When we think about successful inventory management, three key areas come to mind – stock levels, location and access. While it’s important that these areas are your first priority, they are not the only factors that impact on running a successful warehouse operation. Many manufacturing and distribution businesses find there’s a variety of flow-on effects that can cause problems when managing their stock levels. Some flow-on effects that create a big impact on businesses range from staff productivity, delayed delivery times and processing orders correctly.
Managing last-minute or on-demand customer orders
Many customers depend on manufacturers and distributors – especially those in the food industry – for on-demand or last-minute orders. These orders are usually outside the standard ordering system and create flow on problems that impact inventory management. If your business manages fresh produce, you need to ensure there is enough produce in stock for daily and future orders. Using available stock for last-minute orders can affect standard, re-occurring orders, resulting in a shortage for other customers in the days or weeks ahead.
How do you manage last-minute orders?
Incorrect barcoding impacting on staff productivity
Without correct barcoding, location data and an automated recording system in place, staff could potentially waste hours searching warehouses, establishing whether there’s the right levels of stock or trying to locate misplaced goods. Their normal workload is then impacted, causing stress and potentially costing you more in overtime.
Do your employees waste time searching for stock with incorrect barcoding and location data?
Not using automated receipting and dispatching
Manufacturers and distributors who do not automate the receipting or dispatching of stock at their warehouses risk items being misplaced, lost or stolen. Is your business using outdated paper carbon copies for receipting and dispatching? Poor quality controls on stock movements can lead to wasted time, stock or over-ordering.
How do you receive orders and manage incoming stock?
Wrong location data
If stock is in the wrong location, this can affect distribution to customers. Incorrect deliveries waste significant time, money and vehicle wear and tear by using inefficient delivery routes. If a driver needs to backtrack, to retrieve missing products from orders, clients may not receive orders by their deadline which affects your customer’s ability to provide a quality service to their clients.
How many times have you apologised to a customer for late or incomplete order?
Wrong customer, wrong order, wrong quantity
Without the proper automated traceable systems in place, your stock could be delivered to the wrong customers. Or worse still, the wrong products or quantities or even receiving another customers order. These errors could potentially lose your clients, as nowadays businesses are more willing to switch suppliers.
Have you ever had a customer question your reliability or professionalism?
How can Acacia help?
If you answered yes to any of these problems, Acacia can help improve your inventory management. We assist food manufacturers and distributors gain market share by ensuring automated traceable systems are in place in their business. At Acacia, we are industry leaders in helping food manufacturers and distributors overcome issues, rebound and become more profitable. We help optimise, automate and improve the traceability of your business. With Acacia, you know your business is working with the best in the industry. Acacia has the knowledge and experience across any business sector to provide the most cost-effective solution for your business.
Do you have a food production or distribution business? We’d love to hear from you.
