The email reminding you of the annual inventory management exercise hits you like a ton of bricks.

The thought of cataloguing each item that comes through your company doors, unloading, counting, marking, categorising, palletising, stocking, routing etc., can seem daunting, but if you miss out one of these activities, you will be reducing your potential profits.

Regardless of the size of your operation, maintaining accurate inventory management is essential for running your business and ensuring more profits.

Think about it, you are a conduit for many businesses, who rely on you to deliver their products to their end consumers. Can you really afford to be complacent about how you run your distribution centre?

I understand that most of the time, inventory management is seen by many managers as a real pain. But identifying ineffective processes is the first step to reclaiming your profits. We analysed the current warehousing industry landscape and identified some common issues. The following are our recommended solutions, which have helped many small business owners, improve the way their warehouse is managed:

• Frequent Inventory Counting – This is an important quarterly or annual task that gives you a clear picture of how you are using your warehouse space. Now, depending on the size of your warehouse, you may blanch at the thought of having to count EVERY item in stock, or not. Fear not, we wouldn’t want you to do that. You can use cycle counting to accurately count items in selected areas of the warehouse.

Another method is to store the same type of inventory in one location. This allows you to ‘at a glance’, know the volume of a good you are carrying. If these still baffle you, there are professional firms that offer inventory counting as a service.

• Know Your People – Your staff are a key component to running your business. They can help grow it, yet employee theft made up 30% of all theft from UK businesses in 2013. This amounted to over £ 300 million in losses for business owners.

This is why proper background checks, provision of internal control and audit systems, follow-up on any reported incidents, are vital for long-term business and profit.

• Get Organised – Did you know that simply optimizing and organising your warehouse space can boost efficiency by up to 15%? Assessing your existing space, sorting goods by size or type, installation of appropriate racking etc. can help organise your space. With Christmas only a few months away, optimising your layout now will prevent loss of goods and money down the line.

• Install a Management Software/System – The days of trying to run every aspect of the supply chain process manually are long gone. Companies have developed software that accurately collects data, shares the data across locations, maintain order and stock management etc. Using the software with devices like RFID-enabled mobile computers and bar code scanners will reduce instances of theft and help improve efficiency and productivity levels.

• Plan – This final aspect of managing inventory control should really be considered first. Running a successful warehouse boils down to in-depth planning. Setting out a plan for receiving, distributing, replenishing, organising inventory etc. will put you on the path to sustainable business profits. Using the tips outlined above, the management process will also become much easier to run.

Employing the services of a professional company to help with aspects you are unfamiliar with will reduce waste of time and materials. Contact Monarch Shelving Limited today for more info on our racking and shelving solutions for all warehouse sizes.