INVENTORY MANAGEMENT AND WAREHOUSING OF IMPORTED COMPONENTS IN THE MANAUS INDUSTRIAL HUB: IMPACTS OF INTERNATIONAL LEAD TIME ON STOCKOUT COSTS

Abstract

This article sought to analyze the impacts of international lead time on inventory management, warehousing, and stockout costs of imported components in the Industrial Pole of Manaus. The methodology employed was an integrative literature review guided by the PICO/PECO strategy, featuring a systematic search across scientific databases and a sample of 12 publications, including classical works and recent articles. The main findings showed that high lead time variability, intensified by bottlenecks in maritime transit, customs clearance, and seasonal droughts affecting Amazonian river transport, renders the pure application of Just-in-Time unfeasible. To prevent assembly line shutdowns, industries over-dimension their safety stocks, which increases storage costs and working capital tie-up. It is concluded that maintaining high inventory levels is an inevitable defensive strategy, as holding costs remain financially lower than the devastating impacts of stockout costs, which entail operational downtime, emergency air freight, and contractual penalties.