In this exercise, you will use database software to design a database for managing inventory for a small business. Sylvester’s Bike Shop, located in San Francisco, California, sells road, mountain, hybrid, leisure, and children’s bicycles. Currently, Sylvester’s purchases bikes from three suppliers, but plans to add new suppliers in the near future. This rapidly growing business needs a database system to manage this information.
Initially, the database should house information about suppliers and products.
The database will contain two tables: a supplier table and a product table. The reorder level refers to the number of items in inventory that triggers a decision to order more items to prevent a stockout. (In other words, if the number of units of a particular item in inventory falls below the reorder level, the item should be reordered.) The user should be able to perform several queries and produce several managerial reports based on the data contained in the two tables.
Using the information found in the tables on the Laudon Web site for Chapter 5, build a simple relational database for Sylvester’s. Once you have built the database, perform the following activities.
• Prepare a report that identifies the five most expensive bicycles. The report should list the bicycles in descending order from most expensive to least expensive, the quantity on hand for each, and the markup percentage for each.
• Prepare a report that lists each supplier, its products, the quantities on hand, and associated reorder levels. The report should be sorted alphabetically by supplier. Within each supplier category, the products should be sorted alphabetically.
• Prepare a report listing only the bicycles that are low in stock and need to be reordered.
The report should provide supplier information for the items identified.
• Write a brief description of how the database could be enhanced to further improve management of the business. What tables or fields should be added? What additional reports would be useful?