Abstract

This study was conducted in order to find out the effects of warehouse management on the performance of building material shops in the Buea municipality due to poor stock control measures, lack of automated systems and lack of inventory oversights. The study was carried out in the Buea municipality and the sample size was made up of 90 employees of material building shops.

A simple random sampling technique was used in the study and data was analyzed through descriptive statistics and presented in the form of questionnaires, percentages and tables to help test the validity of research hypothesis.

Hypothetical relationships were tested using the Ordinary Least Square regression model and the findings show that; warehouse management has positive statistical significant effects on material building shops in the Buea municipality. Following the results, it was recommended that material building shops in Buea municipality should create more warehouses in order to effectively manage their stocks.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

In today’s highly competitive global marketplace, the pressure on organizations to find new ways to create value and deliver it to their customers grows ever stronger. The increasing need for the industry to compete with its products in a global market across cost, quality, and service dimensions has given rise to the need to develop more efficient warehousing strategies (Chakraborty, 2011). Warehousing has come to be recognized as a distinct function with the rise of mass production systems. Warehousing is the storage of goods, whereas a distribution center precedes a postproduction warehouse for finished goods held for distribution (Attaolah, 2010). Therefore, warehousing and distribution centers basically have the same function as goods and products storage (Coyle, 2003).

The warehouse and distribution centers are very important nodes in a supply chain network. They perform valuable functions that support the movement of materials, storing goods, processing products, de-aggregating vehicle loads, and creating stock-keeping unit assortments, and assembling shipments (Langevin and Diana, 2005). The efficient management of warehouses helps to optimize the existing production and distribution processes and greatly assists in the goal of cost reduction and service enhancement.

The movement of goods and services from the production center to the final consumer across the world usually takes time. This is because of the gap between demand and supply. The demand and supply gap may cause by time and or quantity. The number of goods and services manufacture and supply today may not meet the necessary or equal demand. Rather demand will surface after a week, month, or more (Robert et al., 1999).

Equally the quantity of goods demanded today may be in excess of what is supplied resulting in this gap. The warehousing network plays a major role in the success of the physical distribution of products. It is observed that the leading firms adopt and implement the different warehousing strategies such as capacity switching, hub networking, cobbling, and outsourcing (Sople, 2010).

Both the analytic and simulation models are proposed for improving warehouse design practices. Analytic models are usually design-oriented; explore many alternatives quickly to find solutions. On the other hand, simulation models are usually analysis-oriented. They provide an assessment of a given design, but usually have limited capability for exploring the design space. There is an important need to integrate both approaches to achieve more flexibility in analyzing warehouse problems (Jinxiang, 2010). Warehousing or wholesale is a usual business phenomenon in Cameroon even though the size may vary compared to the warehouse practice of the advanced economy (Ritchie and Brindley, 2007). Standard warehousing practices are usually practiced in maritime or marine transport where goods are brought in organized and distributed across the nation.

The Douala and the Kribi seaport can set the base and practical view of the usual warehouse supply chain function. In addition to this mode of warehousing initiative, the hinterland does equally organized subsidiary warehousing national supply of goods and services across the economy. Ndangute and other national cement factories are set in one region of the economy. The outputs of these factories are transported to warehouses across the nation. This is not limited to cement but other building material like nails, iron rods, zinc, and others that may be imported from foreign nations and stock for distribution.

The role of the intermediary institution cannot be underestimated in channeling the needed building material to the respective areas of need. It is sometimes very hard to have wholesale or these warehousing businesses organizes in the rural areas (Kleindorfer and Saad, 2005). In most cases, those living in the rural area will move to urban centers to place their demand. It will be misleading if the rural areas are made the unit of research.

The organization of the warehousing business model (inbound, operation, and outbound/distribution) can ease distribution. It can also help to ensure the right goods with their specificity reaches the purchaser (customer) on time and safely. The study will apply descriptive statistics to cross-examine the contribution of the intermediate organization to the satisfaction of the purchase (customers) in the Buea municipality (Papadakis, 2006).

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The warehousing network plays a major role in the success of the physical distribution of products. It is observed that the leading firms adopt and implement the different warehousing strategies such as capacity switching, hub networking, cobbling, and outsourcing (Sople, 2010). The building material warehousing whole seller in Buea may not be big compare to those of engaging in international business through maritime transport. However, they do portray the features that capture the mentioned services.

Poor stock control measures by human resource specialists are a major problem in building material warehousing in Buea.

Warehouses are most at times overstocked or understocked which causes shortages, excess or over load of stocks. This creates and atmosphere of dissatisfaction with demand if not available due to shortages of materials in the warehouse (Sodhi, 2005). Also, poor warehousing facilities is a major point of concern for human resource specialist in the building material shops in the Buea municipality. Warehouses are poorly ventilated and the shelving adopted is poor and this leads to damage of goods which will result to massive losses. To add, the lack of automated systems in warehousing is a major point of concern in material building shops in Buea.

Without an automated system, companies often don’t know what they have in stock, causing inaccuracies and negatively affecting performance (Zineldine, 2010). Lack of inventory oversights can cause a build up of inefficiencies within the warehouse that slows operations and increases cost. Without adequate insight into location, pickers take longer to find the items, which slows the loading process and thereby, negatively affects efficiency and performance (Dean, 2008).

1.3 Research Question

1.3.1 Main Research Question

What is the effect of warehouse management on the performance of building material shops in Buea Municipality?

1.3.2 Specific Research Questions

1. To what extend does receiving process contribute to the performance of building material shops in Buea Municipality?
2. How does physical storage facility contribute to the performance of building material shops in Buea municipality?
3. What is the effect of order processing of goods on building material shops in Buea municipality?

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