Obsolete stock poses "critical risk"
22 Jun 2015
Obsolete storeroom stock is posing a ‘critical risk’ to UK manufacturing productivity, according to industrial services firm Eriks UK.
The company has claimed that that the presence of out-of-date, degraded, and obsolete stock is commonplace among the UK’s manufacturing industry, with poor storeroom practice blamed for allowing obsolete stock to enter the manufacturing process.
“My advice to the industry is to get a grip on their storerooms and the stock in them.”
Andy Silver, Eriks UK
“Companies which practice poor storeroom management run the risk of using obsolete stock in their manufacturing processes,” said Eriks customer services director Andy Silver.
“This will inevitably impact operational effectiveness, productivity and downtime. One of the worst cases involved a gypsum manufacturer, which had obsolete stock totalling more than £28,000 in one of its storerooms. This equipment was posing critical risk to the company’s operations.”
Silver added that poor storeroom organisation was the main culprit with parts easily misplaced or lost until they have gone beyond their operational lifespan.
”All-too-often simple procedures like barcoding and stocktaking are not being undertaken, with maintenance personnel allowed to take out and replace equipment and stock with no real policing or stock management,” said Silver.
According to Eriks, 13 minutes are lost trying to find every replacement part and 10% of the budget is wasted on unnecessary duplicated parts. This could easily be prevented if storeroom practice was improved.
“Bearings are a good example of a product which is typically stocked in a site storeroom and which show no visible sign of obsolescence when left over time,” added Silver.
”However, the lubricating properties of sealed and shielded bearings can deteriorate if left in storage for too long.”
On average, 10% of storage cost is tied up in obsolete items, according to Eriks.
“The top priority must be to implement an efficient, uniform, labelling system,” said Silver.
“Secondly, an audit system should then be introduced to document the amount of stock in the store, when an item is removed and if it then needs to be replaced. My advice to the industry is to get a grip on their storerooms and the stock in them.”
