Keeping inventory as low as possible without affecting your customers’ satisfaction with the way you do business is a balancing act. Too little inventory invites stock outs, missed sales, and lost customers. On the other hand, too much inventory is lost money if inventory is lost, stolen, damaged, becomes obsolete, or if its demand drops off. Too much inventory also soaks up money that’s better used elsewhere. If you feel you’re already at that inventory balancing point, a WMS (warehouse management system) can bring your inventory down further in the following ways:
Reduced Cycle Times
Without a WMS, order fulfillment is often sluggish because inventory sits around waiting for the next step in the process to be carried out. Long waiting periods caused by paperwork bottlenecks or excessive checking and rechecking of picking and packing accuracy, are just two of many possible inefficiencies.
A WMS that cuts through these inefficient manual processes, gets inventory out the door and into the hands of your customers much sooner. This quickly frees up space and thus cuts down inventory that shouldn’t be in the warehouse anymore.
Reduces Duplicate Inventory Reorders
When you lose track of your inventory count, you’re forced to err on the side of too little or too much inventory. Many inventory managers prefer ordering too much. Until there’s time for a physical inventory count, that’s the best you can do. That is, unless you have a WMS. Anything taken out or placed into inventory can be automatically tracked with a WMS tied into barcode reading or other similar technology.
More Loyal Customers
A WMS that delivers product to your customers more quickly, accurately, and reliably, increases the satisfaction and trust of your customers. Their confidence in you builds because you never let them down. This builds up loyal repeat customers. These are customers you can count on for future business. Often, their order patterns are predictable. This increased demand predictability means you require less safety stock as a buffer against demand uncertainty.
To learn more about how the right warehouse management system will benefit your operation, please contact us.
