The definition of Safety Stock usually follows only qualitative criteria, which most of the times do not have any conceptual foundation, or only quantitative criteria, which does not make actual good use of the knowledge of essential people involved. Based on the author's practical experience and with the support of the literature, this paper presents a model for the definition of this parameter based on these two criteria, at the same time. It is expected it can support the decisions related to the definition of Safety Stock of purchased items for make-to-order companies that manufacture complex products, in which this kind of item accounts for most of the cost of the final product. Uncertainties in the internal and external environment of these companies make this kind of stock necessary in a lot of situations.
Safety Stock; Make-to-order; Complex products
