Client's request.
Principle 6: The Client and the Supplier must agree in advance on an article evaluation method, which is acceptable and satisfactory for both parties.
Principle 7: The Client and the Supplier must include in their contract, systems and procedures that allow them to amicably resolve possible discrepancies when any problem arises.
Principle 8: The Client and the Supplier, taking into account the point of view of the other party, must exchange the necessary information to execute a better quality control.
Principle 9: Customer and Supplier should always control business activities, such as ordering, production and inventory planning, office work, and systems, so that their relationships are maintained on a friendly and satisfactory basis.
Principle 10: The Client and the Supplier in the development of their commercial transactions, must always pay due attention to the "interests of the consumer".
Supplier evaluation.
Once you have selected a supplier, but before you are authorized to ship bulky shipments on a regular basis, you must meet a number of product qualification criteria. These can vary greatly, and the complexity of the qualification process depends on the complexity of the product, the novelty of the technology used, the importance that the use of the product has for the client and several other similar factors.
The confirmation of a correct selection is in the results of the evaluation process that must be structured and carried out for each selected supplier.
Once the evaluation criteria have been defined, a method will be applied to evaluate the approach to them. The use of quantitative methods, with scores assigned to each criterion, are the most recommended, as well as the weighting systems used to establish an order of priority in relation to the established criteria (18). The score for each provider is determined according to the responses obtained and the weighting made.
A useful tool for evaluating suppliers is to carry out audits to verify that the interpretation of the criteria is common to both parties. This becomes an unavoidable requirement in the event that processes that affect the quality of the product or service are subcontracted by the supplier to third parties (17).
According to the results obtained, suppliers are grouped into categories that are used as the basis for awarding contracts or for making purchases (9, 18). This categorization is kept up-to-date through periodic evaluation, that is, the process of Evaluation is constant, it is maintained with the reevaluation of the degree of compliance of the supplier with the criteria that have the highest weight. From this continuous process, it is determined if any supplier must change its category or if changes must be made to the supplier.
A timely flow of information with the supplier must be guaranteed, so that after each evaluation, the latter will receive reports where they clearly and consistently know about their performance (19). This detailed information can be very helpful in solving recurring problems, monitoring a vendor's long-term performance, and investigating performance issues in the field.
A simpler scoring system for suppliers could be grading deliveries on time or untimely. Among the most frequent problems encountered when developing a rating system, is that the data that is required is generally scattered in various departments and even in several organizations, a situation that must be corrected until the system is in place. for the most effective suppliers and provide the fair value of the supplier's performance (16).
In order to establish lasting collaboration relationships, it is necessary, first of all, to permanently evaluate the best suppliers, based on the level of comprehensive performance that they offer around the criteria that the organization's operations strategy and its client consider important.
The purchase of supplies or elements to carry out business is a universal need, as well as the indisputable influence that they have on the satisfaction of the company's customers, and obviously on internal operations (controls and inspections, claims, returns, payment settlement, etc.) Therefore, there is no question that the important thing is to be able to trust the quality offered by who our suppliers are. Houlihan, (10) has established that replacing US $ 1 of a lost customer costs US $ 10.
Supplier evaluation is a process that will allow establishing which suppliers are best positioned to satisfy the requirements related to product quality characteristics, delivery time and price. The criteria to be used for the evaluation depend on what the company establishes or considers to be a priority, as well as their relative weighting. At first it was considered that the only valid criterion to define a purchase is the price, there are still defenders of it, for whom the saying "cheap is expensive" is not valid when it comes to purchasing raw materials, supplies or services.
For more than half a century, E. Deming has argued that it is necessary to end the practice of doing business on the basis of price, instead of minimizing the total cost. Tend to have only one supplier for any item, with a long-term relationship of loyalty and trust. »
Supplier management and quality costs.
As we have previously seen, logistics generates a high percent of business expenses. As this is an essential activity, work should be done to reduce the costs it generates. Supplier management can significantly influence this.
What happens when a supplier falls behind in the delivery of a critical product? (12, 22)
The delay in delivery can lead to:
• Non-compliance with the delivery dates of other products.
• Urgent purchase of the raw material / required input.
• Modifications in the distribution plan.
• Additional freight.
The same will occur caused by the return or non-use of raw materials or supplies that do not meet the required quality parameters.
But an incorrectly selected supplier can also affect the quality costs from aspects such as:
• Lack or delay in technical assistance.
• Unresolved claims.
• Suspension of deliveries due to financial problems.
• Suspension of deliveries for other reasons
Most of the time it is not possible to have a single supplier, but minimizing the total cost is not only possible, it is essential to do so. Minimizing the total cost implies considering other evaluation criteria along with the price. Some of the most used are:
• Quality of the products / services it provides, that is, how the characteristics of the supplier's products / services adjust to our needs and expectations.
• Existence / characteristics of the Quality Management System.
• Methodology to resolve claims.
• Production capacity.
• Technology used.
• Control characteristics in process.
• Existence and / or characteristics of Technical Assistance.
• Existence / characteristics of the Hygiene and Safety System.
• Existence / characteristics of the Environmental Management System.
• Compliance with the agreed delivery terms.
• Speed of response.
• Financial strength.
• Staff training.
• Historical performance.
• Ease of communication.
• Characteristics of the commercial deal.
• Innovation.
These criteria will be different if you are dealing with a new provider. It is convenient to weigh the criteria, thus establishing their relative importance.
Experience of a research-development institution. Case study.
As part of the strategy of continuous improvement of the quality system of an institution whose social objective is the development of research and products for animal, plant and human health, a methodology for Supplier Management was developed
In the conditions of such a center, having a well-structured System to identify, evaluate and classify the suppliers of all the critical materials for the development of research, scientific-technical services and pharmaceutical productions is essential. This activity acquires a strategic role due to its substantial savings potential
What criteria are crucial to evaluate?
Figure 1 shows the criteria considered to be evaluated by suppliers (re-evaluation) and those that could potentially become suppliers.
These criteria are derived from the characteristics of the company, its objectives and the type of relationship it intends to establish with your suppliers.
The criteria for carrying out the evaluation must respond to very clear aspects to make a very good selection of them, as reported by some authors (5, 9)
The evaluation is mandatory for suppliers of raw materials and packaging materials.
The specialist will prepare a proposal for a Supplier Evaluation Plan annually, which will include those suppliers who are responsible for reevaluation and those who are approved for their initial evaluation, within The proposal will clearly identify those suppliers that will be evaluated through audits. taking into account the priorities of the center and its availability of resources. The Quality Management will approve the plan that will correspond to the Audit Plan. This information will be described in the Annual Supplier Assessment Plan.
The evaluation of the suppliers (initials or reevaluations) will be coordinated by the activity specialist, who will collect the necessary data for each criterion. These will be captured in a record: Data to calculate supplier performance indices. The behavior of the criteria for each supplier will be calculated from these data (entered in the base designed for this purpose).
The Quality criterion has several indexes to calculate that not all suppliers are evaluated, if it is not a critical material, the quality index of the sample will not be calculated, assuming the total of the weighting points assigned to the Index Behavior of materials during use. This criterion has the greatest weight since it is the one with the highest incidence in the use of the purchased material and therefore in the final result of the process or service (5, 10) The same applies when it is a service, so it will only be calculated the service compliance index.
The Audit criterion can be evaluated with data collected in on-site audits or as a bureau audit, as reported by several authors (1, 14, 19). In the event that an audit is not carried out due to the evaluator's responsibility, the total points corresponding to this criterion will be assigned to the supplier under evaluation. If the audit has been planned, but does not proceed for reasons inherent to the supplier, then the total points of the criterion will be subtracted.
In the case of the commercial performance criterion, for national suppliers, the indicator Ind. Offers presented in time will not be evaluated, so the 25 total points of the commercial performance criterion will be distributed among the indicator indicators. Compliance with the quantity. Agreed and. Delivery time behavior. This criterion is the second in weight due to its importance in guaranteeing supply, although there are criteria that, together with the price, are what determine the acceptance of the supplier (7, 12)
The Claims Performance criterion is crucial to differentiate a good supplier. The speed of response, as well as having a low rate of claims for failures of some kind in the criteria of the producers (11, 13), in cases where no claim has occurred to the supplier in the period evaluated, the total will be assumed of the criteria points.
Provider categories can be: Excellent Pass, Pass, In Development, and Not Pass. Table 2 of Annex B shows the categories defined for providers based on the% of points they receive in the evaluation, as well as the validity of the same, which corresponds to the time between evaluations.
To potential suppliers (initial evaluation) that obtain the category of In development and the purchase of their products and / or services is authorized as a final part of their evaluation, this category will be valid for one year. They will be considered Approved when they have closed at least one contract satisfactorily.
Those suppliers not evaluated, from whom materials / services have been purchased and it is in the interest of the institution to continue doing so, will be authorized to purchase by the Center's Management, and will be identified as being evaluated.
In the event that an approved supplier reaches the time of reevaluation, but at the same time no product or service has been purchased during this time, it will identify it as a reserve supplier. If a year passes without being used as a supplier, it will be removed from the list of approved suppliers.
The results of the evaluation will be officially communicated to each Provider. Suppliers that are evaluated as Approved will also be given proof that they maintain or have obtained these categories. This document is renewed with each reevaluation. In order to carry out the supplier evaluation, a database created by the institution for this purpose may be used, and all the required information will be registered in it.
Appendix 1
Table 1
Methods for evaluating suppliers through the analysis of weighted criteria.
But this is only possible when, through a careful evaluation process, the number of suppliers per product or service has been minimized.
|
Indicator |
Assigned weight. |
Index |
Formula |
Punctuation. |
|
Quality Assessment |
30 |
Sample quality index (Icpf) Total of sampled lots (LM) Total of tested lots that comply ((LI) Total of lots tested that comply with concession (SCI) |
Icpf = LI + LIC / 2x 100% LM |
15-30 |
| For potential suppliers |
60 |
Sample quality index (Icpf)
Total of sampled lots (LM) Total of tested lots that comply ((LI) Total of lots tested that comply with concession (SCI) |
Icpf = LI + LIC / 2x 100% LM |
60 |
| Material behavior index during use (Imu)
Total used lots (LU) Total batches used without problems (LUS) |
Imu = LUS / LU x 100% |
15 - 30 |
||
|
Commercial performance. |
25 |
Index Offers presented in time (IO)
Total Requested Offers (TO) Total offers submitted on time (OT) |
IO = OT / TO x 100% |
two |
| Compliance rate with agreed deliveries (IQ)
Total deliveries (TE) Total deliveries with quantities fulfilled (EC) |
IQ = EC / TE x 100% |
10 - 11 |
|
Indicator |
Assigned weight. |
Index |
Formula |
Punctuation. |
| Delivery time behavior index
Total deliveries (TE) Deliveries on time (ET) |
IE = ET / TE x 100% |
13 - 14 |
||
|
Performance in audits |
fifteen |
Compliance Audit |
Yes |
fifteen |
|
Quality management system. |
10 |
Quality management system certification index
It has a quality system The system is certified It has no quality system |
Yes Yes |
7 3 5 |
|
40 |
Quality management system certification index
It has a quality system The system is certified It has no quality system |
Yes Yes |
30 10 twenty |
|
|
Quality of documentation. |
9 |
Documentation quality index (ID)
Total batches received in the year (TL) Number of lots with certificates of analysis (TC) |
ID = TC / TL x 100% |
9 |
|
Performance against claims. |
6 |
Complaints and claims index (IR)
Total complaints received (TQ) Total complaints resolved (QS) |
IR = QS / TQ x 100% |
6 |
| Services |
5 |
Service index (IS)
Services accomplished on time Total services formulated |
IS = ST / TS x 100% |
5 |
Appendix 2
Table 2
Selection criteria
| Defined Categories | Total weighted points |
% of points obtained |
Validity | |
| Quality performance | Commercial performance | |||
| Approved Excellent | Between 90-100 | Greater than or equal to 15% of the total points obtained | Greater than or equal to 12% of the total points obtained | Three years |
| Approved | Between 70-89 | Greater than or equal to 15% of the total points obtained | Greater than or equal to 12% of the total points obtained | a year and a half |
| Not approved | Under 70 | Less than 15% of the total points obtained | Less than 12% of the total points obtained | |
| Developing | Greater than 70% | One year |
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