Inventory management support system, and inventory management support method

Abstract

To provide an inventory management support system capable of achieving stable component supply and reduction of inventory management costs while responding to changes in external circumstances.SOLUTION: An inventory management support system 100 for determining the inventory and purchase quantity of maintenance components, includes: a change classification unit 112 that classifies the external changes based on their type and continuity, and determines which should be changed, the special purchase or regular purchase amounts; a purchase quantity calculation unit 113 that calculates temporary purchases can be made as necessary, and reviews of regular purchase amounts; and a purchase plan calculation unit 114 that calculates the maintenance component purchase plan based on the calculated regular purchase amount and the change in the normal purchase amount and the temporary purchase amount.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an inventory management support system and an inventory management support method.

Background Art

[0002] Efforts are being made to reduce working hours by streamlining inventory management operations and to control costs through appropriate inventory management. However, external changes such as changes in the delivery dates of finished products and parts, and disasters, lead to obstacles in streamlining inventory management operations. Also, it is difficult to appropriately manage inventory in response to external changes. (1) Changes in delivery dates due to the materials market, etc., and changes in demand due to disasters (natural disasters, epidemics of infectious diseases such as the novel coronavirus, semiconductor shortages, etc.) are difficult to predict because they are externally dependent. (2) Depending on whether the external change continues for a long period of time, there is a possibility that either a change in the amount of emergency purchases or a change in the normal purchase amount may be appropriate. (3) After adding the purchase amount in response to an external change, there is a possibility of surplus inventory in the future.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 describes that "for each part type, a rank of the influence on the operation of the device when a failure occurs in the parts of the corresponding part type is set in advance, and for each rank, the reliability when calculating the failure occurrence cycle of the corresponding part type is set in advance, and based on these ranks and reliabilities for each part type, and the measurement data and operation information of each part in the past and present, the inventory amount for each part type is determined respectively."

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, with the technology described in Patent Document 1, inventory management corresponding to changes in external circumstances cannot be achieved. Also, there is no mention of stable supply of parts and reduction of inventory management costs.

[0006] From the above situation, there has been a demand for a method that can respond to changes in external circumstances and achieve stable supply of parts and reduction of inventory management costs.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0007] To solve the above problems, an inventory management support system according to one aspect of the present invention is an inventory management support system that supports inventory management of maintenance parts. The inventory management support system includes an information acquisition unit that acquires external change information, which is a change in the external environment of the entity performing inventory management, and information that affects the inventory of maintenance parts, a process that classifies external changes according to a preset judgment criterion (classification criterion), a change classification unit that performs a process of determining whether an emergency purchase of maintenance parts is necessary and whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity based on the continuity of the external change, a purchase quantity calculation unit that calculates at least one of the change amount of the normal purchase quantity and the emergency purchase quantity of the corresponding maintenance parts based on the result of the classification of the external change when it is determined that a review is necessary, a purchase plan calculation unit that calculates a purchase plan for maintenance parts based on the normal purchase quantity, the change amount of the normal purchase quantity calculated by the purchase quantity calculation unit, and the emergency purchase quantity, and an information transmission unit that transmits the information of the calculated purchase plan.

Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to at least one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to respond to changes in external circumstances and achieve stable supply of parts and reduction of inventory management costs while responding to changes in external circumstances. Problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will be clarified by the description of the following embodiments.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

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Embodiment for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment (hereinafter referred to as "embodiment") for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0011] In this specification and the accompanying drawings, the same reference numerals are given to the same or similar components, and redundant explanations may be omitted, or only explanations centered on the differences may be given. Also, when there are a plurality of identical or similar components, different subscripts may be attached to the same reference numeral for explanation. In addition, when it is not necessary to distinguish these multiple components, the subscript may be omitted for explanation. The number of each component may be singular or plural unless otherwise specified.

[0012] In the following examples, various information will be described in tabular form, but the various information may be in a data format other than tabular form. Also, for example, for various designations such as "XX information", "XX table", "XX list", "XX list", etc., these are interchangeable. Also, when explaining identification information, expressions such as "identification information", "number", "name", "ID", etc. are used, but these are interchangeable.

[0013] <One Embodiment> First, an inventory management support system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. The gist of the present invention is a stock management support system that determines the stock quantity and purchase quantity of maintenance parts. In this system, an external change is classified based on the type and continuity of the external change, and a change classification unit that determines which of the emergency purchase and the normal purchase quantity needs to be changed, and a purchase quantity calculation unit that calculates the emergency purchase quantity as needed and reviews the normal purchase quantity are provided. Normal purchases include regular purchases and purchases for safety stock.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an inventory management support system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The inventory management support system 100 is a system for supporting the inventory management of parts (hereinafter abbreviated as "maintenance parts" or "parts") that make up a product to be maintained. The product to be maintained is assumed to be a business product, such as an elevator or escalator. However, the product to be maintained is not limited to business products, but also includes various consumer products such as automobiles and televisions. The inventory management of the parts that make up this product to be maintained can also be applied to the inventory management of parts that make up a finished product (for example, parts necessary for the assembly of a finished product). Furthermore, the inventory management of the parts that make up the product to be maintained can also be applied to the inventory management of parts necessary for configuring and maintaining a system required for providing a service. Hereinafter, the product to be maintained will be simply referred to as "product".

[0015] The inventory management support system 100 is connected to the person-in-charge terminal 300 and the parts ordering system 400 via the public network 200. The inventory management support system 100 sends information such as a purchase plan created according to changes in the external environment (hereinafter abbreviated as "external changes") to the person-in-charge terminal 300 and the parts ordering system 400.

[0016] The inventory management support system 100 includes a control unit 110, a storage unit 120, a user interface unit 130, and a communication unit 140. First, the storage unit 120 will be described.

[0017] (Storage Unit) The memory unit 120 stores information managed by companies or enterprises that manage the inventory of maintenance parts. Companies or enterprises are the entities that manage the inventory of maintenance parts. Hereinafter, companies, enterprises, etc. will be collectively referred to as "companies". The memory unit 120 stores, as external information of the company (hereinafter referred to as "external company information"), for example, customer information, supplier information, disaster information, and information of other companies. These are examples of the external environment of the company, that is, the external environment. In addition, the memory unit 120 stores, as internal information of the company (hereinafter referred to as "internal company information"), for example, part information, consumption plan, order history, failure history, inventory status, and judgment criteria.

[0018] As an example, the memory unit 120 is configured using a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and a non-volatile storage. In the memory unit 120, a program of software that realizes each function of the inventory management support system 100 and various parameters are stored. Also, variables, parameters, etc. generated during the arithmetic processing of the control unit 110 (for example, a CPU) are temporarily written into the RAM of the memory unit 120.

[0019] Hereinafter, each piece of information of the external company information (information regarding the external environment) will be described. Note that the external company information is not limited to the information shown below.

[0020] Customer information is information regarding the status of part orders by product sales destinations. Information regarding the status of part orders includes, for example, the presence or absence of an order, the quantity of parts ordered (required quantity), and increases or decreases in order quantities by major customers.

[0021] Supplier information is information regarding suppliers that supply parts of products. A supplier is a vendor that supplies (delivers) parts (including materials, raw materials, etc. in a broad sense) required for products to a company that uses the inventory management support system 100. Supplier information includes, for example, information such as shortening / extension of part delivery times and unavailability of part supplies.

[0022] Disaster information is information regarding disasters that are currently occurring or are predicted to occur in the future. Disaster information includes, for example, the time when a disaster occurs, the impact on the company due to the disaster (e.g., duration), and information regarding component damage (such as flooding, high temperature, seismic intensity, etc.).

[0023] Competitor information is information regarding companies (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "the company itself") that compete with the company using the inventory management support system 100. Competitor information includes, for example, the market share of the competitor's target products and the presence or absence of competitors (including their bases such as sales offices and business offices) within the company's sales area or jurisdiction.

[0024] Next, each piece of internal company information will be described. Note that internal company information is not limited to the information shown below. Component information is information regarding the components that make up a product. For example, component information includes the component model, specifications, target product for use (such as an elevator), quantity, usage form (such as the number of floors for an elevator), etc. Also, component information may include replacement parts, sales time, and sales region, etc.

[0025] Consumption plan is information regarding the consumption of components, and for example, a repair plan may be used. From the repair plan, it is possible to know which components will be used, when, and to what extent. The repair plan assumes information regarding regular maintenance, but may also be information regarding emergency maintenance. The consumption plan is strongly influenced by external company information (customer information, supplier information, disaster information, competitor information).

[0026] Order history is information regarding past orders for product repairs. For example, when the product is an elevator, the order history is a contract regarding past elevator maintenance and inspection. Contracts regarding elevator maintenance and inspection are roughly divided into order-based maintenance and full maintenance.

[0027] In an order-based maintenance contract, the maintenance provider conducts a comprehensive inspection of the elevator equipment and components, and the replacement and replenishment of consumables (such as light bulbs, fuses, lead wires, oil, etc.) required for maintenance are included in the maintenance fee. On the other hand, the replacement and repair of faulty or deteriorated parts are not included in the maintenance fee, so the contractor has to request them separately after obtaining a quotation. The order-based maintenance contract is also called a POG (Parts Oil Grease) contract. Even in a full maintenance contract, the maintenance provider conducts a comprehensive inspection of the elevator equipment and components. However, in the case of a full maintenance contract, not only the replacement and replenishment of consumables but also the replacement and repair of faulty or deteriorated parts are included in the monthly maintenance fee.

[0028] The failure history is information regarding the failures of past products of the same type. The failure history is used for predicting the failures of the corresponding products.

[0029] The inventory status is information indicating the current inventory (quantity), incoming stock, and outgoing stock (quantity, date and time) of parts. The information indicating incoming and outgoing stock is, for example, the date and time and quantity when parts are delivered, and the date and time and quantity when parts are used. Information such as the quantity of parts purchased from a supplier in the past and the delivery date may be included in the inventory status.

[0030] The judgment criteria are information regarding the judgment criteria used in the judgment process by the control unit 110. For example, the judgment criteria are the continuous judgment threshold value and the inventory review threshold value.

[0031] (Control Unit) Next, the control unit 110 will be described. The control unit 110 performs control to support the inventory management of maintenance parts based on various information. In addition, the control unit 110 sends information such as the purchase plan created in response to external changes to the operator terminal 300 and the parts ordering system 400 through the communication unit 140.

[0032] The control unit 110 includes an information acquisition unit 111, a change classification unit 112, a purchase quantity calculation unit 113, a purchase plan calculation unit 114, and an information transmission unit 115.

[0033] The information acquisition unit 111 acquires various types of external information and various types of internal information from the storage unit 120, and sends them to the change classification unit 112, the purchase quantity calculation unit 113, and the purchase plan calculation unit 114.

[0034] The change classification unit 112 classifies changes in the content of external information (external environment) according to preset judgment criteria (classification criteria). As a simple classification method, there is a method of classifying the types of external changes into the types of information in which changes have occurred, that is, "customer information", "supplier information", "disaster information", and "information of other companies". In addition, the change classification unit 112 determines whether it is necessary to make an emergency purchase of maintenance parts and whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity based on the continuity of external changes.

[0035] When it is determined by the change classification unit 112 that the above review is necessary, the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 calculates at least one of the change amount of the normal purchase quantity and the emergency purchase quantity of the corresponding maintenance parts based on the result of the classification of external changes. The purchase quantity calculation unit 113 is composed of a required inventory calculation unit 113a, a normal purchase quantity review unit 113b, and an emergency purchase quantity calculation unit 113c.

[0036] The required inventory calculation unit 113a calculates the required inventory quantity of maintenance parts. The normal purchase quantity review unit 113b calculates the review amount (change amount) of the normal purchase quantity of maintenance parts based on the required inventory quantity. The emergency purchase quantity calculation unit 113c calculates the emergency purchase quantity of maintenance parts based on the required inventory quantity.

[0037] The purchase plan calculation unit 114 calculates the purchase plan of maintenance parts based on the normal purchase quantity, the change amount of the normal purchase quantity calculated by the purchase quantity calculation unit 113, and the emergency purchase quantity.

[0038] The information transmission unit 115 transmits the information on the purchase plan calculated by the purchase plan calculation unit 114. As an example, the information transmission unit 115 transmits the information on the purchase plan to the parts order system 400 and the person-in-charge terminal 300. Alternatively, the information transmission unit 115 transmits the information on the purchase plan to a supplier (not shown) and performs a process of requesting the delivery of maintenance parts.

[0039] This control unit 110 is configured using a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The CPU reads out from the storage unit 120 a program of software that realizes each function of the inventory management support system 100 and executes the program. The control unit 110 and the storage unit 120 constitute a computer that controls the operation of the inventory management support system 100. Note that the control unit 110 is not limited to a CPU, and other processors such as an MPU (Micro Processing Unit) may be used.

[0040] (User Interface Unit) The user interface unit 130 is an interface unit that receives inputs from the user and outputs information to the user. The user interface unit 130 includes an input unit 131 and an output unit 132.

[0041] The input unit 131 generates an input signal according to the user's operation and outputs it to the control unit 110. For the input unit 131, a mouse, a keyboard, a touch sensor, or the like is used, and the user can operate the input unit 131 to input information and instructions.

[0042] The output unit 132 is a monitor such as a liquid crystal display, and displays a GUI (Graphical User Interface) screen, the result of arithmetic processing by the control unit 110, and the like. The output unit 132 and the input unit 131 may be integrally configured as a touch panel.

[0043] (Communication Unit) The communication unit 140 is a communication device such as a NIC (Network Interface Card). The communication unit 140 is configured to be able to transmit and receive various data to and from an external device via a public network 200 such as the Internet. In the present embodiment, the communication unit 140 communicates with the person-in-charge terminal 300 and the parts ordering system 400.

[0044] [Person-in-charge terminal] The person-in-charge terminal 300 is an information processing terminal used by a person in charge of managing the inventory of maintenance parts. As an example, a notebook PC, a tablet terminal, or the like is used for the person-in-charge terminal 300. The person-in-charge terminal 300 includes a control unit 310, a storage unit 320, a user interface unit 330, and a communication unit 340.

[0045] The control unit 310 is configured using a CPU. The CPU reads out a software program for realizing each function of the person-in-charge terminal 300 from the storage unit 320 and executes the program. The control unit 310 and the storage unit 320 constitute a computer that controls the operation of the person-in-charge terminal 300. Note that the control unit 110 is not limited to a CPU, and other processors such as an MPU may be used.

[0046] The storage unit 320 is configured using, for example, a ROM, a RAM, and a non-volatile storage. The storage unit 320 stores a software program for realizing each function of the person-in-charge terminal 300 and various parameters. Also, variables, parameters, etc. generated during the arithmetic processing of the CPU are temporarily written into the RAM of the storage unit 320.

[0047] The user interface unit 330 is an interface unit that receives input from a user and outputs information to the user. The user interface unit 330 includes an input unit 331 and an output unit 332. The input unit 331 and the output unit 332 have the same hardware configuration as the input unit 131 and the output unit 132 of the inventory management support system 100.

[0048] The communication unit 340 is a communication device such as a NIC. The communication unit 340 is configured to be able to transmit and receive various data to and from an external device via the public network 200.

[0049] [Parts Ordering System] The parts ordering system 400 is an example of a related purchasing system (in-house system). The parts ordering system 400 places an order for maintenance parts based on the purchase plan information received from the information transmission unit 115 of the control unit 110. As an example, the parts ordering system 400 uses a notebook PC, a tablet terminal, a desktop PC, etc.

[0050] [Overall Processing of Inventory Management Support System] Next, the overall processing by the inventory management support system 100 will be described with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an example of the overall processing by the inventory management support system 100. Each processing step of the flowchart shown in FIG. 2 is realized by the control unit 110 (CPU) executing a program. The same applies to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 described later.

[0051] The control unit 110 reads external change information (external company information) such as supplier information, customer information, other company information, and disaster information, and in-house information such as consumption plans and inventory status, through the information acquisition unit 111 (S1).

[0052] Next, the control unit 110 classifies according to the type of external change information by the change classification unit 112 (S2a). Next, the control unit 110 determines whether it is necessary to review the need for emergency purchases and the normal purchase quantity based on the continuity of external changes, etc., by the change classification unit 112 (S2b).

[0053] When it is necessary to review the emergency / normal purchase quantity (YES determination in S2b), the control unit 110 calculates the change amount of the normal purchase quantity by the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 based on the result of the classification of external changes by the change classification unit 112 (S3a). Next, the control unit 110 calculates a temporary purchase quantity based on the classification result of the external change by the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 (S3b).

[0054] After the process of step S3b, the control unit 110 creates a purchase plan based on the temporary purchase quantity and the normal purchase quantity calculated in steps S3a and S3b by the purchase plan calculation unit 114 (S4). Also, when it is not necessary to review the temporary purchase / normal purchase quantity (NO determination in S2b), the control unit 110 creates a purchase plan without reviewing the temporary purchase / normal purchase quantity (S4).

[0055] Next, the control unit 110 transmits the purchase plan calculated in step S4 to the purchase-related system by the information transmission unit 115 (S5). After the process of this step, the processing of the inventory management support system 100 ends.

[0056] [Processing of the change classification unit] Next, the processing of the change classification unit 112 will be described with reference to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the processing of the change classification unit 112.

[0057] When receiving a start command for the change classification process, the change classification unit 112 acquires external change information (external company information) such as supplier information, customer information, other company information, and disaster information, and internal company information such as judgment criteria and inventory status from the information acquisition unit 111 (S21).

[0058] Next, the change classification unit 112 classifies the change based on the type of the changed information source (external company information) (S22). For example, the information sources of the information acquisition unit 111 can use one or more of (1) direct contact from suppliers or customers, (2) external public data such as meteorological bureaus / Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, or news articles regarding industrial information, and (3) analysis results of such external public data or news articles, or analysis results of past order history / failure history / delivery performance, etc.

[0059] Next, the change classification unit 112 determines whether the absolute value of the difference between the changed condition and the current inventory setting reference condition is greater than or equal to the inventory review threshold (S23). The changed condition means the inventory setting reference condition after the change. For example, when the inventory setting reference condition is extended from the current 3 months to 6 months, the changed condition is "6 months".

[0060] If the absolute value of the difference is less than the inventory review threshold (NO determination in S23), the change classification unit 112 ends this process. On the other hand, if the absolute value of the difference is greater than or equal to the inventory review threshold in step S23 (YES determination in S23), the change classification unit 112 determines whether the influence of the external change continues to be greater than or equal to the continuous determination threshold (S24).

[0061] If the influence of the external change continues to be greater than or equal to the continuous determination threshold (YES determination in S24), the change classification unit 112 determines that it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity and transfers information indicating the result of this determination to the normal purchase quantity review unit 113b (S25).

[0062] Next, the change classification unit 112 updates the current inventory setting reference condition to the inventory setting reference condition after the change (referred to as the "changed condition") (S26). By this process, the inventory setting reference condition can be updated according to the situation of the external change, so the accuracy of inventory management is improved.

[0063] Next, the change classification unit 112 transfers the information indicating the inventory setting reference condition after the change (changed condition) to the temporary purchase quantity calculation unit 113c of the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 (S27). After the process of step S27, the change classification unit 112 ends this process.

[0064] On the other hand, if the influence of the external change does not continue above the duration determination threshold in step S24 (NO determination in S24), the change classification unit 112 reviews the inventory based on the same recent change classification and determines whether the reviewed quantity is excessive (S28). If the previous reviewed quantity was excessive (YES determination in S28), the process proceeds to the process of step S25. If the previous reviewed quantity was not excessive (NO determination in S28), the process proceeds to the process of step S27. Not limited to the previous reviewed quantity, the appropriateness of the past reviewed quantities can be referred to.

[0065] When it is determined in step S28 that the previous reviewed quantity was not excessive (NO determination in S28), the change classification unit 112 transfers information indicating that the previous reviewed quantity was not excessive to the provisional purchase quantity calculation unit 113c (S27). After the process of step S27, the change classification unit 112 ends this process.

[0066] (Example 1) Here, the process of the change classification unit 112 will be described using Example 1. Assume that the original delivery date of the semiconductor component is three months, and due to the impact of the new infectious disease, the delivery date has been extended to six months (a three-month extension) since June 2020. Also, assume that the inventory review threshold is two months, and the external change is classified as "inventory review" due to the delivery date. At the time of June 2020, although it is not known how long the impact of this new infectious disease will continue, if the purchase quantity has not been reviewed in the past, the provisional purchase quantity is calculated. Assume that the continuous determination threshold is six months, and when information on a delivery date of six months is received again at the end of December 2020, it is predicted from the past trend that it will continue above the continuous determination threshold in the future, so a review of the normal purchase quantity is required. Or, in June 2020, if it is determined based on information directly obtained from the supplier or market information analysis that the delivery date extension will continue in the future, since the delivery date extension will continue in the future, a review of the normal purchase quantity is also required. After the normal purchase quantity is reviewed, the inventory setting standard conditions are updated from three months to six months (equivalent to the conditions after the change). If the delivery time returns to three months in December 2022, since the difference is above the review threshold and the impact is considered to continue, it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity.

[0067] (Example 2) Furthermore, the processing of the change classification unit 112 will be described using Example 2. Assume that the delivery time of the printed circuit board is two weeks, and it is a component with a high possibility of failure due to waterlogging. Suppose information is obtained in May that the impact of the typhoon in August this year will be five times that of last year. Since this information is disaster-related information, the external change is classified as a "disaster change". If there has been no inventory review due to the same change classification recently (for example, within a recent predetermined period) and the impact will not continue in the future, calculate the required inventory and calculate the emergency purchase quantity.

[0068] In July, it is updated that the impact of the typhoon in August is two times, not five times, that of last year. Assume that the inventory was reviewed due to the same change in the past and there has been no past continuation. However, since the emergency purchase was made five times the normal purchase quantity last year to review the previous purchase quantity, it is necessary to review and reduce three times the difference due to the information change between May and August (the impact was expected to be five times) from the future normal purchase quantity.

[0069] When reviewing the normal purchase quantity based on the previous review, if the over-purchase made during the emergency purchase can still be canceled, it may be configured to cancel the previous purchase amount.

[0070] The judgment criteria for whether it is necessary to make an emergency purchase of maintenance parts / review the normal purchase quantity by the change classification unit 112 based on the classification or degree of changes in the external environment are preset or calculated based on the set logic and stored in the storage unit 120 as a database. In addition, the change classification unit 112 determines whether criteria for judging the necessity of emergency procurement of maintenance parts and whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity can be used. If the criteria for judgment cannot be used, an alert may be output to the operator terminal 300. As a result, when the criteria for judgment for the necessity of emergency procurement / review of the normal purchase quantity cannot be used, an alert is output, so that the person in charge can recognize that attention is required for the judgment result of the review.

[0071] If there is a past record of adjusting the purchase quantity based on external change information, preset classification and judgment criteria are used. If there is no past record, judgment is requested within the organization (for example, within the company). For example, it can be divided as follows. (1) Preset judgment criteria When there has been a notice of delivery date extension from the supplier usually, and the changed delivery date > order frequency, it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity. When the original delivery date is extended from two weeks to one month, since the conventional order is executed once every two months, there is no particular impact, and there is no need to review emergency procurement / normal purchase quantity. However, when it is extended from two weeks to three months, or when it becomes longer than the conventional purchase cycle, it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity.

[0072] (2) Request judgment within the organization On the other hand, for example, when a new infectious disease occurred in 2019, it is still impossible to predict whether there will be an impact on future delivery date extensions. When obtaining information in 2020 that lockdowns due to new infectious diseases occur frequently around the world in the news, although there are no previous criteria, it is necessary to consider within the organization the criteria for judging whether it is necessary to review the purchase quantity.

[0073] (3) Preset judgment logic Also, regarding the above new infectious disease, in the future, based on such experience, text analysis is performed on the news. For example, when a large number of keywords related to the delivery date such as "logistics" and "delay" are searched, it is also conceivable to create judgment logic for judging that it is necessary to review the purchase quantity.

[0074] [Processing of purchase quantity calculation unit] Next, the processing of the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 will be described with reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the processing of the purchase quantity calculation unit 113.

[0075] When the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 receives a start command for the purchase quantity calculation process, it acquires information such as the judgment criteria, inventory status, and component information from the information acquisition unit 111, and information regarding the classification result and the necessity of review from the change classification unit 112 (S31).

[0076] Next, the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 determines the degree and scope of influence (for example, the duration) of the change based on the judgment criteria of the corresponding classification by classifying the change (S32).

[0077] Next, in the required inventory calculation unit 113a, the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 calculates the required inventory quantity and the required inventory change quantity for the components within the scope of influence according to the determined degree of change (S33). The calculation formula is represented by formula (1). (Required inventory change quantity) = (Required inventory quantity) - (Current required inventory quantity) ···(1)

[0078] Next, the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 acquires the judgment result on whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity from the change classification unit 112, and determines whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity (S34). Here, if it is not necessary to review the normal purchase quantity (NO judgment in S34), the process proceeds to the process of step S36.

[0079] On the other hand, if it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity (YES judgment in S34), the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 calculates the normal purchase review quantity in the normal purchase quantity review unit 113b (S35). The normal purchase review quantity is synonymous with the change amount of the normal purchase quantity. The calculation formula is represented by formula (2). Note that the surplus quantity corresponds to the undigested part such as the amount of previous emergency purchases. (Normal purchase review quantity) = (Required inventory change quantity) - (Surplus quantity) ···(2)

[0080] In this embodiment, it is desirable that the review of the normal purchase quantity be performed for one or both of the maintenance parts that are purchased regularly and the maintenance parts that are replenished when they fall below a certain standard to ensure a safety stock of the maintenance parts. By doing so, the parts can be supplied stably. In addition, when the review of the normal purchase quantity is a review of the maintenance parts purchased regularly, based on the classification and degree of changes in the external environment, it is possible to review either or both of the purchase cycle of the maintenance parts and the purchase quantity each time.

[0081] After the process of step S35, or when it is not necessary to review the normal purchase quantity in step S34 (NO determination in S34), in the temporary purchase quantity calculation unit 113c of the purchase quantity calculation unit 113, the required stock quantity is compared with the current stock quantity, and the difference is calculated (S36). The calculation formula is represented by formula (3). (Quantity of differential parts) = (Required stock quantity) - (Current stock quantity of parts) ···(3)

[0082] Next, in the temporary purchase quantity calculation unit 113c of the purchase quantity calculation unit 113, it is determined that a temporary purchase is necessary, and the temporary purchase quantity is calculated using formula (4) (S37). The temporary purchase quantity corresponds to the number of differential parts obtained in step S36. After the process of step 37, this process ends. (Temporary purchase quantity) = (Number of differential parts) ···(4)

[0083] [Processing of Purchase Plan Calculation Unit] Next, the processing of the purchase plan calculation unit 114 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the processing of the purchase plan calculation unit 114.

[0084] When the purchase plan calculation unit 114 receives a start command for the purchase plan calculation process, it acquires information such as the consumption plan, inventory status, and part information from the information acquisition unit 111, and information on the normal purchase review quantity and the temporary purchase quantity from the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 (S41).

[0085] Next, the purchase plan calculation unit 114 determines whether emergency purchases are necessary based on the determination result of the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 in step S37 of FIG. 4 (S42). If emergency purchases are not necessary (NO determination in S42), the process proceeds to the process of step S44.

[0086] If emergency purchases are necessary (YES determination in S42), the purchase plan calculation unit 114 immediately places an order for the maintenance parts corresponding to the calculated emergency purchase quantity (S43). The purchase plan calculation unit 114 transmits an order instruction including information on the target maintenance parts and the emergency purchase quantity to the parts ordering system 400.

[0087] Next, after the process of step S43 or when a NO determination is made in step S42, the purchase plan calculation unit 114 determines whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity based on the determination result of the purchase quantity calculation unit 113 in step S34 (S44).

[0088] If it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity (YES determination in S44), the purchase plan calculation unit 114 places an order for the target maintenance parts of the normal purchase quantity based on the normal purchase plan (S45). The normal purchase quantity to be ordered in this case can be expressed by formula (5). The normal purchase review quantity is the value calculated in step S35 of FIG. 4. (Normal purchase quantity) = (Current normal purchase quantity) + (Normal purchase review quantity) ··· (5)

[0089] On the other hand, if it is not necessary to review the normal purchase quantity (NO determination in S44), the purchase plan calculation unit 114 places an order for the target maintenance parts of the normal purchase quantity based on the normal purchase plan (S46). The normal purchase quantity to be ordered in this case can be expressed by formula (6). (Normal purchase quantity) = (Current normal purchase quantity) ··· (6) After the process of step S45 or step S46, this process ends.

[0090] According to the inventory management support system 100 according to this embodiment having the above-described configuration, it is possible to achieve stable supply of parts and reduction of inventory management costs while responding to changes in the external situation (external environment).

[0091] [Screen of the inventory management application] Next, examples of each screen displayed by the inventory management application according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 14. The person in charge of inventory management uses the inventory management application installed on the person-in-charge terminal 300 to manage the inventory of maintenance parts and procure maintenance parts. The program of the inventory management application is stored in the storage unit 320 of the person-in-charge terminal 300.

[0092] FIG. 6 shows an example screen (login screen, home screen) of the inventory management application. On the left side of FIG. 6, a login screen 61 is displayed on the output unit 332 of the person-in-charge terminal 300. In the example of FIG. 6, a user ID input field, a password input field, a login button, and a new registration button are displayed on the login screen 61. After the person in charge inputs the user ID and password, they press the login button to execute the login.

[0093] On the right side of FIG. 6, a home screen 62 is displayed on the output unit 332 of the person-in-charge terminal 300. In the example of FIG. 6, a news display column and various icons are displayed on the home screen 62. In this example, various icons for "Plan", "Maintenance", "Order", "Inventory", "Change Management", and "Frequently Asked Questions" are prepared. In this embodiment, on the home screen 62, in addition to the menus related to general inventory management, there is a change management menu (change management icon 63).

[0094] When the plan icon is selected, the consumption plan can be confirmed. It may also be configured to be able to confirm any plan other than the consumption plan. When the maintenance icon is selected, for example, the repair plan and repair results can be confirmed. When the order icon is selected, the order history and the like can be confirmed. When the inventory icon is selected, the inventory of maintenance parts (for example, past inventory, current inventory, future inventory) can be confirmed. When the change management icon 63 is selected, information regarding changes in the external environment can be managed. When the change management icon 63 is selected, the user is redirected to the external change screen shown in Figure 7.

[0095] [Change Management Screen] (Full Display) Figure 7 shows an example of the change management screen (full display) of the inventory management application. On the change management screen 700, information regarding changes in the external environment (external changes) is displayed. Here, "All" is selected as the filtering condition for the display content. "Newest" is selected for sorting the display order. The external change information shown in Figure 7 is the display on the second page, and by pressing "Previous" or "Next", the external change information on other pages can be viewed.

[0096] On the change management screen 700, a list of external change information is displayed. For the information related to each case, a case ID (e.g., part ID = H00232) is associated. Clicking on that case will display the related chart and change history of that case (see Figure 8).

[0097] In the example of Figure 7, information regarding disasters is displayed as an external change. In the external change information area 710, for example, the disaster is "typhoon", the part number affected is "H00232", and the response is shown as "reduce normal purchases". Also, as detailed information about the external change, "Parts that are likely to malfunction due to flooding. Information obtained in May indicated that the impact of the typhoon in August this year would be 5 times that of last year, but in July, it was updated to show that the typhoon in August has an impact 2 times, not 5 times, that of last year...." is displayed. Also, the date and time when these external change information were registered is "2022 / 7". Below the external change information corresponding to this "reduce normal purchases", external change information indicating that it was addressed with "emergency purchase" is displayed.

[0098] Note that in the example of Figure 7, information regarding disasters is displayed as an external change, but if other external changes occur, such as those related to customers, suppliers, other companies, etc., that information will be displayed.

[0099] (Individual Display) On the change management screen 700, when any external change information area 710 is selected, it transitions to an individual display (Figure 8 described later) showing the details of the selected external change information.

[0100] Figure 8 shows an example of the change management screen (individual display) of the inventory management application. On the individual display screen 800, information such as "Related Chart", "Change History", and "Change Input" is displayed. On the individual display screen 800, a function is provided to input what changes to make based on the current information.

[0101] A related chart is displayed in the related chart area 810. The related chart shows charts that can show various fluctuations of maintenance parts by month and year, such as the inventory plan and purchase requirements of maintenance parts. In addition, fluctuations in the order and receipt of maintenance parts, the receipt of maintenance parts, and fluctuations in initial receipt and shipment are displayed. When the related chart area 810 is clicked, dashboards before and after the change in the external environment are displayed (Figures 9 to 11).

[0102] The change history area 820 lists the history of changes to the purchase of maintenance parts by the inventory management support system 100. For example, in the change history list, the history number, part number, part (type), month and year, type of purchase, and purchase quantity ("quantity" in the figure) are displayed. In the first row, an example is shown where the history number is "2", the part number is "0623", the part is "printed circuit board", the changed month and year is "22 / 7", the type of purchase is "normal", and the purchase quantity is "-10".

[0103] The change input area 830 displays the content modified by the inventory management staff for the purchase of maintenance parts manually. The inventory management staff can operate the input section 331 in the change input area 830 to change the purchase. The items in the change input list are the same as those in the above change history list. An example is shown in the first row of the change input list where the history number is "2", the part number is "0623", the part is "printed circuit board", the modified year and month is "22 / 7", the purchase type is "normal", and the purchase quantity is "-2". After entering the change content, pressing the confirmation button will confirm the modified content.

[0104] Examples of the dashboard before and after the change in the external environment when the related chart area 810 is clicked are shown in FIGS. 9 to 11.

[0105] [Dashboard before and after the change in the external environment] FIG. 9 shows an example of the related chart screen (before change) of the inventory management application. The related chart screen 900 has a pre-change icon 910, a requirement change icon 920, and a purchase change icon 930, and displays the dashboard corresponding to the selected icon. In FIG. 9, a chart 901 of the plan and requirement for each month before the change, a chart 902 of the order and receipt for each month, and a chart 903 of the receipt, initial inventory, and shipment for each month are displayed.

[0106] FIG. 10 shows an example of the related chart screen (requirement change) of the inventory management application. In the related chart screen 1000 of FIG. 10, a chart 1001 of the plan and requirement (requirement change) for each month after the requirement change, a chart 1002 of the order and receipt for each month, and a chart 1003 of the initial inventory, receipt (requirement change), and shipment (requirement change) for each month after the requirement change are displayed.

[0107] FIG. 11 shows an example of the related chart screen (purchase change) of the inventory management application. In the related chart screen 1100 of FIG. 11, there are displayed a chart 1101 of the plan and requirements (requirement changes) for each month and year after the requirement change, a chart 1102 of the purchase orders (purchase changes) and receipts (purchase changes) for each month and year after the purchase change, and a chart 1103 of the initial inventory, receipts (purchase changes) and dispatches (purchase changes) for each month and year after the purchase change.

[0108] [Related Chart (Details)] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the details of the related chart (before change) by the inventory management application. This figure shows the details of the chart within the related chart screen 900 shown in FIG. 9.

[0109] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the details of the related chart (requirement change) by the inventory management application. This figure shows the details of the chart within the related chart screen 1000 shown in FIG. 10. In this example, in the chart 1001 of the plan and requirements (requirement changes) for each month and year after the requirement change, the requirement for maintenance parts at the date and time "202208" has increased (+15). Also, in the chart 1003 of the initial inventory, receipts (requirement changes) and dispatches (requirement changes) for each month and year after the requirement change, as the requirement for maintenance parts increases at the date and time "202208", the inventory has decreased and stockouts have occurred after "202208" and after "202302".

[0110] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the details of the related chart (purchase change) by the inventory management application. This figure shows the details of the chart within the related chart screen 1100 shown in FIG. 11. In the chart 1001 of the plan and requirements (requirement changes) for each month and year after the requirement change, the requirement for maintenance parts at the date and time "202208" has increased (+15). In the chart 1102 of the purchase orders (purchase changes) and receipts (purchase changes) for each month and year after the purchase change, anticipating the increase in the requirement for maintenance parts in "202208" (+15), the purchase order has been increased (+20) in "202203". The goods are received (+20) in "202207", four months after the purchase order, and can meet the increase in the requirement for maintenance parts in "202208" (+15). As can be seen from chart 1103, the inventory has also increased by 40 pieces, and there are no stockouts in "202208" and "202302".

[0111] The screens shown in FIGS. 6 to 14 described above are for products to be maintained (e.g., elevators) owned by customers, and are used for inventory management and adjustment of the parts from the parts list according to the installation location.

[0112] [Screen of the spare parts management application] Next, examples of each screen displayed by the spare parts management application according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 15 to 16. For example, when a field engineer or a salesperson visits a maintenance contractor for products such as elevators, it is conceivable to show the screen of this spare parts management application to the contractor.

[0113] FIG. 15 shows an example of the home screen of the spare parts management application. The home screen 1510 of the operator terminal 1500 has display areas such as "Customer number", "Building selection", "Model number selection", and "Installation location". Salespersons, etc. input the content for each display area or select from the options and press the save button. When an individual case is input and the save button is pressed, it transitions to the display screen of the individual case as shown in FIG. 16.

[0114] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for displaying an overview (contract and parts) of an individual case of the spare parts management application. The individual case screen 1600 has, for example, a contract overview 1610, a parts overview 1620, and a save button.

[0115] The contract overview 1610 has information such as customer number, model number, product name and type, building name, and contract name. The component summary 1620 has information on each of the part number, part name, and specifications. When an arbitrary part number is selected in the component summary 1620, the related chart for the selected part number is displayed. In this example, an example is shown in which the screen of the related chart 1700 for the part number "H00232" is displayed. In this example, as the related chart 1700, the same chart as the chart 1103 of the initial inventory, incoming stock (purchase change), and outgoing stock (purchase change) for each month and year after the purchase change is displayed.

[0116] According to the present embodiment having the above-described configuration, it is possible to achieve stable component supply and reduction of inventory management costs while coping with changes in external situations.

[0117] As described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it goes without saying that various other modifications and application examples can be adopted without departing from the gist of the invention described in the claims. For example, the above-described embodiment describes the configuration in detail and specifically in order to explain the present invention in an easy-to-understand manner, and is not necessarily limited to the one having all the components described. Also, it is possible to add, replace, or delete some of the components of the configuration of the embodiment with other components.

[0118] Also, each of the above-described configurations, functions, processing units, etc. may be realized in hardware by designing a part or all of them, for example, with an integrated circuit. As the hardware, a processor device in a broad sense such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) may be used.

[0119] Also, each component of the inventory management support system according to the above-described embodiment may be implemented on any hardware as long as the respective hardware can transmit and receive information to and from each other via a network. Also, the processing performed by a certain processing unit may be realized by one piece of hardware or by distributed processing by a plurality of pieces of hardware.

[0120] Also, in the above-described embodiments, the control lines and information lines show those considered necessary for explanation, and not necessarily all control lines and information lines are shown on the product. In reality, it may be considered that almost all components are interconnected.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0121] 100... Inventory management support system, 111... Information acquisition unit, 112... Change classification unit, 113... Purchase quantity calculation unit, 114... Purchase plan calculation unit, 115... Information transmission unit, 120... Memory unit

Claims

1. An inventory management support system for supporting the inventory management of maintenance parts, comprising: an information acquisition unit that acquires external change information, which is a change in the external environment of the entity performing the inventory management, and information that affects the inventory of maintenance parts; a change classification unit that performs a process of classifying the external change according to a preset judgment criterion, and a process of judging whether it is necessary to make an emergency purchase of maintenance parts and whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity based on the continuity of the external change; when it is determined that the review is necessary, a purchase quantity calculation unit that calculates at least one of the change amount of the normal purchase quantity and the emergency purchase quantity of the corresponding maintenance parts based on the classification result of the external change; a purchase plan calculation unit that calculates a purchase plan for the maintenance parts based on the normal purchase quantity, the change amount of the normal purchase quantity calculated by the purchase quantity calculation unit, and the emergency purchase quantity; an information transmission unit that transmits the information of the calculated purchase plan. The inventory management support system.

2. The change classification unit performs a process of determining whether it is necessary to review the inventory of maintenance parts from the inventory setting standard conditions after the change and the current inventory setting standard conditions for each classification of the change in the external environment, a process of determining whether the period during which the change in the external environment continues is equal to or longer than a continuation judgment threshold value, and a process of updating the current inventory setting standard conditions with the inventory setting standard conditions after the change when the normal purchase quantity is reviewed. The inventory management support system according to Claim 1.

3. The change classification unit performs a process of determining whether the purchase quantity from the previous review remains excessive when the inventory was reviewed with the same change classification in the past. The inventory management support system according to Claim 2.

4. The criteria based on which the change classification unit determines whether it is necessary to make an emergency purchase of maintenance parts and whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity based on the classification of the change in the external environment or the degree of the change in the external environment are preset and stored in a storage unit as a database. The inventory management support system according to Claim 3.

5. The change classification unit determines whether the criteria for determining whether it is necessary to make an emergency purchase of maintenance parts and whether it is necessary to review the normal purchase quantity can be used, and outputs an alert when the criteria for the determination cannot be used. The inventory management support system according to Claim 4.

6. The review of the normal purchase quantity is performed for one or both of the maintenance parts that are regularly purchased and the maintenance parts that are replenished when they fall below a certain standard to ensure a safety stock of maintenance parts. The inventory management support system according to claim 1.

7. When the review of the normal purchase quantity is a review of maintenance parts that are regularly purchased, based on the classification and degree of change in the external environment, it is possible to review the purchase cycle and / or the quantity purchased each time of the maintenance parts. The inventory management support system according to claim 6.

8. In the purchase quantity calculation unit, for each classification of the change in the external environment, a process of determining the degree and scope of influence of the change in the external environment, a process of calculating the required inventory quantity for the maintenance parts within the scope of influence according to the determined degree of change, a process of calculating the required inventory change quantity from the difference between the required inventory quantity and the current required inventory quantity, when a review of the normal purchase quantity is required, the review of the normal purchase quantity is calculated from the required inventory change quantity and the surplus quantity based on the previously reviewed purchase quantity, calculating the differential part quantity from the difference between the required inventory quantity and the current inventory part quantity, and when the differential part quantity exceeds the purchase required threshold, calculating it as the emergency purchase quantity, and including. The inventory management support system according to claim 1.

9. In the purchase plan calculation unit, when emergency purchase is required, a process of planning the order of the immediately calculated emergency purchase quantity, when a review of the normal purchase quantity is required, a process of planning the order based on the reviewed purchase cycle and the normal purchase quantity, and including. The inventory management support system according to claim 1.

10. An inventory management support method by an inventory management support system for supporting the inventory management of maintenance parts, a process of obtaining external change information, which is a change in the external environment of the entity performing the inventory management, and information affecting the inventory of maintenance parts, a process of classifying the external change according to a preset judgment criterion, and a process of determining whether emergency purchase of maintenance parts and / or a review of the normal purchase quantity is necessary based on the continuity of the external change, when it is determined that a review is necessary, a process of calculating at least one of the change amount of the normal purchase quantity and the emergency purchase quantity of the corresponding maintenance parts based on the result of the classification of the external change, a process of calculating the purchase plan of the maintenance parts based on the normal purchase quantity, the change amount of the normal purchase quantity, and the emergency purchase quantity, a process of transmitting the information of the calculated purchase plan, and including. Inventory management support method.

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