Struggling to balance stock levels while keeping costs in check? Inventory management is essential inside the supply chain in order to minimize expenses while increasing profits. Managing inventory means overseeing the flow of products at all times so that the items required are always available when needed.
Inventory managing prevents overstocks and understocks eliminating unnecessary storage costs and additional costs of operations. It also reduces the risk of inventory becoming obsolete in the warehouse for not having a good prevision of the market’s demand.
This is why implementing efficient inventory management techniques that can streamline your supply chain is important for your business, this way it improves profitability, keeps the supply chain running smoothly and reduces costs where possible.
Techniques for effective inventory management
Let’s take a look into the most commonly used and most effective inventory management techniques that your business can implement to reduce costs, errors and operation challenges.
Whether you deal with raw materials, finished goods, or work-in-progress (WIP) inventory, these strategies will help you cut unnecessary expenses while ensuring you are always prepared to meet your customer demand.
Just-in-time (JIT) inventory
This inventory management technique is favored by many businesses globally because it ensures materials are received just when there is a scheduled production ahead and products are also received only when ready for sale instead of having large amounts of unneeded sticks piled up.
This technique prevents businesses from finding themselves overstocked with unsold goods and also helps reduce storage costs. JIT relies on accurate demand and market trends forecast, historical sales data, and effective supply chain management to ensure stock is supplied only when needed
Your business can easily adopt JIT systems and other beneficial implementations when working with a trusted logistics provider like EP Logistics. We offer the best customizable warehousing services and fast, reliable JIT systems, to help you better manage your inventory, stay prepared for high seasons and overall enhance your operation costs.
ABC analysis
The next technique that helps your business have effective inventory management is known as ABC Analysis. This technique:
- Classifies your inventory into: three categories—A, B, or C—based on importance.
- Items are classified from the most valuable ones to the least expensive ones.
- And then by monitoring priority, being Group A the one with the highest.
These techniques, or control measures, allow you to better prioritize your resources by focusing on managing high-priority items first. ABC Analysis helps you be in control of costs and improve your inventory management process.
At EP Logistics’ we customize our warehousing strategies to support ABC Analysis that is specific for your business. This way, we help you prioritize and monitor your inventory more effectively and have an effective and efficient stock management along the whole year.
Dropshipping
Dropshipping is a great and powerful way to avoid the need of managing inventory. This management technique completely eliminates the need to have items stored in stock. Instead, once an order is placed, the manufacturer or supplier is the one that ships the products directly to your customer.
This means no need for you to hold on inventory or manage storage, which makes it an attractive solution, and a very cost-effective option. This technique is commonly used by e-commerce businesses, for example.
At EP Logistics, we also offer ecommerce fulfillment services, including dropshipping. We handle all the logistics from the moment your customer places an order, to the moment they receive the item without you having to worry about the in between.
We ensure customers receive their items accurately, and quickly so that your businesses can focus on other areas having a peace of mind that fulfillment is taken care of in the hands of professionals.
How EP Logistics can improve your inventory management
As you can see, the best way to optimize the management of your inventory, ensuring you always have stock levels on point is by effectively implementing the inventory management techniques we learned about.
This will allows your business to stay competitive, avoid understocks and overstocks, handle high seasons and better respond to changes in the market and customer demand.
Partnering with a trustworthy and experienced logistics provider in ABC analysis, JIT – just int time inventory and Dropshipping techniques benefits your business, reducing costs and boosting your supply chain operations.
How EP Logistics stands out
At EP Logistics, we are looking forward to helping you optimize your inventory management.
Our warehousing integrates advanced Warehouse Management System (WMS) and inventory management software, for real-time visibility and control over your inventory at all times that allows you to:
- Track your stock levels.
- Prevent overstocks and understocks.
- Better manage re-orders and returns.
- Be prepared for high seasons.
- Access historical sales data.
- Use the data to forecast and adjust to meet the market’s demand.
- Take care of your customer’s satisfaction.
We also use safety stock strategies and economic order quantity (EOQ) calculations to ensure your business accurately reduces carrying costs while ensuring that stock is always available
Get in touch today and let us help you determine the benefits of inventory management and transform your supply chain with tailored ecommerce fulfillment, air freight and customs brokerage solutions.
