Scania cuts local stocks
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• Scania Trucks and Buses' plans to supply its dealer network direct from a new purpose-built parts distribution centre at Opeabbeek in Belgium will reduce parts stocks held locally.
Until now parts have been sourced direct from the main factory at Sodertalje in Sweden to national distribution centres throughout Europe. In turn they have supplied their individual domestic dealer networks.
The total value of parts held by the 330 European dealers, distribution centres and the factory are estimated to amount to £170m; supply and storage costs are said to exceed £59m a year. Scania plans to reduce the level of its stock holding by 40% and to increase the rate of turnover of tied-up capital by 60%, while improving availability to the vehicle operator. The company has already changed from monthly orders to fortnightly. Now it is to move to daily deliveries, with a two-day lead time from the day the order is placed. This will enable the dealers to reduce the size of their buffer stocks of fast moving items while continuing to make a wide range of parts available.
The next-day-delivery VOR (Vehicle Off Road) service will be maintained for urgent out-ofstock items, but Scania believes it will be able to improve on its existing 93% first pick availability at dealers.
The scheme will be introduced in stages, working out from the centre. Belgium is already on line but changes to the UK arrangement will be made last and will not come into force until October 1994.