SCI00419 - Food & Beverage Management: Gold Coast Convention Case

This case study provides a comprehensive analysis of the food and beverage management procedures at The Gold Coast Convention Centre, focusing on enhancing sales and reputation. It details procurement processes, including identifying needs, sourcing suppliers, establishing contracts, and managing deliveries, emphasizing the importance of supplier development programs and assigning managerial duties. The study also covers beverage purchasing strategies, receipt procedures for both food and beverages, and the critical aspects of storage management, including adherence to food safety standards and inventory control. The analysis extends to stocktaking methods, highlighting their role in determining food item values, comparing stock values, identifying slow-moving items, and calculating stock turnover rates, ultimately aiming to optimize operational efficiencies and maintain high-quality service.

SCI00419 Food and Beverage Management
Assessment 2: Case study
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Task..................................................................................................................................................4
Procurement Procedures..............................................................................................................4
Purchase of Beverages.................................................................................................................7
Storage.......................................................................................................................................10
Managing the production process..............................................................................................13
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................14
References......................................................................................................................................15
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Introduction
The purpose of preparing the report is to analyse the procedures that can be followed by The
Gold Coast Convention Centre to increase the sales and to enhance its goodwill and reputation
among the customers. The procurement procedures have been discussed in details enlisting the
activities that are to be performed by the organisation for purchasing the required food and
beverages items. The role of the manager in procuring the food items has also been evaluated
along with discussing the activities that have to be performed for procuring beverages. The
importance of following appropriate storage procedure and the different refrigeration procedure
followed for different groups of food and beverages has also been discussed along with the ways
in which the inventory can be managed for providing quality services to the customers.
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Task
Procurement Procedures
Purchasing is one of the vital functions performed by the firms for procuring the raw materials
required for producing goods and services. The required materials are purchased after
ascertaining the actual quantity required and the amount spent by the firm for procuring these
materials. These inputs are purchased after evaluating the production capacity as well as the
current level of expertise of the employees. The skills assessment helps to predict the production
volumes and raw materials are purchased depending on the expected output (Hafez and Elzarka,
2015).
Food and Beverage industry deals with numerous suppliers and vendors for procuring the
required materials that are essential for conducting the business. Hence, it is important to design
an effective plan for procuring the materials and food products. Planning the procurement
procedure reduces the costs of procurement and ensures procuring best quality food products and
other ingredients at minimum costs.
The Gold Coast Convention Centre should follow the following procedures for purchasing food:
Figure 1: The Purchasing Process
Source: (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, 2012).
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Identifying needs: The actual inputs that are required have to be ascertained by listing the
materials required and their specifications. Mentioning the quality specifications enables to
inspect the materials appropriately and defect materials can be identified and replaced.
Sourcing: This involves identifying the suitable suppliers and vendors by evaluating the
possibilities of procuring the quality inputs at lower costs.
Establishing Sales Contract: A legal agreement has to be drafted explaining the responsibilities
of the suppliers and vendors related to the supply of the products. Mutually agreed terms and
conditions have to be mentioned for establishing long-term relationship ensuring smooth flow of
the business operations (Ivanovic, et. al., 2015).
Delivering: The goods have to be inspected before finalising the delivery and the quality
parameters of both perishable and non-perishable goods have to be checked with the
specifications mentioned in the purchase order. This ensures serving hygienic foods to the
customers and food quality is maintained while providing catering services to the customers.
Issuance of Invoice: The invoice has to be prepared for those materials which have been
accepted and sales returns invoice is prepared for rejected goods. This ensures maintaining
accurate records which is useful while ascertaining the actual revenues generated by the firm.
Developing strategies related to the supplier development helps The Gold Coast Convention
Centre to procure the materials effectively and enhances the competitiveness of the organisation.
The important elements of supplier development programme are:
 Defining, governing, and establishing the relationship.
 Observe, monitor, and improve the purchase function.
 Providing training and assistance to the vendors for using the latest technology.
 Identify and mitigate the risks (Hafez and Elzarka, 2015).
The supplier development programme ensures that the demand-supply chain can be maintained
and it improves the performance of the suppliers.
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The organisation should assign the following duties of the manager while procuring the
materials:
 Managing the procurement procedures.
 Updating and maintaining the records and receipts of the materials purchased.
 Finding the suitable suppliers for procuring perishable and non-perishable items.
 Building a long-term relationship with the suppliers for continuous supply of the
materials.
 Coordinating with the finance department for standardising the purchase procedure that
has to be followed (Asaolu, et. al., 2012).
 Monitoring the inventory levels so that purchase requisition when the stock levels reach
the economic order quantity for avoiding last minute rush. This minimises the errors and
purchasing lower quality materials which affect the performance of the business over a
period of time.
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Purchase of Beverages
The purchase of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages aims at procuring these items at lower
costs. The Gold Coast Convention Centre should consider purchasing branded and high-quality
beverages for attracting customers and these usually yield higher returns since processing the
beverages into final recipes require less number of staff which minimises the input costs of the
recipes. However, following key points have to be noted for purchasing beverages:
 There are only a few or restricted supply sources.
 Since these are high-value purchases, level of holding the stock, the cost incurred to
purchase these products and security are the major concerns if the stocks are stored for a
longer period of time (Gardner, et. al., 2014).
 Proper training is required for ascertaining the quality of the beverages since customers
expect the staff to have all the knowledge regarding the beverages that are served. For
instance, customers might enquire regarding the wine that is served to the staff.
 There are established norms for the beverages and there are many products such as spirits
and minerals whose standard do not vary for longer periods. On the other hand, other
items such as wines will have a specific standard and the packaged goods come under
different grades and ungraded items.
 The prices of the beverages do not fluctuate as compared with food items.
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Receipt of food items
In many catering organisations, the materials receiving function is ill-conceived because of lack
of specialised knowledge of the staff. Appropriate procedures have to be followed since it is one
of the vital functions for controlling the entire catering operations. It is important for the staff
working at The Gold Coast Convention Centre to know the monetary value of each ingredient
that is used in preparing the dishes and this monetary value is properly analysed for arriving at
accurate cost price of the recipes. This enables the manager to maintain accurate cost records and
ascertain the selling price of each recipe served to the customers (Wakeland, et. al., 2012).
The responsibilities of the staff while receiving the materials are:
 The quantity of the goods that are received matches with the purchase requisition and
proper weights and measures have to be mentioned while accepting fruits and vegetables.
 The quality specifications have to be checked against those mentioned in purchase
requisition.
 Returning those items which do not meet the specifications mentioned and credit note has
to be received for those materials which are not delivered.
 The delivery note should contain all the details of the materials delivered and the
packaging condition and temperature should also be included (Lao, et. al., 2012).
 The purchased items should be placed at appropriate locations so that these can be stored
and preserved.
 The organisation should train the staff for following these procedures at regular intervals
so that operational efficiencies can be achieved.
By developing the above strategy, The Gold Coast Convention Centre ensures receiving only
those materials which are required and as per the required quantity. This enables to minimise the
wastages and maintaining the hygienic condition of recipes. The manager should supervise the
work performed by the staff regularly so that corrective measures can be implemented at
appropriate periods.
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Additionally, the Convention Centre can adopt the strategy of barcode tagging while receiving
expensive food items, especially processed food materials and these can be checked by following
below-mentioned procedures:
 Barcode reader reads the items purchased which is attached to the computer.
 This compares the item with the purchase requisition.
 The records are updated and maintained in the EPOS control system.
 This system is usually accessed by the manager (Wade, et. al., 2012).
By introducing the use of technology while receiving the goods, the organisation will be able to
receive and record the transaction accurately. Since only a minimum amount of human effort is
involved, these records are reliable and it can be used for accounting purposes. Another
advantage of using EPOS control system is that the purchase requisition can be generated online
which makes it easier for the staff to maintain the records. The reduced effort motivates the staff
to perform better and improve efficiency and effectiveness in the purchase and receiving
functions.
Receipt of Beverages
The beverages have to be received appropriately because of its high value and there is a high
potential for losses. The following steps should be followed by the organisation for receiving
deliveries:
 A thorough inspection of cases and crates should be done for empty and broken bottles.
 Accurate records have to be maintained for the damaged and returned items.
 The timetable for receiving the delivery of beverages items has to be prepared based on
the availability of the staff responsible for storing these items (Glucksman, et. al., 2014).
The quality specifications of the beverages have to be checked since they have different
standards and each product has a different perishable period.
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Storage
The objective of storage is to maintain the inventory of food and beverages for satisfying
immediate needs of the organisation. The basic objective of storage management is preventing
the loss of purchased goods because of spoilage, theft, and pilferage. The Food Safety Act 1991
governs the food safety requirements and it is regulated by FSANZ (Food Standards Australia
New Zealand). The five standards provide a detailed explanation regarding storing the food and
these standards can be evaluated as:
 Standard 3.1.1: Interpretation and Application
 Standard 3.2.1: Food Safety Programs
 Standard 3.2.2: Food Safety Practices and general requirements
 Standard 3.2.3: Food premises and equipment
 Standard 3.3.1: Food Safety programs – Services to Vulnerable persons (Australian
Institute of Food Safety, 2016).
The important functions that have to be performed by the organisation related to storage of foods
are:
 The perishable items should be stored in refrigerators and other cold storage rooms and
these have to be utilised within 3-4 days.
 Certain vegetables and fruits such as apples have to be kept in cold storage all the times.
 The foods have to be differentiated and stored separately for quick access and storage
temperature remains constant (Hill and Herrick, 2015).
 In the case of non-perishable food items, they are checked and stored in the racking.
 The use of computers and software should be practised for maintaining the records.
Stocktaking of Food
The objectives of taking inventories are:
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 Determining the value of food items stored in the inventory and enables the managers to
ascertain the actual quantity of the stored food items. The stock value is required for
indicating in the profit and loss account and balance sheet prepared by the firm.
 Comparing the value of the food in the inventory at a given time with the book value of
the stock which can be calculated as:
Value of Opening Stock + Purchases during the period – requisitions made in the same
period = value of closing stock
This formula highlights the differences in the stock valuation and enables the
management to ascertain the efficiency of the control systems.
 The slow-moving food items can be listed and these items can be sold at lower costs
before they deteriorate (Usop, et. al., 2017).
 Comparing the usage of food items with the sales and calculating gross profit.
 Determining the rate of stock turnover for various groups of foods, which can be
calculated by:
The rate of stock turnover in a given period = cost of goods consumed/average value of
the stock at cost price
The rate of stock turnover fluctuates depending on the frequency of delivery, the amount
of storage space available, and the amount that can be spent by the organisation for
maintaining the stock levels.
Storing Beverages
The beverages have to be stored ideally in the following ways:
 The storage area for red wine and spirits is maintained at 13-degree centigrade to 16-
degree centigrade (Pantelidis, 2018).
 The white and sparkling wines have to be stored at 10-degree centigrade.
 Another refrigerated area of 6-degree centigrade to eight-degree centigrade is required
when there is a slow turnover of kegs. Otherwise, it can be stored at 13-degree centigrade
to 16-degree centigrade.
 For storing beer bottles and soft drinks, the temperature has to be maintained at thirteen-
degree centigrade.
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 For storing empty bottles and kegs, a separate area has to be designated since these have
a returnable value.
There are various methods that can be used for that can be used for ascertaining the stock levels
which can be enumerated as:
Bin Cards: The bin card numbers are provided to each category of the products stored in the
shelves or racks. This helps to ascertain the actual volume of sales for a particular period of time.
Cellar Control Books: This enables the management to record the daily records related to
delivery and issue of various products (Pantelidis, 2018).
Empties: The containers such as kegs, crates, and others have to be returned to the supplier for
obtaining the credit.
All the above inventory control systems are developed in EPOS control systems which enable to
maintain the inventory records. The inventory management enables to minimise the wastages as
well as create an environment where the food storage is standardised and efficiency of the
services is enhanced. This is required for enhancing the quality of the services as well as
generates more revenues as it can be noted that The Gold Coast Convention Centre has earned
only $112,000 from beverage sales. The increase in the sales of the beverages will enhance the
profitability of the organisation since the profit margin in the sales of the beverages.
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Managing the production process
The production process should be managed effectively since it is the core activity in the food
service management and control. This enables to predict the volume of the sales that can be
achieved over a period of time. For instance, while offering the catering services during summer,
the customers prefer soft drinks instead of eating a hard diet food. Hence, The Gold Coast
Convention Centre can arrange for stocking cold drinks and reduce food quantity. Also, the
changes in the tastes and preferences of the customers can also be ascertained. For example, ice
creams and salads are preferred in summers (Chathoth, et. al., 2013).
Production Schedule:
The manager and the head chef has to plan the schedule while providing catering services in
order to finalise the steps that are to be followed while serving the customers which involves
 Checking the current inventory levels of food and beverages
 Prepare a timetable listing all the activities that have to be performed and dividing the
groups into small teams.
 Issuing the required products to the kitchen.
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Conclusion
From this report it can be concluded that for providing quality services, The Gold Coast
Convention Centre has to develop strategies related to procurement, receiving, storage and
production management of food and beverages. Purchasing the raw materials required for
preparing various recipes has to be planned effectively and aim at procuring these materials at
lower costs to minimise the input costs. Purchasing forms the core of the catering business since
quality and quantity specifications are provided to the suppliers and these are checked while
receiving the products. This ensures maintaining the hygienic conditions throughout the
production process and the organisation will be able to achieve the overall objectives.
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