Chapter 12 – Managing Uncertainty in a Supply Chain: Safety
Inventory
1. Using the Wal-Mart Demo for Example 4Preview the
documentView in a new window, what happens to the Required Safety Stock
inventory when the Desired Customer Service level is increased to 95%? What
happens to the Required Safety Stock inventory when the Desired Customer
Service level is decreased to 80%? What about 70%? What did you learn from this
exercise?
Note: This is not a “Solver” problem. Just change the
service level directly in Excel from .90 to .80 and .70 to see the impact on
safety inventory.
2. Using the Wal-Mart DemoPreview the documentView in a new
window, what happens to the Required Safety Stock inventory when the periodic
review interval is changed to quarterly, i.e., 12 weeks versus 4 weeks? What
happens when it is changed to weekly, i.e., 1 week versus 4 weeks? What did you
learn from this exercise?
Note: This is not a “Solver” problem. Just change the Review
Interval directly in Excel from 4 weeks to 12 weeks to 1 week, respectively.

