MKTG 444
MATERIALS MANAGEMENT
A. Catalog Entry
MKTG 444. Materials Management.(3)
Three hours lecture.
Prerequisites: MKTG 340.
Semester offered: Fall, Spring
The study of an industrial firm's materials acquisition
process including transaction and logistics decisions,
supplier relations and purchasing fundamentals.
Institutional and government buying and the buying of capital
equipment and services are also examined. Case studies used.
B. Detailed Description of Content of the Course
The course studies the process of organizations' acquisition
of materials, equipment and services. Emphasis is given to
industrial purchasing and materials management in support of
manufacturing firms, but purchasing for governments and other
institutions is also covered. Although the order of material
covered varies somewhat by textbook, the subjects covered are
fairly standard in the leading textbooks in the field.
Coverage is adapted to ensure that material needed to pass the
Purchasing Manager Certification test is included and current.
Because of the variety of new topics which are covered and
because of the nature of procurement, short written case
studies are used as an experiential way for the students to
play a purchasing manager role.
Topics covered in the course include:
Overview of the role of purchasing and materials management
in the firm
Objectives and policies of purchasing
Operating procedures and organization of the Purchasing
and Materials Management Departments
Computer based operating systems in purchasing
Determination of need, preparation of specifications and
standardization
Locating sources of supply, the make or buy decision,
supplier selection and supplier evaluation
International sourcing
Pricing principles, cost analysis and selecting contract
methods and types
Negotiation
Inventory management, transportation, traffic management and
international transportation.
Stores, receiving, warehousing and surplus/salvage materials
The lease or buy decision, purchasing capital equipment,
purchasing services
Government and institutional procurement
Legal considerations and ethics
Strategic procurement, globalism and future trends
C. Detailed Description of Conduct of the Course
The course has four parts. In the first, the functions of
purchasing and materials management in the organization and
profitability of the firm are emphasized. The dyadic relations
between buying and selling firms and personnel, the
organizational dynamics of purchasing, and purchasing's
contribution to profitability are studied. The students'
knowledge of accounting, finance, management and marketing are
given a purchasing perspective.
The second part of the course features the purchasing
functions, responsibilities, activities and decision making.
Students are required to submit written analyses of short, but
demanding textbook and locally-developed case studies in one-
page, executive summary format typical of those used in
purchasing departments. Cases are very much like those used in
certification examinations. This part of the course focuses on
the buying transaction and making the contract.
The third part of the course addresses the logistics part of
materials management. Inventory, transportation and storage
are the principal logistics areas covered. The techniques of
management science are integrated into acquisition and
materials support production operations. Students are
required to submit analyses of case studies and problems which
are more quantitative than in the second part.
The final part of the course compares industrial purchasing to
governmental purchasing and purchasing for educational,
medical and other institutions. The important current legal
issues are discussed and students are invited to resolve
ethical issues. The course ends with an investigation of
strategic procurement and future issues such as buying in the
global market.
D. Goals and Objectives of the Course
Upon successful completion of the course, students will:
1. Know the tools and language of the purchasing discipline,
be familiar with procurement literature and understand
the role materials management in business acquisition-
side logistics.
2. Understand the evolution of the purchasing discipline and
its growing attractiveness as a professional career.
3. Be capable of passing the National Association of
purchasing Management (N.A.P.M.) certification
examination.
4. Recognize the critical part which strategic procurement
has in overall company strategy and be able to provide
input to the strategy formulation based on the supply-
side market of the firm.
5. Be able to use tools of management information,
electronic data interchange and channel inventory systems
to evaluate suppliers, enrich supplier relations, improve
contract administration, and apply management operations
techniques to inter-firm applications.
6. Be able to exercise judgement in analyzing and solving
purchasing problems and provide leadership in group
problem solving situations.
7. Recognize the contributions which purchasing and
materials management make to the company in adding value
to its product and providing a product with utility to
the consumer.
E. Assessment Measures
Assessment of the student's success in the course is based on
five individual, written case studies and three or four
examinations, including the final.
F. Other Course Information
This course is a requirement of the Operations Management
Concentration for management majors. It is one of the three
industrial area optional courses from which the Marketing
Majors must select one to meet the marketing requirement. It
is one of the five optional courses from which the Information
Systems Major must choose to satisfy the information systems
requirement.
Case studies can follow a variety of formats. With large
classes, one page executive summaries are the required format,
simulating the decision page used for purchasing approvals in
the business world. When this format is used, the students
learn to condense complex arguments into a very brief, but
convincing business argument. With small classes, the
students are able to combine the one-page case studies with
some inventory and transportation computerized decision
support system analyses, developed as group projects.
G. Review and Approval
DATE ACTION APPROVED BY
09-20-01 Reviewed and Melvin R. Mattson, Chair Curriculum Committee
 Radford
University Radford VA 24142 Last updated: Friday, 14-Jul-2006 10:31:19 EDT |
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