In stressful times such as these, we are seeing an incredible amount of rethinking in the world of business. Logistics has come front and center in the minds of business owners because it’s such an underrated yet immeasurably valuable part of the economy. It also costs a lot if you get it wrong, as products that are not delivered, cause a drop in sales, consumer confidence and it’s money that you will never make back. You also need to have an efficient yet flexible system, one which can move stock to almost any location but is diverted to another location at the drop of a hat. The largest problem has always been, the gap between the production plant and the warehouse.
How much and when?
The tail ends up wagging the dog, when the warehouse overstocks products and the business, in turn, needs to sell more to stop it being wasted. This almost always means you will be making a loss if you hadn’t planned to sell a lot more, i.e. seasonal events. So how do you know when you need to restock your warehouse, so your businesses are meeting the demand? Inventory management systems that are cloud-based, are the answer. They are hooked up to your business, can directly communicate with the sales department and study the data. Together as a team, you will know what the data is saying i.e. expected sales, certain types of inventory selling quicker, what discounts work the best for new customers and when marketing plans will initiate these processes further.
Making large deliveries
It doesn’t make sense to make small deliveries to a warehouse. On the one hand, you’re conscious of not selling enough so you cannot restock, on the other you’re worried you won’t have enough stock to meet orders. It’s a delicate balance, but most companies find that making fortnightly large deliveries with the support of full truck load companies, is more economical. They can do container shipping, so one large load of various products can arrive straight from the production plant and be unloaded into the warehouse. They also provide proactive updates throughout the journey of every shipment, giving you more time to manage other tasks at the warehouse. If a shipment is running late, you will be notified of the reason and kept updated on the situation. Drivers face problems like traffic, loose boulders on mountainside roads, ice, flooding and flat tyres, so it’s good to know what is keeping your delivery from arriving at the set time.
Accounting for the stock
So much stock is written off or sold at auction because it is damaged and cannot be legally sold to the public. It’s a headache for the logistical team and the business owners. This is why you need a delivery manager, who accounts for each and every single piece of stock upon arrival. This way you can catch the issue early on and notify the delivery company or production plant so it doesn’t happen again.
It might be a short or long trip, regardless of the length, it’s always a complicated issue. However, the logistical challenges of delivering stock from the plant to the warehouse should be taken on the chin.
