If you are reading this blog, you already know about the importance of industrial spare parts inventory management. You don’t want to be short on critical industrial spares when they are needed the most, right? And one of the best ways to ensure timely & easy refilling of stock is to buy your industrial spare parts online.
With this online option, be spoilt for choices in terms of variety of spares & sellers - literally on your fingertips! But, you need to be wary of certain aspects before you go ahead and buy these critical industrial spare components online. Listed below are some of the things you need to consider.
There are several websites out there that sell industrial spares online. One easy way to identify a genuine portal is when you observe a good number of reliable sellers already listed with a wide range of spares. While many of the online spare portals do offer the right products & sellers, you need to choose your portal wisely by opting for the one that makes your task easy - of choosing the right seller & product, placing the order, tracking your order & receiving it in the quickest & safest manner possible!
Don’t be in a hurry to buy from the first seller that you find on the portal. Instead give it some more time & check similar products from multiple sellers. Most importantly, check the product specifications thoroughly and compare these specs from different sellers. There are portals like IndiSpare that help in this regards through instant comparison of products in terms of specifications & prices.
You don’t want to land up with industrial spares that breakdown in no time. Hence, it is critical to check out product warranties and reviews by other buyers before you make your choice.
Selecting the right spare parts to buy is just half of the job done. You need to also research well in terms of portals that give you multiple delivery modes, including last-mile delivery (which is not easy to find online). Also, remember that once you have made the purchase you will be anxious till you actually receive the right product in the right condition. Hence, do opt for portals like IndiSpare that give you accurate real-time tracking options.
It is better to be safe, than worry later. Hence spending additional few minutes to check the terms & conditions of the website, as well as any other costs associated with product delivery will hold you in good stead. It may be a good idea to look out for financing options, if you can find a portal that does offer these services.
These above discussed pointers are best practices for buying the right industrial spare products online from the right sellers through the right aggregators. You need portals that onboard genuine sellers and perform quality checks from their end too. Hope this piece of information helps you to make well-informed choices!
When it comes to the success of any manufacturing or maintenance team, the industrial spare parts inventory management plays a critical role. Don’t you agree?
Effective spare parts management should be your topmost priority - as a plant manager or supply chain manager or someone who is responsible to ensure seamless operations for keeping your system productive! But, it is not straight forward because there is the fear of stocking spare parts leading to piled up operational costs. Just imagine the impact of not having the desired spare parts on time - wouldn’t that lead to unexpected downtime and unforeseen costs?
So, what is the best approach you might think?
Hence, it is of paramount importance to effectively plan and control spare parts inventory by adopting some of the best industry practices. Listed below are few top tips for effective industrial spare parts management.
This is one of the first things you might already be doing. If no, make sure you classify & label the most critical spare parts (ones required for business continuity machinery). This classification can be done in either of the following two ways: ~According to the total value of the item consumed during a particular time period (ABC Analysis) ~According to the variation in demand (XYZ Analysis)
Due to manual errors, inaccuracies might arise on the spare parts inventory control front. For e.g., one of your team members might miss out filing a work order while removing an item from the inventory.
Hence, it is necessary to have a standard work order process in place which is extremely easy to follow & for which your team members are made accountable to follow. You should strive to achieve certain bit of automation to replace manual paperwork (as much as possible).
There should be some quality time spent in educating & training your team about the standard procedures as well as the consequences of not abiding by them. This training should be available in different forms so that every employee at any level in your company who has to deal with spare parts, gets to undergo the training at length. A little extra time spent on the training front will help you to save a lot of time, efforts, & costs later by reducing human errors when it comes to following mandatory procedures with regards to controlled inventory management of spares!
The Bill of Materials (BOM) should be reviewed at fixed intervals and updated appropriately. You might already be doing it - but aim to do it more frequently as this is a critical aspect when it comes to manufacturing & production. A regularly updated BOM will ensure less spare inventory inaccuracies or shortages when actually there is a need.
A good CMMS (Computerised Maintenance Management System) to overlook your industrial spares inventory & demand forecasts is the key to most accurate inventory management. Choosing the right one for your business will help you to analyse your spare parts situation from time to time.
The above discussed best practices are a must for you to bring about effective inventory control & management of industrial spare parts. Hope these tips prove useful for your business!