ABSTRACTTRACKING UNSALEABLES INFORMATION TO DECREASE PACKAGE DAMAGE AND PRODUCT LOSSByThomas Charles SandersThe literature review summarizes some of the joint grocery industry reports on unsaleables, discusses technologies that are being used to track distribution data, define and describe reverse logistics, and discuss types of grocery damage. This research explores seven case studies. Two independent and three large retail chains are chosen to represent a range of unsaleables management strategies. Three manufacturers are chosen because they deal extensively with unsaleables. Flow diagrams are developed to show the flow of unsaleable goods and information. It is found that there is an opportunity for electronic data exchange in reverse logistics that can help in the tracking and sharing of unsaleable product information. This research recommends seven reason codes to put unsaleable products in clearly defined categories for retailers to use when gathering unsaleables data: beyond code date, recall, theft, discontinued product/promotions/product launches, seasonal, damage and other. These reason codes were chosen to put unsaleable products in clearly defined categories. It is recommended that manufacturers gather more granular information in their audits. A list of standard tests for package damage is formed to judge package performance when damage is found to be a problem. A more scientific approach to determine shelf-life and ship-life is recommended along with a longer ship-life to better facilitate first-in, first-out (FIFO) inventory management.
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