The distribution of spare parts

This paper will report some results from an overall research project on the ‘Stock Control of Spare Parts’, concentrating on the distribution tasks of the manufacturer in providing product support for his products in the field. After reviewing the nature of the problem, the first section of the paper will be devoted to consideration of the initial provisioning problem of the manufacturer supplying a new capital equipment product. The second section will deal with the problem of forecasting demand for spare parts where the original equipment has gone out of production, but the manufacturer undertakes to continue product support for a period of time. The illustration of this problem is taken from the motor industry where determining all-time requirements and the consequent ordering pattern is considered.