Products

When you order a certain product, you expect it to be delivered. When this doesn’t happen, you want to know why. Often these products are classified as MCS by AAH, below we explain the reasons behind the use of this terminology.

We provide on-line access to current information about products the Manufacturer Cannot Supply (MCS).

Medecator and AAH Point are both on-line systems that provide an MCS facility where customers can find all current MCS items just by following a few clicks. To find out more please contact your Hospital Account Manager.

MCS is the abbreviation for Manufacturer Cannot Supply. We use this classification to distinguish products that have been ordered from a supplier but were not delivered on the expected delivery to two or more AAH depots.

If an out of stock product meets the MCS criteria (above) then all subsequent requests for the product will be met with the reply that it is MCS. This information is available throughout our systems and is flagged up on the Customer Service order taking screens against individual products. In addition, this annotation will be printed on invoices / delivery notes and sent back as part of the reply set to any order taken electronically.

Regret No Stock is the default terminology given to any out of stock product, which has not met the quoted MCS criteria. This could be for a number of reasons but normally relates to a short term local out of stock issue.

No, we truly believe in being open and honest with our customers; keeping you informed with accurate, up-to-date information. The MCS marker is system generated based on receipts at our local Goods In departments. It is not in our interest to manipulate this marker, as the clear identification of a product’s status helps focus our activity where we can have an impact.

Just like any successful business, AAH needs to carefully manage its working capital, a large part of which is tied up in stock levels, but this does not mean that we have cut our stock levels to the bone. At any given time there is only a finite level of stock within the Supply Chain, which is in direct correlation to historical / expected demand patterns.

This knowledge of demand leads to an extremely well run Supply Chain, however it also means that when a manufacturing issue occurs then this restricts the flow of product at source. In the minority of cases, this will lead to temporary disruption in the supply of product to the Hospital. For instance, you might be surprised to learn that only 30 - 40 products, out of our range of c.27,000, generally make up about 70% of our MCS figure. In these cases holding more stock may only have delayed the inevitable.

Economic pressures have meant that many manufacturers have consolidated their manufacturing units on a global basis. Whereas before they had several plants that could make a product, now they may only have one. This significantly reduces their flexibility. In recent years, there has also been an increase in the number of mergers in the pharmaceutical industry. Normally as a consequence of mergers, new operating systems are introduced, which can often result in the supply chain being disrupted.

Not all branches run out of stock at the same time because of different demand patterns and delivery days. In addition, as Manufacturers are not always able to deliver to all branches on the same day, this leads to some branches being replenished before others. When this happens, we always request an emergency delivery from the supplier to replenish stock in all MCS branches.

At AAH, we do everything in our power to reduce the instances of MCS.

• We always try to provide accurate demand forecasts
• We adhere to regular ordering patterns
• We provide regular feedback on out-of-stock items
• We request likely stock delivery schedules and communicate these with you
• We have invested heavily in a Stock Issues Management System

Unfortunately, we cannot dictate to a manufacturer what they should produce and when they should produce it. But rest assured we do everything we can to ensure that you receive what you’ve ordered when you’ve ordered it. If there are any problems, we attempt, through the Stock Issues Management System, to identify the reasons why and communicate this with expected delivery dates.

This is not always possible as more than 60% of the lines we sell are branded products, which have no direct generic equivalent. Where an equivalent exists, we would increase our purchases of this line in line with market demand.