Wasp Barcode Inventory Management White Paper - Manual (Page 3)

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handle write-offs, cope with tax issues and depreciation, combat cash-flow and loan problems, and
face unnecessary expenses.
Consider, too, the negative impact on your customers as delays unfold. Unmet expectations may
damage your company’s reputation and, at worst, frustrated customers may turn to other suppliers
to satisfy their requests. When you also take into account the tasks that go unaccomplished as
employees scramble to find the toner, valves or sunglasses, it soon becomes clear why accurate
inventory-tracking is so critical to your business' success.
Fortunately, even small and midsize businesses can tap into today's technology to ensure they are
cost-effectively managing their stock of products for resale, internal use, repair and temporary usage.
The State of Inventory Management in Business
Progressive businesses have used inventory warehouse management systems (WMS) for years –
driving costs out of their supply chain, improving efficiency in their warehouses, and flowing
increased profit to their bottom line. A study by Aberdeen Research indicated companies with a fully
automated WMS system showed efficiency improvements well over 10%, with pick rates and
shipping accuracy rates of 99%. Further, when labor is factored in, these best-in-class companies
enjoyed reduced labor costs year-over-year compared to their peers, who incurred annual labor
increases in excess of 5% each year.
In spite of these benefits,
many small businesses don’t
track inventory using an
automated system, often
perceiving such systems as
unaffordable or unnecessarily
complicated for basic
inventory management. In a
recent survey of small
businesses by Wasp Barcode,
more than 80% of their
customers had not used any
type of automated system
prior to implementing an
inventory tracking system. Interestingly, 23% didn’t track inventory at all. Some tried to use
inventory functionality in their accounting system. Thirty percent resorted to manual methods using
pen and paper, and 32% turned to spreadsheets or general purpose database software.
2
How Small Businesses Commonly Track Inventory
Source: Wasp customer survey June 2010
30%
32%
23%
4%
2%
6%
3%