While one can easily devote a career to management of inventory, here are five simple rules that will help any operation:
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- Avoid intelligent part number systems – they get complicated quickly and hard to maintain; one exception is to let R&D have separate part numbers, often identified with an “X” prefix, where these development parts are kept separate from, and not required to meet the standards of, production parts
- Label, stamp, or mark parts with part number and revision levels (in the case of processes involving bulks such as liquids, make sure the containers are similarly marked)
- Prioritize and control direct material by levels of importance – an ABC system; “A” parts may be expensive and/or long lead-time parts; “B” parts are somewhere in the middle, and; “C” parts are cheap and plentiful, such as simple fasteners
- Control your inventory counts, especially for “A” parts, likely for “B” parts, and less importantly for “C” parts
- Never store indistinguishable parts near each other – if one can’t tell this part has been hardened and this one not, then store them at least 3m apart from each other
The key is to have a system that delights your customers in terms of price, quality, and delivery, that is flexible, and that people are willing to use consistently.