WAREHOUSING, HANDLING AND STORAGE
businesses. However, it is primarily a manual service provided by the VMI partner’s employees, who will attend site regularly to check the stock available in bins, manually fill bins and create new orders for the following site visit.
With the launch of VMI Smart Solutions, businesses can supercharge their VMI with a whole host of smart automation that helps improve compliance, reduce waste, keep inventory available, charge power tools ready for use and achieve a first-visit fix. Relevant digital inventory technologies include industrial vending, mobile automated replenishment systems, asset management solutions and app- based inventory management. Crucially, these are connected to cloud-based software for real-time access to reports and information. The adoption of digital inventory management technology is bringing a typically manual process into the Industry 4.0 era.
DIGITAL INVENTORY
MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGIES Locker-based solutions are growing in popularity as a way to improve the ability to monitor and control material use. These allow managers to carefully control access to items and ensure employees have the right materials when needed. They can access data on each employee’s stock use, including the
time and location stock was accessed. With a locker- based system, manufacturers can track the use of high-value items, such as power tools.
Ensuring the right tools for the job are available and charged when required is a key benefit for manufacturers with high-value inventory, like maintenance and repair operations (MRO). Locker-based solutions are helpful for health and safety management, for example by restricting access to hazardous products only to authorised personnel, or for ensuring the correct PPE is supplied to every employee. Ensuring employee safety is absolutely paramount and can be a huge pull for technology adoption.
Scale-based inventory management technology is another useful tool for manufacturers, who can use it for automated replenishment. This involves storing stock in bins that calculate stock levels based on the weight of an individual component. The data stored can be shared with distributors, to better manage replenishment cycles and automatically trigger an order when the weight drops below the set minimum level. The ability to analyse exactly what was used for each individual service helps manufacturers better control stock use. The added visibility improves supply chain efficiency and reduces costs by driving down consumption.
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There is also technology available that allows manufacturers to use their smartphones or other handheld device to manage stock. For example, app-accessed cabinets that act as a secure unmanned stores solution, or enterprise-level storeroom management solutions that can be accessed by scanning a tag on a smartphone. Inventor-e’s app-based technology SmartStores enables users to manage and control all material usage in a facility, as well as providing a live overview. Employees can access it on their smartphones by installing the SmartStores app or using a supplied handheld device. Building an inventory management solution is a complex feat. With the right support, integrating automated technology can make product availability easy in even the most unpredictable manufacturing environments. For help implementing the right mix of digital technology into your business, contact a supply chain specialist.
Interested in digitalising your inventory management? Visit the TFC website https://tfc.
eu.com/services/vmi-smart-solutions/.
TFC
https://tfc.eu.com/
FACTORY&HANDLINGSOLUTIONS | JUNE 2022 35
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