Raw Material Incharge Interview Questions & Answers

Question 1. Explain Me Do You Have Any Experience In Material Buying?

Answer :

I have experience in selecting and picking products for shipment based on purchase orders after inspecting each unit and verifying the ordered quantity.

Question 2. Tell Me What Is A Disadvantaged Business?

Answer :

A small business which is owned or controlled by a majority of persons, not limited to members of minority groups, who have been deprived of the opportunity to develop and maintain a competitive position in the economy because of social disadvantages.

Question 3. Tell Me What Tools/techniques Do You Use In Motivating Employees?

Answer :

Two of the steps that you can take are to establish expectations, get employees involved by making them part of the improvement process.

Question 4. Tell Me What Knowledge Is Must Have For A Material Handler?

Answer :

Knowledge regarding safety procedures to be followed in material handling, OSHA workplace safety guidelines and equipment operation procedures is must for a material handler.

Question 5. Tell Me What Basic Precautions Must You Take While Handling Hazardous Material?

Answer :

To ensure safe handling of hazardous material, a material handler must always use PPE and pay special attention to MSDS details. Using all materials only for their intended purpose, ensuring proper storage of all materials and remaining alert and vigilant also count.

Question 6. Tell Us What Is A Bonded Warehouse?

Answer :

A warehouse operated under U.S. Customs supervision to store imported goods.

Question 7. Explain Which Kind Of Machinery/equipment You Can Use?

Answer :

I am adept at operating forklift, pallet jack, wire cutting equipment, and shrink wrap machines. In addition, I can also drive light van and delivery vehicles.

Question 8. Tell Me What Do The Words "shall" And "may" Mean?

Answer :

The word shall denote the imperative and the word may denote the permissive.

Question 9. Explain The Term “factory Overhead”?

Answer :

During the manufacturing process, whatever the cost is incurred during the process is referred as “factory overhead”, excluding the cost of materials and direct labours.

Question 10. Do You Know How Inventory Turns Calculated Are?

Answer :

A method used to calculate inventory turns is to divide the average inventory level into the annual cost of goods.

Question 11. Explain Me What Is The Statute Of Limitations Under The Ucc?

Answer :

The statute of limitations under the UCC is generally four years. In certain cases, the UCC allows the statute of limitations to be reduced to a one-year minimum.

Question 12. Tell Me How Can You Calculate Manufacturing Work In Progress?

Answer :

Manufacturing work in progress is when manufacturing firm transforms material into the work in process which includes raw material, labour and factory overhead. You can calculate all the below factors to know the costing for the manufacturing work in progress.

• Labour costs
• Raw material inventory costs
• Production cost
• Cost of ending work in process for the accounting period

Question 13. Do You Know What Is Meant By "good Faith" In Contracting?

Answer :

Under the UCC good faith means honesty in fact in the conduct or transactions concerned.

Question 14. Tell Me Do You Have Any Specializations In Material Handling?

Answer :

Yes, I am specialized in asbestos and steel handling.

Question 15. Do You Know What Is Bench Marking?

Answer :

The continuous process of measuring a company's products, services, costs, and practices against those of competitors or organizations that display "best in class" achievements.

Question 16. Tell Me What Is The Challenge In Manufacturing Products?

Answer :

Main challenge in manufacturing is to develop better production processes, ensure the right material and component supplies at the least cost, decrease production time, eliminate wastage and maintain quality in the final product.

Question 17. Do You Know What Is Life Cycle Costing?

Answer :

Life cycle costing is the total cost of purchasing, operating, maintaining, supporting and disposing of a product.

Question 18. Tell Us Can A Shipment Be Rejected By Just Simply Returning It?

Answer :

You cannot reject a shipment by just returning it without stating why the shipment is rejected. The UCC states that you must particularize your objections to the goods.

Question 19. Do You Know What Is Product Report?

Answer :

A product report is a general term used to represent design, manufacturing, quality, sales and repair information about a product.

Question 20. Tell Me What Is Batch Production?

Answer :

Batch production is a manufacturing technique, where components or goods are produced in groups and not in a continuous stream. This methodology is mainly used when similar items are produced together.

Question 21. Tell Me What Is Rma?

Answer :

RMA stands for Return Material Authorization; it is a financial and work order tracking used to determine a returned items origination. It is often used in a transaction where a customer returns goods to the manufacturer for replacement or repair purpose.

Question 22. Do You Know What Is Two-step Procurement?

Answer :

A bidding procedure usually consisting of two competitive steps. Step one consists of a technical proposal for furnishing the product or service and the second step consists of a comparison of costs. Bidding then proceeds as in conventional sealed bid procedures.

Question 23. Explain How Would You Go About Establishing A Strategic Plan For The Organization?

Answer :

Make the distinction between strategy and tactics. Align your plan with the objectives for the overall organization.

Question 24. Do You Know What Is Six Sigma?

Answer :

Six sigma is a data-driven methodology and approach for eliminating defects in any process from manufacturing to transactional and from product to service.

Question 25. Tell Me How To Supervise In A Manufacturing Unit?

Answer :

Supervising a manufacturing process includes attending to the individual phases of the production. Also, manufacturing supervisor should have a close eye on the inventory that going to be used.

Step 1: Keep the records of different phases of manufacturing also analyse whether the amount of product produced by the crew is enough to meet the demand.
Step 2: Look for the bottlenecks in the unit and see how you can eliminate it.
Step 3: Keep the track of inventory and try to reduce the liquid capital used after unused material.
Step 4: Examine the final goods to determine whether they meet the company's quality standards.

Question 26. Explain What Kind Of Warehouse Equipment/machinery Are You Familiar With?

Answer :

I am well versed in operating forklifts, pallet jacks, transfer carts, conveyors, cherry picker material handlers, scan guns, cantilever cranes and industrial trucks.

Question 27. Tell Me How Do I Calculate Inventory Turns?

Answer :

Inventory turns is the annual cost of the inventory issued divided by the average monthly inventory value.

The average monthly inventory value is calculated by adding the past 12 monthly inventory values and dividing the total by 12. At the end of each subsequent month, add the latest month's inventory value and delete the 12th most distant monthly inventory value.

The annual cost of issues is calculated by adding the past 12 monthly cost of inventory issues. At the end of each subsequent month, add the latest month's cost of inventory issues and delete the 12th most distant month.

Example: Annual Cost of Issues/ Average Monthly Inventory Value = Inventory Turns $400,000/$100,000 = 4.0 Turns.

Question 28. Tell Me Is It Proper To Use The Term "and/or" In Agreements?

Answer :

The term "and/or" should not be used in agreements. Ambiguity arises when this term is used because of the many possible variations this term can create. It is more exact to use the terms "and" and "or" separately. The term "and" means both, the term "or" means either.

Question 29. Tell Me What Do Ppe And Msds Stand For?

Answer :

PPE stands for Personal Protection Equipment and MSDS stands for Material safety data sheet.

Question 30. Do You Know What Is Mes?

Answer :

MES stands for a system that manages and controls the production on the factory floor with the motive of reducing the total time required to produce an order.

Question 31. Explain How To Decide With Project Needs A Purchasing Contract?

Answer :

Purchasing contracts are usually needed for procurement of materials or equipment for ongoing projects. Contracts with suppliers are a surefire way of ensuring constant and controlled supplies in a timely manner. I work on contracts for larger projects that have constant procurement needs. For shorter projects, contract management is usually a waste of time.

Question 32. Tell Me Why Is It Important To Track Inventory Turns?

Answer :

Inventories represent a sizable investment for businesses. The higher the inventory turns, the lower the inventory carrying costs.

Question 33. Tell Me How Much Weight Can You Lift And Carry For Around 100 Yards Easily?

Answer :

I have the ability to carry fifty to seventy pounds very easily and carry it around. At work I have also been lifting these weights from floor to five feet high shelves and also carrying them up and down the stairs. I can stand and walk 8 to 10 hours per day while lifting, carrying, handling, and rotating, etc. continuously.

Question 34. Why Should We Hire You As In Charge Raw Material?

Answer :

I am an organized person who has a demonstrated ability to maintain the warehouse in a clean and arranged manner while adhering to all safety procedures. Moreover, I am highly skilled in loading, unloading and transporting merchandise, perfectly identifying material, breaking down material and noting discrepancies per SOPs. These qualities make me a perfect candidate for material handling position.

Question 35. Tell Me Why Are You The Right Candidate For This Job?

Answer :

This job requires me to provide logistical support to the project as needed, including vehicle management, coordinating work permits for expatriate staff, inventory reporting and control which I was perfect at in my previous job. With my dream to be an all rounded procurement professional managing disposal of property and equipment in accordance with EGPAF and USG regulations will gear me towards that.

Question 36. Tell Me What Is A Sealed Bid?

Answer :

The procurement process by which a bid is submitted in a sealed envelope to prevent disclosure of its contents before the deadline for the submission of all bids.

Question 37. Explain How Purchasers Find Their Suppliers. Are There Favorite Places They Look?

Answer :

A prime source for finding new suppliers is the Thomas Register. The Thomas Register lists manufacturers by product categories and geographic location. Thomas Register supplier information can be obtained online from their website (its free), a set of their cds which can be networked within a company, and their set of catalogs. Another good source for finding suppliers is through Trade Associations, most can be accessed online. Another good source is globalguieline.com and internet search engines such as google.com which can be used to search for specific products, commodities or companies.

Question 38. Explain Me An Example Of Where You Resolved A Conflict Within Your Team?

Answer :

Last year we had very large consignments to ship and two members of the team who were in charge of manual scanning of the material were not working as hard and fast as they were required to. I suggested in the weekly meeting to switch some duties to enhance productivity of the team and volunteered to be shifted to manual scanning. The supervisor reallocated tasks for everyone, assigning more preferred tasks to the 2 underperforming workers which resolved the issue.

Question 39. Tell Me Do You Have A Working Driver's License? How Many, If Any, Traffic Tickets Have You Received?

Answer :

Yes, I possess a valid driver's license with a clean driving record.

Question 40. Explain And List Out Some Of The Examples Of Factory Overhead?

Answer :

Following are the overheads a production manufacturing engineer has to consider:

• Factory rent
• Utilities used in the unit
• Costs behind equipment set up
• Costs behind equipment maintenance
• Production unit supplies
• Insurance covered on equipment's and production facilities
• Fringe benefits
• Depreciation
• QA Salaries
• Property taxes on manufacturing facilities
• Material management salaries

Question 41. Do You Know What Is Dcr?

Answer :

DCR stands for Document Change Request, a change request which addresses about a problem with a document, SOP (standard operating procedure) or specification and propose a change to fix it.

Question 42. What Motivates You To Do Your Best On The Job As In Charge Raw Material?

Answer :

I was motivated by the challenge of monitoring the performance of selected suppliers, highlighting areas of concern and recommending alternatives where necessary. This gives me the sense of achievement towards the company goals and to myself too.

Question 43. Tell Me Can You Give Me A More Layman's Interpretation Of What A Cpm Is In Internet Online Advertising?

Answer :

CPM (Cost per Impressions) is the cost per thousand a web site charges for an advertisement on a web site page. Internet advertising is typically sold on a CPM basis. An impression occurs when a visitor to a web site views a page where an ad is displayed. A $25 cpm rate represents $25 per 1,000 displays of a web site page where an ad is displayed.

Question 44. Explain Me What Is The Nature Of Goods You Handle At Work As A ‘merchandise Handler'?

Answer :

It depends on the shipment. Sometimes huge cartons and boxes of the True Company's DIY merchandise and sometimes packs of individual hardware shipment material including wooden, metal and plastic products.

Question 45. Tell Me What Are The Software’s Which Can Be Useful In Manufacturing Unit?

Answer :

In manufacturing unit, software that can be useful are Manufacturing ERP and Material Management. Some of the companies that provide the manufacturing software solution are SAP, Oracle ERP system, etc.

Question 46. Tell Me How To Handle Situations In Which A Supplier Or A Vendor May Not Be Able To Perform As You Would Have Liked?

Answer :

I always have a backup plan. There are some circumstances such as outages and inconsistent materials that are beyond the control of suppliers. I always have another supplier in the pipeline in case something goes wrong with my initial choice.

Question 47. Suppose You Could Change One Aspect Of The Purchasing Process, What Would You Change?

Answer :

Try to pick an aspect that is easily understood. Provide a constructive means of changing or improving the process.

Question 48. Tell Me Is A Company Liable For A Purchase Order Valued At $50,000 Placed By A Purchasing Agent Who Has Been Granted Authority Only Up To $25,000?

Answer :

Purchasing agents have broad implied or apparent authority. The company would be liable for the $50,000 purchase order.

Question 49. Explain What Kind Of Skills And Knowledge Should Be Possessed By A Material Handler To Work Effectively?

Answer :

A material handler should know about basic warehouse procedures. Moreover, he must possess computer, mathematical, communication and reading skills to get his job done in the most effective manner.

Question 50. Do You Know What Is Scar (supplier Corrective Action Request)?

Answer :

Manufacturers are highly dependent on their raw material suppliers, to communicate with them effectively SCAR is used. It is a change request that mentions the issues with the process or material from a supplier and ask for a resolution. It sometimes also includes the details about how the complaint should be addressed.

Question 51. Tell Me What Is The Difference Between Lean Manufacturing And Jit (just-in-time) Manufacturing?

Answer :

Lean Manufacturing: It takes the concept of JIT and re-examines it from the customer point of view. Anything that is produced should add something of valuable to the customer's requirement. For example, if you are making stereo system for a luxury car, you will think from the customer point of view like sound quality, durability, space occupancy, loud or medium sound, etc.

JIT (Just-in-Time): This methodology is designed to ensure that a product or part would arrive just in time to be used. This technique saves the cost behind the unused inventory, and eliminating the need of piling up inventory.

Question 52. Tell Me At Your Previous Place Of Work, What Was Your Role In The Whole Procurement Process? What Was Your Accurately Responsible For?

Answer :

My role isn't limited to one specific task in the procurement process as far as the merchandise or material handler job description is concerned. My duties cover a large spectrum of tasks including:

• Selecting and picking finished products for shipment according to shipping labels or purchase orders, while verifying and also matching quantity mentioned on the purchase order.
• Maintaining and verifying goods' records (received/shipped) facilitating flow of goods through the factory and the warehouse.
• Performing cycle and location counts with a Cherry Picker material handler.
• Using Scan Guns and warehouse management system (WMS) programs like Fourth Shift and Visibar for making system adjustment entries.
• Operating material handling equipment efficiently and also following preventative maintenance programs on assigned material handling equipment.

Question 53. Suppose You've Been Hired. Your Assignment Is To Maintain Or Improve Current Service Levels While Reducing The Budget By 10%. What Steps Will You Take?

Answer :

Be sure to include maintain support for mandatory activities, eliminating unnecessary processes, and prioritizing.

Question 54. Explain Me Is A Contract That Does Not State Any Particular Quantity Valid?

Answer :

The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) allows for the award of requirements contracts, which do not state any particular quantity. However, a requirements contract is only valid if the contract is awarded in "good faith." Sellers will normally ask for the contract to have an estimated quantity or a quantity range.

Question 55. Tell Me Is A Purchase Order Valid If It Is Sent Out Unsigned?

Answer :

An unsigned purchase order is valid. The company logo on the purchase order is considered as the signature.

Question 56. Explain Me How Would You Know That The Price Of A Customized Product That You Purchase From A Supplier Is Fair?

Answer :

While it is not easy to determine fair prices of customized products, one can look through the prices of different components that a product has used. Based on this along with tax and legal profit information, one can figure out a fair price even for customized products.

Question 57. Tell Me What Are The Approaches Used In Manufacturing For Qa?

Answer :

For QA in manufacturing techniques used are:

• Acceptance sampling: In this testing, a random sample is picked from the batch rather than testing the whole batch.
• Statistical process control: Through the use of control charts and data collected for the samples at the various stages of production a manufacturing product can be monitored.
• Troubleshooting studies: At the end of the line product, a trouble-shooting study can be carried out to see whether the changes in the inputs are associated with the output variables.

Question 58. Explain And List Out The Factors That Can Affect The Manufacturing Process?

Answer :

The factors affect the manufacturing process is:

• Supplies: A well-managed supply and inventory is very crucial in order to run manufacturing process smoothly. The manufacturers must brace themselves up and ready to overcome any unexpected delays in supplies due to weather or transportation hindrance.
• Equipment: Equipment's are the central unit for any manufacturing plant; regular maintenance are utmost necessary to avoid a breakdown in the middle of production. Identify the means of improving the efficiency of every part of the equipment.
• Factory Overhead: Without power supply, manufacturing is not possible. Always keep plan B ready in case of temporary power cut down.
• Special Parts: Replacing any special spare parts with different specification may slow down your production, so before ordering any special spare parts ensure it fits your demand especially if it is imported from long distance.
• Work Force: Human resource is equally important and plays a major role in manufacturing unit.

Question 59. Do You Know What Is Kanban?

Answer :

Kanban is scheduling system which advises manufacturers about how much to produce, what to produce and when to produce. In this system, inventory is re-filled only when visual cues like an empty bin or cart is seen.

Question 60. Tell Me How Do You Conduct A Source Initiative Before You Perform Purchasing Duties?

Answer :

One of the most important aspects of a purchasing agent is to conduct research. I perform a series of research activities once I am given a purchase order. I employ my own knowledge along with taking benefit of suggested avenues and locate the best possible source for purchase depending on price, quantity, location and quality.

Question 61. Tell Me When Does Risk Of Loss Pass To A Buyer When Goods Are Purchased Fob The Buyer's Plant?

Answer :

Risk of loss passes to the buyer when the goods are delivered at the buyer's plant.

Question 62. Tell Me The Difference Between Counter Trade & Reciprocal Trading?

Answer :

Cash poor countries and organizations engage in counter trading by exchanging commodities of equal value. Counter trading offers cash poor countries and organizations greater access to the world markets by offering them an alternate method of acquiring goods. Reciprocal trading provides participating nations with equivalent competitive trading opportunities based on mutual agreements negotiated to adjust tariffs, duties, and customs restrictions in order to increase foreign trade and improve border-to-border relationships among participating countries.

Question 63. Tell Me Do You Have Experience In Coordinating Gpm Shipments?

Answer :

Yes, I have been coordinating shipments with carriers and freight companies and warehouse picks through WMS. I have been carrying out efficient placard and shipment preparations, closing system orders and managing document storage and retention.

Question 64. Tell Me What Is Gmp?

Answer :

GMP is a good manufacturing practice and is recognized worldwide for the control and management of manufacturing and quality control testing of foods, medical devices and pharmaceutical products.

Question 65. Do You Know What Is The Term Bom?

Answer :

BOM stands for Bill of Materials; it is a list of item or parts that makeup a product assembly. For example, a lawn mower requires a handle assembly, metal deck assembly, a control assembly, motor and blade assembly.

Question 66. Tell Me Why Do You Want To Work Here As In Charge Raw Material?

Answer :

Also try to look for news articles about the company, their recent successes and challenges, any information in the press about the developments of the industry they work in. Come up with concrete reasons which show your interest and enthusiasm for why you want to work for the company.

When I visited your website I found out your carrying out project X and with my background in procurement, I think I would be an asset to you and the project by adding value with my knowledge in tendering procedures and systems.

Question 67. Explain Why Are Purchasing Cards So Popular?

Answer :

Purchasing cards are a purchasing tool many progressive companies use to purchase and pay for low dollar purchases. Purchasing cards reduce the cost of doing business while preserving purchasing controls.

Question 68. Suppose I Like To Stop Taking Annual Physical Inventories. Is There An Alternative To Physical Inventories?

Answer :

You can use cycle counts on a cyclic schedule rather than taking physical inventories. The most effective cycle counts are those conducted on a daily basis.

Question 69. Explain What Is A Cost-reimbursement Contract?

Answer :

Under this type of contract, a contractor is reimbursed for costs allowed under the contract terms.

Question 70. Suppose We Hire You, What Is The Guarantee That You Will Work With Us For A Longer Time And Avoid Switching Further Like You Are Right Now?

Answer :

Due to my safe work record and stable work history, it is guaranteed that I would work for you in long-term. . I have always wanted to be a part of your company considering the safe and standardized work environment you provide to your employees, so obviously you can have my words as dreams don't change in short periods of time.

Question 71. Explain Me About Your Pc And Software Skills?

Answer :

I am well versed in all MS based programs especially excel. I am also proficient in various warehouse management software including Visibar and Fourth shift.

Question 72. Do You Know What Is Qms?

Answer :

QMS stands for Quality Management System; it documents all necessary information about company's design and operational controls, including issue reporting, monitoring, continuous improvement and training, to make sure that company delivers continuous product.