Lisa Duke
Contributing Writer
ShuBee®

“I know I had some teflon tape.”  Ever been in the middle of a job and had one of these moments?  You can’t find a small item that is imperative to the successful completion of the task at hand.  Not having all of the right materials for the job can cost precious minutes, even hours of valuable time not to mention the aggravation.  Some simple practices can alleviate this frustration while saving you time and money.

To put this in perspective, let’s say that each service tech in your company spends 15 minutes a day looking for a part.   If you have 8 techs that would be two hours per day or 10 hours per week.  Multiply this by 52 weeks per year and you have lost 520 billable hours a year. Multiply your billable hours by the wage your techs are paid and you can see just how quickly this loss can add up. Now you have identified the loss. How do you fix it?

Understanding that Maintenance, Repair and Operations (MRO) inventory is vital to the success of any service business. First, create a list of benchmark stock for your service trucks. Having the right supplies on hand for a job is critical. Tweak the list often, maybe monthly, as it will be ever changing.  As you become more familiar with your work environments, you will want to add some items and discontinue some.  Purging items that are not used will help you avoid having cluttered service trucks.

Organize your service truck.  Not being able to find something in a timely manner can be just as time consuming as not having it at all.  There are numerous organization options available to fit any budget or space restriction. There are bucket dividers, cardboard bins, plastic bins with or without lids, totes, caddies, bin racks, drawers with dividers.  The list goes on and on.  Just take a look at any industrial or tool catalog and you will find endless possibilities.  Remember that the key to success is to know what you have and where it is.

Know how much you have.  Keep a running inventory making sure to issue out all items used to the appropriate job.  Decide on a minimum level and/or a replenishment for each item and replenish it when the item reaches this level.  A maximum level can be based on usage or possibly an economical purchase quantity.

This can easily be achieved by any of the numerous inventory software options available to fit the requirements of any business.  Do your homework and choose the one that is “just right” for your company.  If you are not ready to invest in software, a card file can be used.  Simply create a card for each item and keep a running total of how many of that item you have.  When you see that it is at its minimum level, set it aside until it is replenished.  Then add the amount received and file it.  Also, effective inventory control could help identify waste.  No one ever said that bench stock is free.  Even though the value is nominal, the pennies can add up to big dollars.

Plan your jobs.  Of course you are not going to be able to stock every truck with every single item that may be needed.  Looking ahead with a bill of materials for each job will allow you to acquire the necessary items to successfully complete each job before you send your tech out.

Sounds like a monumental task?  Is it time to hire someone whose sole purpose is to source and control the inventory that you need?  Effective materials management can not only pay for itself but can add to the bottom line.  It also creates a feeling of confidence in your techs that they are going to have what they need when they need it.  Your customers will see an efficient, streamlined company that they can depend on to get the job done.