Other aspects of Materials

Mgt.
 codification
Codification of materials can also be termed as the
identification of materials. This deals with uniquely
identifying each item in the inventory. It is useful in
requisitioning items for the operational departments,
in placing of orders by the purchase department, in
receiving and expediting the items on receipt from
the supplier, in having a unique record of each of the
items in stores and in work-in-process or in
warehouse so as to facilitate the control over the
inventory levels and also in having a good control
over the loss, deterioration, obsolescence, non-
movement, or pilferage of the items in inventory.
 Prevention of duplication
Many items inventory such as pipes, rods, angles,
electrical switches spare parts and nuts, are avilable
under different names and codes thereby reducing
the actual availability of the items for operational
needs.
An item may be called a nut and bolt by one section
of the org., whereas another may call it a fastener,
and because of this there are two separate
requisitions made, two separate purchase orders sent
out, and two separate inventory levels of the items
built into the system. Pipe is also called as a conduit,
in fact both sections using the same items
 Codification by Group
Classification
Coding: we give unique number to a
particular item in the inventory. For instance,
010237 might mean a specific item in
inventory such a particular kind of gasket, of
a certain material, of a certain shape and of
certain dimensions.
Follwing numbers might be used to describe
the first classification
01Raw materials;02purchased
components; 03Spare parts; 04--Tools etc.
 The next classification group may be based
on say shape of the items i.e.
1Wire; 2tubig; 3 Rod; 4Bar etc.
Further classification could be based on the
material of construction. i.e.
01Mild Steel; 2stainless Steel-304; 03
Stainless Steel-316; 04Stainless Steel.;
06Copper; 07Brass; 08--Bronze;
One may add further classification as
follows:
01Cold rolled; 02 Tempered ;03
Normalized; etc
 Mnemonic coding method
It includes numerals and also
alphabets i.e. SH01560 would mean
a shunt, 150 amps., 60 mV.
Demerit of a mnemonic Coding
System is that two different names or
sizes, for instance, may suggest the
same mnemonic code. When the
number of items gets larger, than we
encounter such a problem more
often.
 Characteristics of a Good coding
system
Flexibility: a codification ystem
should last a long time to derive
proper benefits from it. It is not
something which we change every
quarter or every other year.
Therefore, the long-term
requirements of materials for the
organizations should be kept in mind
while providing the digits or
alphabets for the items.
 Precision
The codification system should
ensure a unique code for each item.
A proper dictionary or vocabulary for
the decoding should be made while
installing a codification system. The
number of letters or digits should be
the same for all items.
 Brevity
The total number of letters or
numbers should not be too large so
as to lose its immediate meaning to
the user of the material
(7-10 digits or spaces are adequate
for many of the coding systems.
However, with a high degree of
computerization one could have
more digits.)
 Comprehensiveness
While classify in and sub classifying the items
for coding purposes, the nature of the item,
its specifications, its end-use and the
suppliers, etc. should all be comprehensively
taken into account; and therefore, for the
codification system to work, prior
consultations with the concerned
departments such as the operations
department, purchasing department,
engineering department and finance
department,
 Materials Handling
The handling problem is linked
closely with the i. number of items in
the inventory ii. Their location, iii.
The space availability. Iv. The layout
of the stores and the production floor
and with the material itself in terms
of v. the nature of the material and
the kind of handling suitable to it and
vi. The packaging or container
required for the material and the
Consideration in Materials Handling
Procedure
1.How much is the load to be
moved? (number of load& weight).
2.the frequency with which the load
is to be moved from one dept to
another.
3. the characteristics of the items to
be handled.
4. the characteristics of the package
which needs to handled.
 5. the existing or proposed layout of
the stores and production areas.
6. the height, the length and the
width of the areas in which the
materials handling equipments is to
be used; also the breadth and height
of gangways, passage-ways and doors
for the stores house and for the
production plant..
7. the already existing materials
handling equipment.
 Materials Handling
Equipment/accessories
Hand Truck: this is a manually
operated truck to carry small
quantities of solid materials. In this
thee are some versions where a
small platform is fitted sometimes
with a hydraulic unit which helps to
lower or raise the platform by a few
inches so as to facilitat the loading
and unloading of the truck.
 Pulley Blocks
These are used many a time to lift heavy
weights occasionally. The pulleys help in
reducing the load on the operator.
Pulleys are quite common as a make-shift
devise in construction places where heavy
pieces of equipment have to be fixed at a
height. For regular use, sometimes these
pulley blocks are used in conjunction with
mono-rail so that the load can be
transported from one area to another.
 Chutes
Sometimes chutes are also used for
dropping the material from the upper
floor to the floor below. But this is
suitable only for certain kinds of
materials which can be handled
roughly.
 Fork Lift Truck
One of the most widely used and
extremely helpful equipments in
materials handling has been the ork
Lift Truck. This could be either
battery operated or diesel operated.
It has a fork (two Prongs) which can
be inserted into the pallet and, thus,
the load is lifted. The fork can move
verically in most of the versions o
fthis tuck; this helps in stacking the
 pallets
Pallets have been standardized and ISO
(International Organization for Standardization)
specifications are available for different varieties of
pallets. i.e.
1. two way pallet, where the fork can enter from
only one direction
2. four way pallet, where the entry of the fork can
be from any of the four sides of the pallet.
3. single decked pallet: this pallet has a flat top
surface in contrast to the non-decked varieties
which have strips of timber planks for the upper and
lower faces.
 Overhead Electric Cranes
These are particularly useful for
loading and unloading railway
wagons or heavy items with box
bodies. They are quite useful in
stockyards, where a substantial
tonnage of handling is involved. The
two basic kinds of cranes are;
A) floor-controlled B) cab controlled
 Belt Conveyors
In some of the industries, particularly
those where there is assembly line
production, electric powered belt
conveyors have been used. The belt
could be made of canvas, rubber,
PVC, etc. the belt conveyor are
helpful in the assembly line for
transporting the semifinished product
from one work station to another.
 Stores Management
Operation related to stores Mgt.
1. Receiving and inspection
2. issue and dispatch
3. stock records
4 Stores accounting
5 Stock taking and checking
6 Stores preservation and
7 Stores arrangement.
 Receiving and inspection
A. checking supplies for quantity and
quality.
B. preparing documents; i) posting to
stock records and stores accounts
accordingly, and ii) for providing
evidence of receipt.