Inventory control is critical to the success of any manufacturing business. Poorly managed inventory can lead to costly errors and reduced productivity. Regular inventory counting is essential to help businesses stay on top of their stock levels and ensure that their records are accurate and up-to-date. Here are five key reasons why inventory counting is so important:
1. Productivity Effects: Accurate inventory ensures your production processes are not delayed, allowing you to maximize efficiency and output.
2. Prevent Overstocking: Regular counting helps you identify when you have excess inventory, so you can reduce it and keep your cash flow and storage space under control.
3. Efficiency Improvement: Accurate inventory counts enable you to manage ordering and fulfillment processes better, so you can make sure you get the right
4. Error Avoidance: Counting inventory regularly helps businesses ensure that their records are accurate and up-to-date. Without regular counting, it is easy for businesses to order the wrong items or the wrong number of items.
5. Time Savings: When businesses have an accurate count of their inventory, they can more easily and quickly identify what they need to order and what they have in stock. This helps to save time and streamline the ordering process.
While inventory counting may seem time-consuming, it can be improved with the right tools and practices. In this blog, we will discuss some tips to enhance inventory counting:
- Use Technology: Using technology is a great way to improve inventory counting. By introducing barcode/ QR code scanning systems, you can drastically reduce the risk of errors and save time.
- Regular Counts: You can implement regular cycle counts instead of conducting a full inventory count at once. This will help you identify errors and discrepancies quickly.
- Near Real-time Data: You can also use mobile devices connected to the internet, allowing real-time inventory data updates. If the device is not connected to the internet due to poor network connectivity, you can still carry out the counting offline and synchronize it once the device comes online.
- Train Staff: It is important to train your staff on how to handle inventory, identify and report discrepancies, and use any inventory tracking technology
Native mobile apps such as the EAM360 storekeeper application are becoming increasingly popular due to their user-friendliness and ease of navigation. Store personnel can now take advantage of hands-free counting by scanning Bar codes, QR Codes, or RFID tags deployed in the storeroom. This will help to improve inventory accuracy, reduce errors, increase efficiency, and optimize inventory operations.
Author:
Prasanna
Functional Consultant
