XVII.9.3.3 Emergency Requesting and Requests Monitoring

 

No request process should be initiated without having a validated SON from a SME.  

Role of the OSL team 

60           In the incident management system (IMS) structure, with regard to supply chain management, the OSL team oversees the centralization of requests for supplies of goods. 

Requests verification 

70           Before verification, the OSL team must acknowledge receipt of the request to the requester. The OSL team is responsible for verifying the request and ensuring that the supply chain is initiated in the best possible condition by checking the completeness of the SON. A complete SON should include the following: 

• accurate technical specifications of items; 
• precise quantity, aligned with the operational plan and budget; 
• clear indication of the requested delivery date, which must be a realistically achievable date;
• consignee details (name, contact, address, etc.); and 
• a budget reference (PTAEO) and a validation from the budget holder as per the delegation of authority (DOA) in place at the WHO Country Office (WCO)/IMST level. The award end date should be verified to ensure the deliveries are timely.

Requests sourcing

80           The OSL team will source the requested items using the most appropriate sources listed below in order of relevance, timeliness, and ease of use: 

• local stock 
• validated local suppliers 
• regional or global stockpiles 
• items that are included in the WHO Catalogue 
• international procurement (lead time, quality assurance, pricing, etc., should be carefully considered). 

Requests monitoring

90           Monitoring, reporting and information management are critical to a well-functioning supply chain for ensuring that plans are made based on the latest information and that all stakeholders know the status of orders throughout the supply chain. The OSL team must monitor the status of the request to be informed on what is in the pipeline and to what extent future requests need to be adjusted (refer to eManual XVII.9.3.1).  

Monitoring 

100 The OSL team should manage three distinct types of monitoring:  

• One is to be communicated to the Requestor/SME, summarizing the status of the request and the delivery to the destination. It should provide details on each item line. 
• One for internal purposes for the supply team, summarizing the requests made for stock replenishment or orders in transit in the warehouse waiting for delivery to SME. It should provide details on each item line.
  

2. Shipment monitoring: Summarizes all incoming shipments for the emergency operation, with one line per shipment recording the status, estimated time of arrival (ETA), total weight and volume.

3. Stock Report: Summarizes the stock levels per item held for the emergency operation and the stock movements (inbound and outbound).  

110         Using a request monitoring table, the OSL team should monitor the status of all pending requests and update the relevant SME on the progress and fulfilment of the request. In addition, through the Stock Report, the OSL team tracks the status of stocks held for the operation (in-country and elsewhere). Finally, the OSL team monitors all shipments heading to the emergency operation using shipment monitoring. 

120        Minimum information in the monitoring process should include the request reference, Item description, unit of measure (UoM), quantity, unit price, total value, supplier name and ETA.   

130        Typically, when monitoring the procurement of goods, use the following as indicators for the supply chain performance evaluation: 

• timeliness of the delivery vs the agreed delivery date 
  
• quantity delivered 
  
• quality delivered
  

Requests requiring local and/or international procurement 

140         When requests require local and/or international procurement, the requests are transmitted by the OSL team to the WCO or IMST procurement specialist. The procurement specialist should be embedded in the OSL team to ensure all supply chain components are operationally aligned. While the emergency procurement specialist reports to the OSL team on the operational priorities and technical validation of the goods procured, s/he will be technically supervised by the emergency Admin/Finance team to ensure that WHO emergency procurement rules and regulations and proper procurement transaction management are followed.  

150         File and archive all the documents relating to requesting and supply transactions according to the WHO filing procedure. A good filing system allows access to documents required for monitoring, reporting and audit purposes. 

160        When, for the international procurement and supply of goods, request processing engages the Global Procurement and Logistics team (GPL) or the regional procurement team (ROPT), it is important to understand the underlying processes related to the international procurement and supply phases (customs, delivery times, etc.). This allows for better planning and appreciation of the possible impacts of an international procurement process on programmes. Bear in mind that during the planning and requesting phases, a procurement process may last from a few days or weeks to several months, depending on the case, and can represent a significant proportion of the budget and risks.  

170        There are four key stages in the international procurement and supply process of goods managed by GPL and ROPT that contribute to the overall timeline: 

1. GPL or ROPT processing time: Time taken by GPL or ROPT to process either a Catalogue Purchase Order (PO) or a Request for Price Estimate (RPE). 

2. Supplier lead time: Time taken by the selected supplier to deliver the goods to the agreed location, timed from when the PO is placed. 

3. Green Light process: In countries with lengthy and/or complex importation requirements, the Green Light refers to WCOs providing the "all clear" before moving cargo from the supplier or warehouse of origin. 

4. International transport: Time taken by an international freight forwarder to move cargo from the supplier or warehouse into the WCO port or airport. 

180         It is recommended that the request is submitted to GPL or ROPT as soon as possible and always includes a few weeks' buffer, noting that delays may occur at different stages for various reasons. 

Request tactical planning 

190         To address the challenges of the emergency operation, the OSL team must have completed all the tactical planning required to have adequate logistical capabilities to deal with the incoming requests in the best possible way. 

200        Tactical planning is based on the requirements of the SON. It considers all the arrangements that the IMT or WCO must make to arrange for the appropriate infrastructures, cold chain facilities, handling of equipment and qualified personnel to be in place to handle inbound consignments. For this reason, the SON must be accurate, with particular attention paid to item specifications.  

210        The OSL team must plan for these arrangements. Early tactical planning is particularly important for valuable equipment and delicate or sensitive medical supplies needing special handling. 

220        For large requests, use a sourcing plan to identify the items to be procured internationally and locally, in chronological order and in terms of priorities and suppliers' lead times. In addition, the OSL team might produce a chronogram, which summarizes the period of deliveries. 

230        Contingency planning to ensure easy and swift access to potential suppliers can be completed early by compiling a list of potential suppliers for freight forwarding. Compiling such a list collaboratively with the host nation's customs authority is also helpful if importation is likely. It is worth noting that the costs involved in customs clearance represent a major but often misunderstood cost centre. 

Funds availability 

240        For online procurement, the OSL team should verify that the required amount is available in the GSM workplan. 

250        For offline procurement (Imprest PO (IPO) and/or petty cash), used for low-value procurement, it is important that the OSL team ensures that an IPO is established to ease rapid procurement for the IMST. For local procurement in emergencies, one blanket IPO up to US$ 200,000 may be established to encumber funds for both general operating expenses and goods procurement (one for general operating expenses; one for goods) (see XVII.5.3 Imprest Purchase Orders). 

Good practices for requesting units 

260    To ease the supply process and achieve greater delivery speeds, significant benefits can be achieved through certain good practices: 

• Conduct backward planning by first considering when the goods should be delivered in-country (or delivered from a financial perspective) and then calculating each of the earlier stages of the procurement and supply process to determine when the request should be initiated. 
• Provide accurate specifications of the individual items in a request. 
• Become familiar with the WHO Catalogue. Request catalogue items for which there are long-term agreements (LTAs) with suppliers that guarantee price, quality, lead times and condition. POs for Catalogue items are generated electronically, which is significantly quicker than those generated manually. 
• Request items already identified in an Emergency Standard List with associated specifications. This improves minimum quality standards and avoids misunderstanding when communicating with a procurement team or suppliers. 
• Consolidate requests of a single PTAEO into a single requisition, thereby avoiding time-consuming administrative processing for the requisition to break out items into predesignated cost centres. Requests of a specific PTAEO must be aligned to the Award of that specific PTAEO. 
• Ensure that adequate customs clearance, warehousing, and Green Light managing processes are in place at the country level to expedite the receipt of international supplies. 
  

270        Check first if the products you need are available in a stock/warehouse at the country, regional, HQ levels or the Dubai Hub (normally, this only applies to emergency items) before submitting a Catalogue or RPE request.