The supply chain is a very important part of any business because it is how a business gets the supplies that it needs to operate. Implementing the right strategies with your supply chain will help you increase the efficiency and productivity of your business. From investing in stackable totes to minimizing your inventory, here are six great strategies that show you how to improve your supply chain.
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1. Minimize Held Inventory
Having a lot of business-owned inventory can cost you a lot of money over time as you have to keep track of and preserve the inventory until it is used or sold. The longer you have to hold on to an item, the lower your return on investment for that item will be. Keeping inventory also means you have to invest in additional equipment like racks and industrial wire baskets to store the items.
Taking the time to plan and forecast the optimal amount of inventory to have on hand will help you limit your inventory to just what is needed at the current time. If your business fluctuates throughout the year, you can adjust your purchases so that you have more inventory during the flush times and hold less inventory during the lean times.
2. Reevaluate Your Supply Chain Needs Regularly
Over time, your business needs will change and the strategy that you had been using for your supply chain may no longer be adequate. Taking the time to reevaluate your supply chain needs on a regular basis ensures that your strategy will keep up with the changes in your business. Failure to align your supply chain plans with your current needs can result in holding on to too much inventory or running short unexpectedly and disrupting business.
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3. Take Advantage of Technological Advances
When it comes to your supply chain, technological advances are your friends. Technological advances tend to streamline processes and improve efficiency in areas of the business where it is needed the most. This includes inventory tracking technology, analytical software, forecasting models and other types of technology that help your company develop better operational procedures. Determining where new technology can be added to the process can improve mediocre results and make your supply chain faster and cheaper.
4. Maintain Healthy Relationships With Your Suppliers
Your relationships with your suppliers are a big part of having your supply chain work to your benefit. The companies that you choose to supply your business impact the quality of the products you make and how long you must wait to obtain more inventory. Contentious relationships with suppliers on an ongoing basis lead to bad customer service, lack of prioritization of your issues and delays in responses to queries. Focus on forming healthy and mutually lucrative relationships with your suppliers so that everyone is happy doing business at the end of the day.
5. Invest in the Right Equipment
Having the right equipment in place will make managing your supply chain much easier. From finding the right pallet container to store your inventory on hand to choose the best rack system for your industrial or warehouse space, there are plenty of options available to meet the needs of any type of business.
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6. Conduct a Regular Risk Review
From time to time, you should conduct a risk review of your supply chain to identify any potential bottlenecks, safety issues or risks of theft and fraud that may be present in your processes. Undertaking this review on a regular schedule will help you identify potential problems before they arise and help you estimate the financial impact of any issues that do occur. This review should include the efficiency of and compliance with the company’s policies and procedures.
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Some Final Thoughts on Improving Your Supply Chain
The goal of supply chain efficiency is to minimize logistics costs and maximize profits by optimizing the processes used by your business. Using the right strategies for your supply chain has the potential to transform your business and increase revenue by a considerable amount. Regardless of how efficiently your supply chain is currently running, there is always room for improvement. These strategies can be implemented in any type of business to increase your chances of success.