Logistics Management Dystar Group

Question: Discuss about the Logistics Management Dystar Group. Answer: Introduction Reports are formal writings which describe an activity which has been observed, studied and investigated for a period (Lichtenberger, et al. 2012). This report has been written for the purpose of providing information to various people such as the stakeholders of the organization. Moreover, current issues can be solved once the report is compiled. Reports assist directors in formulating strategies as well as decisions for the success of the business. Finally, reports act as means of communication within and outside the firm. For example, formerly unknown information is brought out in the reports. The report discusses DyStar, a chemical company whose headquarters are in Singapore. The firm began in 1995 as a joint venture. In the later years, it developed to be an international company having its subsidiaries in about 12 countries (Carpenter, et al. 2013). Its primary products are dyes, textiles, ink, pigments, and other related chemicals. The company became multi-national, and the name changed to DyStar Group. It has temporarily partnered with other firms for better production and trading. For example, the KDCL partnered with DyStar Group back in 2010 for the reasons mentioned above. There are different departments within the firm. First and foremost is the production sector where raw materials are converted to the required products. Secondly, there are agencies in most countries who carry out advertising, promoting and other forms of marketing activities on behalf of DyStar. The company arranges for the logistics process. The suitable transport medium is selected, for example, air, road and railway for far and local clients respectively. The company has a well-trained accounting and finance department to compute, analyze and determine profits realized. Since it is global, computations for each branch must be established for the management to plan and improve the weak areas. Interfaces In this section, the report explains the three most important functional areas of DyStar Group. Production Diversification of products on DyStar has taken place. Not only does it produce textile and dyes, but also it is moving on to lubricants, paints, coatings, printing and paper packaging (Hwang, et al. 2012). The main manufacturing activities are done at the company premises in at 1A International Business Park, Singapore. Well-equipped laboratories and skilled personnel have been employed for best results. Utilizing the theory of production in economics, the firm reduces the cost of the output to maximize returns (Wong, et al. 2011). The company hedges against labor, rent and hiring machines costs. Instead, it has established premises for its activities, bought plant and machinery and has hired over 1000 employees to participate in different fields. Marketing Dystar markets its commodities through the use of agents and the internet. Research shows the company has agents in around 50 countries. Under the Common Law concept, agents must be confidential; conceal secrets of the company, honest and must not make any secret profit (Fayezi, et al. 2012). Such agents are used by DyStar to find markets for the companys goods. They advertise, promote and convince wholesale individuals and groups to buy the business products. In return, commissions and other incentives are offered to them. Most buyers originate from Asia, Europe, and Australia. The company also sells its products to the local Singaporeans at reduced rates. It is one of the leading textile and Dyes Company in the country. Due to product diversity, DyStar is advancing to provide water treatment chemicals as well as agricultural fumes such pesticides and herbicides (Hong, 2011). Transport and Logistics This process occurs where goods have been manufactured, marketed and customers have ordered for them. The concept of supply chain management followed by the procurement exercise will apply. The firm obtains the goods from its storage units, determines the appropriate method of transport and the goods are sent to the customers through the help of the agents. Once goods are received, the individual buyers receive the, sign the required documents and the transaction is completed. Accounting and Finance The management team has employed accountants, auditors and financial analysts to advise the firm and manage its finances. The Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAPs) are taken into consideration. For instance, actual costs and the matching principles are established. Financial reports are prepared to cite losses and profits obtained in various categories. For example, DyStar recorded revenue of 2 billion USD in 2014 (Saad, et al. 2013). The accountants provide accurate figures of the firms expenses, income, assets, capital, and liability. Auditors, both internal and external, are hired to ascertain that the records provided are correct. Cases of statement manipulations are dealt with strictly. Once all reports are scrutinized, the financial analysts take charge. They analyze the statements of financial position, the income statement and the cash flows. At times, they compare with the previous records to identify whether past implemented plans worked. A meeting is held involving the shareholders, directors and some managers to establish policies, strategies, and decisions. For example, DyStar thought of acquiring the Lenmar Chemicals Corporation in 2013 which was successful (Tong, 2014). Demonstrating interface- Production-marketing-logistics-accounting and finance. Order Cycle Current order processing system Ji et al. (2012) define it as the process through which data from customers is fed into the computers to record the database for the inventory ordered. DyStar deals with various clients from all over the world. Therefore, once they make orders for their stocks, the company uses IT personnel to enter data into the systems. DyStar uses the Zoho integrated system where special order processing program packages are installed on the company computers. The system is integrated with one code and database for the business to avoid overlapping which results in system failures (Youssef, 2012). Orders can be accepted online, shipping documents uploaded and the transit process commenced when payments are made or agreed to be paid upon arrival of the goods. Effectiveness and Efficiency of the Zoho System Accuracy The method used ensures accuracy in calculations. Prices, quantities, tax amounts and freight charges are instantly computed whenever a client makes an order. It is better compared to the traditional methods where an officer would start drafting figures on a piece of paper. The method has been assured to be a zero-error program giving the exact amounts to be paid for the trade. Time and Cost Making an order to DyStar Company takes less than a minute. This shows their order processing systems are very fast. They reduce time wastage. Installation of the modern systems is usually done once, and probably system upgrades and updates are occasionally done (HEAVENRICH, et al. 2014). That means, once the program is installed, only few maintenance costs are encountered. The systems require very few personnel to operate and serve customers worldwide. Therefore, the method is effective in that it saves time and expenditure for processing orders. Diversified Sales The company has provided an online platform where buyers can apply for the products. Therefore, the use the modern system enables the company to transact trade online. Once payments are made, shipping documents are arranged and the goods released for transit. The customers can collect them at the port or the warehouse as the agreement stated. Customers confidence is enhanced since they transact directly with the company staff. DyStar receives more clients for the goods due to the use of their current order processing software that makes work efficient. Recommendations Multi-Language System In logistics, customers originate from all over the world speaking different languages such as French, Arabic, Spanish and English. At times, language barriers exist. Therefore, I would recommend the DyStar Company to make the program in such a way that it supports a variety of languages. The personnel employed should possess knowledge of various languages for effectiveness. Simplifying the Process For a willing buyer to get goods from the firm, he or she must log in to the company website to order the products. The company can simplify this process by creating apps compatible with mobile phones and computers. Such apps will assist the buyers to move straight to the Zoho system and enquire the goods. Furthermore, most apps use commands which mean the orders can be recorded in the systems by the machines without human assistance. The personnel will come to process the orders later. That would save the time taken to navigate through the web pages as well as chatting with the processors. Inventory Management The process refers to activities a firm undertakes to acquire inputs, produce goods, store finished goods, and release them for shipping once orders are made (Muller, 2011). DyStar Company is believed to be using office wise system to manage its inventory. The system allows the company to keep records of units produced, in storage and those released for sale. Below is an illustration of the inventory management that can be adopted by the company. Effectiveness of the Office wise system Effective Supply Chain Management The software assists the company to provide a smooth flow of goods from the production sites, to the warehouses, then in transit to the customers. In this case, the theory of supply chain management is utilized (Stadtler, 2015). The managers can keep records and track of the movement of the goods. This makes the software useful for there is minimal loss or fraud of the property during the SCM process. Financial Reports and Statements When goods are produced, the production managers record transactions on work in progress, finished goods and the cost of raw materials. The records are analyzed to form the manufacturing account (Healy, et al. 2012). During procurement and the sale of the goods, sales managers acquire the goods from the warehouse and record the expenses, the amount of sales and tax deductions paid. The transactions are as well compressed into an income statement. At the end of the cycle, the directors will use the software to view the findings. The software assists in effective planning and decision making processes by use of the financial statements. Visibility of inventory The software is made in such a way that once the managers record transactions, they reflect immediately on the system. This allows the directors to keep track and records of the inventory usage anytime and anywhere they are. The production manager wont have to walk to the warehouses to ascertain the level of stock. Once it is produced, it is recorded, and the company can access it. Visibility makes stock inventory process efficient. Recommendations Modify the printing settings Khoo, et al. (2011) explain that the softwares browser settings are slightly incompatible with many printers. As a result, there is uneven scaling when documents are printed using the software. I would recommend the software developers to rectify the problem. Most companies utilize the software on softcopy basis. Unique software Rather than using the general office wise system, the report would recommend DyStar to approach IT, experts, to produce their distinct software. (Ngo, et al. (2011) explain that cybercrime issues are more likely to occur especially to the firms who use similar management programs. If credentials of the system leak, the competitors may use it to their advantage. Forming a unique program will make the company free from information leakage. Control Office wise is an open system to the users who have credentials to log in. That means a transaction can be entered but later manipulated by another manager. The company will not know who is interfering with the system. I would recommend the company to change the program in such a way control is exercised by the primary server. Managers can operate the junior accounts separately. Conclusion The report has explained about DyStar Company. Its areas of specialization of the market and the general overview of the enterprise. The company departments have been discussed starting with the production, marketing, and accounting of the transactions. Each section has been explained citing useful information on the functions of each sector. On top of that, the order cycle has been narrated where the Zoho processing system has been described. The report reveals the effectiveness and methods which can be implemented to make the process better. Finally, the companys inventory system has been looked upon. It has been identified that currently, DyStar uses the office wise tool to manage its inventory throughout the supply chain management process. Again, the effectiveness of the process has been highlighted and discussed giving out the recommendations about the same. DyStar Company is doing great in the market and should use this report to make the firm better in the industry. References Carpenter, K., Ng, W. K. (2013). Singapore's Chemicals Industry: Engineering an Island. Chemical Engineering Progress, 109(4), 56-60. Fayezi, S., O'Loughlin, A., Zutshi, A. (2012). Agency theory and supply chain management: A structured literature review. Supply chain management: an international journal, 17(5), 556-570 Healy, P. M., Palepu, K. G. (2012). Business analysis valuation: Using financial statements. Cengage Learning. HEAVENRICH, S., Cheng, J., Richy, R. O. N. G., XIONG, C. (2014). U.S. Patent Application No. 14/903,871. Hong, J. (2011). Role of natural product diversity in chemical biology. Current opinion in chemical biology, 15(3), 350-354. Hwang, B. G., Low, L. K. (2012). 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