A Corporate Storage and Efficient Storeroom Procedures
A corporate storage for a manufacturing operation can be readily dismissed, but a poorly run storeroom can pose a productivity threat, especially when the materials are essential for company upkeep and repair. What procedures are necessary for the storeroom to operate efficiently? If the right amount of money is spent on the storage plan, it demonstrates the best course for a successful storeroom. However, the work done could be ineffective if sufficient effort is not spent outlining the various procedures in the storeroom and allocating people to them. The employees can better grasp when and what to do by mapping processes and identifying roles. The process cuts unnecessary work and communication enabling much time of doing required activities (Bredenberg, 2014). Repetition of activities helps organization in evaluating the process and better ways of working. The processes in the storeroom are as discussed below.
Storeroom Ordering Processes
Purchasing process
Once the spare parts are set up, the purchasing process is next in line. During the process, several activities are involved. Some of the ongoing activities are; Quoting-where suppliers are asked to submit the price, lead time and warranty for the required services. Quote evaluation is done based on the price. Payment is ensuring prompt payment enables the supplier to give the best possible terms. Each of these activities needs to be documented with defined criteria no matter the person doing the work (James, 2017).
Receiving Process
After the supplier delivers the spare parts, it’s important to ensure their quick assessment. This should be followed by receiving and stocking. Having robust receiving process reduces wasting efforts in the storeroom (Bredenberg, 2014). A receiving process should have the following components;
- Initial inspections. It is the initial incoming inspection of all the deliveries to ensure no visible damages to the packages. Any visible damage should be noted on Bill of Lading and the vendor should be nullified.
- Detailed inspections. As materials are moved from the shipping containers, they should undergo inspection.
- Storage. Materials are stored in their optimal packaging once they are inspected to prevent contamination. During storage, the goods are tagged with the date of receipt.
- Secure storage. Once materials are received, they are not immediately put away. A secure location is defined where the product can be safely stored.
- Good receipt. After inspection activities and verification, the materials become goods received. It triggers proceeding of payment process.
Kitting Process
This storeroom process hasn’t been developed by many organizations. The process reduces non value added time spent by technicians while travelling and looking for materials from the storeroom (James, 2016). The process involves a few key steps such as;
- Setting up the job bin, normally created when the jib is given from the planning group
- Pull material, the storeroom pulls materials from the available stock; the arriving materials are added to the job bin.
- Releasing the job bin. Materials in the job bin are released only once, after which a green flag is added to the bin.
Once these parts are released from the store room, they need to be issued.
Issuing Process
Issuing process allows the company to assign the cost of parts to the equipment and operating department. The issuing process is simple. However, there are basic principles that need to be considered. An example being all parts being issued to a specific work order, all parts require signing as they are taken out of storeroom.
Returns Process
This process is often overlooked. Many companies simply take parts and return to stock as if they are new. This contributes to defective parts in the inventory. Return process should ensure the following; designated location for return of segregated parts. It should also ensure that parts returned undergo formal testing policy. The parts must be validated through testing before being returned to the stock. By following the above rules, the organization is assured that materials in the storeroom are safe and in good condition.
Performance Management Process
Whatever gets done must be measured. This holds truth in the storeroom and that is the necessity of performance management process. Management process ensures that not only storeroom meets the needs of the business but also operates in correct manner. When making decisions on what to measure, organization should do the following;
- Identification of the leading business indicators.
- Using plan in checking the improvements in the process.
- Selecting key performance indicators that are frequently measured.
Material Receiving from a Vendor Process
Many manufacturers lack clear documentation of receipt materials and this can cause problems when the business is trying to prove that there was a shortage in supply or that the supply did not conform to quality specifications. The following process if followed;
- Receiving reports
After receiving services or purchased goods from a supplier, it’s important to check the supplies to make sure they are of right quantity and quality. The report can be of great help in record maintenance especially when paying bills. A receiving report is immediately completed and shows:
- The date when the supplies were received.
- The time of the delivery.
- Quantity of the received supplies to identify discrepancies in comparison with the packing slip.
- Whether quality conforms to specifications.
- Quantity check
Upon arrival of the supplies, the recipient should check the materials against the packing slip when paying the bills. The extent of quantity check depends on the number of packages involved. If many packages are received, and several items in each package then complete count time consuming (Meirs, 2017). Such cases require sampling to establish the quantity received.
Physical dimensions can be used in estimates in quantities of the supply. Suppliers are encouraged to write the quantity of items if the goods are packed in boxes. For bulky goods, the report should show how the count was made e.g. by weighing, calculation or spot checks.
- Quality inspection
Upon receiving the goods, it is important to make sure the materials conform to quality specifications. If at all there are no quality defects, then there need to run a quality check on each item of the entire supply. If defective materials are detected in the manufacturing process and it’s the problem of the supplier, quality check can be limited to assuring that there is no massive problem disrupting the production process (Meir, 2017). However, in some instances the defective materials can pass unnoticed. In such situations, it’s recommended to conduct quality check of received supply.
- Reporting to accounts payable
In being assured that the payment will be done only if the goods in which the vendor bills have been received as per quantity of acceptable quality, the person conducting the check should compare; receiving report, purchase order, packing slip and vendor’s invoice. These documents are to be filed together for their availability when the bills are being paid.
References
Bredernberg A, (2014). Process is Paramount in Effective Storeroom Management.
Retrieved on 18 Sep, 2017 from news.thomasnet.com/tech-trends/2014/10/3/process-is-paramount-effective-storeroom-management
James Kovacevic (2016). Basic Spare Parts Management: The Inner Workings of
a Storeroom. Retrieved on 18 Sept, 2017 from https://hpreliability.com/inner-workings-storeroom/
Meir Liraz. (2017). Receiving and Inspecting Goods. Retrieved on 18 Sept, 2017
from https://www.bizmove.com/general/m6i6.htm
