Free CIPS L4M7 Practice Exam with Questions & Answers | Set: 6

Explanation

Holding extra stocks will always improve customer service levels, or at least reduce the risk of them falling. This implies that if an organisation aims at higher service levels, they should have larger safety stock. However, increasing safety stock is not the only solution to improve service level. The widespread adoption of just-in-time (JIT) techniques particularly in the automotive industry has greatly reduced costs with increased service levels as well as the additional benefit of increased problem visibility.

The correct answer should be 'A safety stock is not always required to achieve a required service level'.

Explanation

Minimum open aisle width for standard counterbalance forklift is 10.5-13.1 ft. You can look at the minimum aisle width for different equipment here, or calculate yourself with an instruction here.

LO 1, AC 1.3

Explanation

An inventory write-off is a process of removing from the general ledger any inventory that has no value.

Using the direct write-off method, a business will record a credit to the inventory asset account and a debit to the expense account. For example, say a company with $100,000 worth of inventory decides to write off $10,000 in inventory at the end of the year. First, the firm will credit the inventory account with the value of the write-off to reduce the balance. The value of the gross inventory will be reduced as such: $100,000 - $10,000 = $90,000. Next, the inventory write-off expense account will be increased with a debit to reflect the loss.

The expense account is reflected in the income statement, reducing the firm’s net income and thus its retained earnings. A decrease in retained earnings translates into a corresponding decrease in the shareholders’ equity section of the balance sheet.

If the inventory write-off is immaterial, a business will often charge the inventory write-off to the cost of goods sold (COGS) account. The problem with charging the amount to the COGS account is that it distorts the gross margin of the business, as there is no corresponding revenue entered for the sale of the product. Most inventory write-offs are small, annual expenses. A large inventory write-off (such as one caused by a warehouse fire) may be categorized as a non-recurring loss.

Explanation

Direct and indirect costs of holding inventory include the following:

1. Acquisition costs

2. Holding costs (carrying costs) are the costs associated with the storage and handling of physical stock. There are two different types of holding costs:

a. Costs related to the value of the goods: financial costs (i.e. the interest on the working capital tied up in inventory, which may be the bank borrowing rate or the company's target for return on capital); cost of insurance; losses due to product deterioration; losses due to obsolescence and redundancy of inventory; losses due to theft, accidental damage etc.

b. Costs related to the physical characteristics of the inventory include the following: storage space; power, heat and lighting of the store; movement equipment; labour costs; administration costs.

3. Costs of stockouts

Explanation

Net present value (NPV) is the 'today' net value that deprives from 'future' cash flow of an invest-ment or a capital purchase. Net Present Value is a helpful tool for assessing the total lifetime value of an investment. Procurement professionals or investors can base on this value to make decision to achieve value for money. Generally, an organisation should select the offer which has the highest NPV among their options. Preferably, the NPV of an capital investment should be positive, which means the investment eventually adds value to the business.

Leasing allows an organization to predict costs accurately, as installment payments are pre-agreed. This makes financial planning simpler, which is especially beneficial in whole-life asset management where minimizing upfront capital expenditure is often a priority. Leasing also reduces the risk associated with asset obsolescence.

Explanation

The most basic alarm consists of one or more sensors to detect intruders, and an alerting device to indicate the intrusion. However, a typical premises security alarm employs the following compo-nents:

- Premises control unit (PCU), Alarm Control Panel (ACP), or simply panel: The "brain" of the system, it reads sensor inputs, tracks arm/disarm status, and signals intrusions. In modern system, this is typically one or more computer circuit boards inside a metal enclosure, along with a power supply.

- Sensors: Devices which detect intrusions. Sensors may be placed at the perimeter of the protected area, within it, or both. Sensors can detect intruders by a variety of methods, such as monitoring doors and windows for opening, or by monitoring unoccupied interiors for motions, sound, vibration, or other disturbances.

- Alerting devices: These indicate an alarm condition. Most commonly, these are bells, sirens, and/or flashing lights. Alerting devices serve the dual purposes of warning occupants of intrusion, and potentially scaring off burglars. These devices may also be used to warn occupants of a fire or smoke condition.

- Keypads: Small devices, typically wall-mounted, which function as the human-machine interface to the system. In addition to buttons, keypads typically feature indicator lights, a small multi-character display, or both.etc.

- Interconnections between components. This may consist of direct wiring to the control unit, or wireless links with local power supplies.

In addition to the system itself, security alarms are often coupled with a monitoring service. In the event of an alarm, the premises control unit contacts a central monitoring station. Operators at the station see the signal and take appropriate action, such as contacting property owners, notifying police, or dispatching private security forces. Such signals may be transmitted via dedicated alarm circuits, telephone lines, or the internet.

Explanation

The design of a building should consider the advantages of natural light as this can reduce the cost of artificial lighting and improve the environmental performance of the building. Daylight entering the building can also help reduce heating costs. Unfortunately some stocks react badly to direct sunlight, and some stock reacts badly to extreme of temperature or may require a specific temperature for storage. Some stock may require a warmer temperature than the ambient temperature and other stocks may require cooler temperature. For example, fabric and garment are sensitive to direct sunlight as ultraviolet light catalyses a reaction between the water present in all fabrics and atmospheric oxygen to create hydrogen peroxide. This is a bleaching agent and breaks down the chemical bonds that give dyes their colour.