Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (branded as Walmart) is an American public corporation that runs a chain of large, discount department stores.

It is the world's largest public corporation by revenue, according to the 2008 Fortune Global 500. The company was founded by Sam Walton in 1962, incorporated on October 31, 1969, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1972. WalMart is the largest private employer and the largest grocery retailer in the United States. It also owns and operates the Sam's Club retail warehouses in North America. Walmart operates in Mexico as Walmex, in the United Kingdom as Asda, in Japan as Seiyu, and in India as Best Price. It has wholly-owned operations in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Wal-Mart's investments outside North America have had mixed results: its operations in South America and China are highly successful, while it was forced to pull out of Germany and South Korea when ventures there were unsuccessful. Conversely, others point out that Wal-Mart's rapid growth and logistical efficiency has enabled it to bring lower prices to consumers and more low paying jobs and new small businesses to the communities in which it operates. WAL-MARTS SUPPLY CHAIN Procurement and distribution Wal-mart always emphasized the need to reduce its purchasing costs and offer best prices to its customers . The company procured goods directly from manufacturers bypassing all intermediaries. wall mart was a tough negotiator on prices and finalized a purchase deal only when it was fully confident that products being bought were not available else where at a lower price. Wal-mart had over 40 distribution centers located at different geographical locations in the US. Over 80000 items were stocked in these centers. Wal marts own warehouses directly supplied over 85 % of the inventory as compared to 65% by competitors. Each distribution center was divided into different sections on the basis of quantity of goods received. The distribution center ensured a steady supply and consistent supply of products to support the supply function.Wal mart used sophisticated bar-coded technology and hand held computer systems, managing the center became easier and more economical. Every employee had access to real time information regarding inventory levels of all products in the center.

Logistics management An important feature of wal marts logistics infrastructure is that it was fast and responsive transportation system. The distribution centers were serviced by more than 3500 company owned trucks. This vast fleet allowed the company to ship goods from distribution centers to stores within two days and replenishes the stores shelves twice a week. Wal mart generally moved the merchandise loaded trailers from the distribution centers to the retail stores serviced by each distributing center. Retail stores were considered as customers by the distribution centers. To make the distribution process more efficient wal mart made use of a logistics technique known as cross docking. In this system the finished goods were directly picked up from the manufacturing plant of a supplier sorted out and directly supplied to customers. The system reduced handling and storage costs. Inventory management Wal mart had developed an ability to cater to the individual needs of its stores . Stores could choose from a number of delivery plans . For instance there was an accelerated delivery system by which stores located within a certain distance of a geographical center would receive replenishment within a day. Wal mart invested heavily in IT and communication systems to effectively track sales and merchandise inventories in stores across the country . wal mart set up its own satellite communication system in 1983 . wal mart was able to reduce unproductive inventory by allowing stores to manage their own stocks, reducing pack sizes across many product categories and timely price mark downs. Instead of cutting inventory across the board wal mart made full use of its it capabilities to make more inventories available in case of items customers most wanted while reducing overall inventory levels. Wal mart networked its suppliers through computers. It also helped in identifying items which were low in stock and automated ordering. It also made use of bar-coding and RFID to manage its inventories . it invested 4 billion to build a retail link. By making efficient use of technology in all its operations wal mart

successfully provides uninterrupted service to its customers suppliers stock holders and trading partners Conclusion The benefits of an efficient supply chain management included reduction in lead time faster inventory turnover accurate forecasting increased warehouse space reduction in safety stock and better working capital utilization. It also helped in reducing the dependency on distribution center management personnel resulting in minimization of training costs and errors. Stock outs were also completely eliminated AMUL SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AMUL is a dairy cooperative in the western India that has been primarily responsible, through its innovative practices, for India to become the worlds largest milk producer. The distinctive features of this paradigm involves managing a large decentralized network of suppliers and producers, simultaneous development of markets and suppliers, lean and efficient supply chain, and breakthrough leadership. Every day Amul collects 447,000 litres of milk from 2.12 million farmers , converts the milk intobranded, packaged products, and delivers goods worth Rs 6 crore (Rs 60 million) to over500,000 retail outlets across the country. To implement their vision while retaining their focus on farmers, a hierarchical network ofcooperatives was developed, this today forms the robust supply chain behind GCMMFsendeavors. The vast and complex supply chain stretches from small suppliers to large fragmentedmarkets. Management of this network is made more complex by the fact that GCMMF is directlyresponsible only for a small part of the chain, with a number of third party players (distributors,retailers and logistics support providers) playing large roles. Managing this supply chainefficiently is critical as GCMMF's competitive position is driven by low consumer pricessupported by a low cost system of providing milk at a basic, affordable price. The distribution network Amul products are available in over 500,000 retail outlets across India through its network ofover 3,500 distributors. There are 47 depots with dry and cold warehouses to buffer inventory ofthe entire range of products.

GCMMF transacts on an advance demand draft basis from its wholesale dealers instead of thecheque system adopted by other major FMCG companies. This practice is consistent with GCMMF's philosophy of maintaining cash transactions throughout the supply chain and it alsominimizes dumping Wholesale dealers carry inventory that is just adequate to take care of the transit time from thebranch warehouse to their premises. This just-in-time inventory strategy improves dealers' returnon investment (ROI). All GCMMF branches engage in route scheduling and have dedicatedvehicle operations. THE BUSINESS MODEL from the very beginnFng, in the early 1950s, AMUL adopted the network as the basic model for long-term growth. The network explicitly includes secondary services to the farmer-suppliers. Several of the entities in the network are organized as cooperatives linked in a hierarchical fashion. Customers: In comparison with developed economies, the market for dairy products in India is still in an evolutionary stage with tremendous potential for high value products such as ice cream, cheese etc. The distribution network, on the other hand, is quite reasonable with access to rural areas of the country. Traditional methods practiced in western economies are not adequate to realize the market potential and alternative approaches are necessary to tap this market. Suppliers: A majority of the suppliers are small or marginal farmers who are often illiterate, poor, and with liquidity problems as they lack direct access to financial institutions. Again,traditional market mechanisms are not adequate to assure sustenance and growth of thesesuppliers. Third Party Logistics Services: In addition to the weaknesses in the basic infrastructure, logistics and transportation services are typically not professionally managed, with little regard for quality and service. In addition to outbound logistics, GCMMF takes responsibility for coordinating with the distributors to assure adequate and timely supply of products. It also works with the Unions in determining product mix, product allocations and in developing production plans. The Unions, on the other hand, coordinate collection logistics and support services to the

Inter-locking Control The objective for developing such an inter-locking control mechanism is to ensure that the interest of the farmer is always kept at the top of the agenda through its representatives who constitute the Boards of different entities that comprise the supply chain. This form of direct representation also ensures that professional managers and farmers work together as a team to strengthen the cooperative. This helps in coordinating decisions across different entities as well as speeding both the flow of information to the respective constituents and decisions. Coordination Agency: Unique Role of Federation Its objective is to ensure that all milk that the farmers produce gets sold in the market either as milk or as value added products and to ensure that milk is made available to an increasingly large sections of the society at affordable prices Supplier Enhancement and Network servicing Their objective is to ensure that producers get maximum benefit and to resolve all their problems. They manage the procurement of milk that comes via trucks & tankers from the VSs. They negotiate annual contracts with truckers, ensure availability of trucks for procurement, establish truck routes, monitor truck movement and prevent stealing of milk while it is being transported