Tell us about coronavirus’ impact on the purchase department of your hotel?
Coronavirus has affected the business across industries which have further affected cash flow in market. The situation is further complicated for hotels on account of lower business volumes and need for longer credit periods. However our long term relationship with our vendor partners and understanding of each other’s requirements and pain has made us manage the current situation seamlessly.
Apart from this one thing we have been extra cautious is to follow stringent cleanliness and hygiene protocols. We ensure that vendors follow all the safety and hygiene standards as per guidelines . Even we redesigned all our SOPs of procurement and storage with safety and hygiene being the paramount.
What are the various measures/ compliances initiated to save cost?
We reviewed all contracts and AMC’s, revaluated if certain AMCs can be converted on job basis rather than fixed cost, which played a major role in cost saving. Replacement of international brands with ‘Made in India’ products depending on the feasibility and availability also played part of the cost saving initiative. We also looked out for direct sources, which helped in driving maximum cost benefit by saving other hidden expenses and the middleman costs.
How strong should be a hotel’s local procurements process, given the current situation?
Hotel local procurement is very crucial in the existing situation. There should be effective compliance systems before finalizing any contracts or orders. To maintain the quality and consistency, sourcing local food product is an essential strategy that we follow. Local procurement benefits in reduced lead time, transportation cost, support in local economy, predictability of delivery, vendor evaluation.
How do you identify high-risk vendors? What are the various measure and procedures
introduced to deal with this?
High risk vendors are those who are supplying products for which lead time plays crucial role and the availability of alternatives for these vendors or services are minimal. Similarly, perishables vendors are also high-risk vendors. We follow the stringent standard operating processes , temperature checklist and maintaining records such as expiry records, batch no. of products, In-house lab test report and rejection report for food and perishable products. We also identify critical items and fix the PAR level (Periodic Automatic Replenishment). We monitor these critical items on a weekly basis and coordinate with user department in case of these items’ consumption varies.
