Warehouses always look huge when you first purchase or rent one. When you first walk in, it looks like you have endless space to use. With a space that’s typically several thousand square feet, it may seem (at first) as though you’ll never run out of space. However, if you’re not careful, before you know it, your inventory will start piling up in your warehouse and you’ll be out of storage space faster than you might think. There are several easy ways to avoid this common dilemma, as well as ways to manage your inventory more efficiently if you do end up with less space than you might’ve originally thought you had.
The “Just in Time” Inventory Management Method
The “Just in Time” method of inventory management, commonly referred to as JIT, is a great way to ensure that you don’t have too much inventory in your warehouse at one time. In order to use JIT, you don’t build an inventory of backstock in your warehouse. Instead, you fill orders with parts and products arriving on an as-needed basis. For example, let’s look at the example of an order of 20 products coming in. If you were using a just-in-case strategy to fill this order, you would take those 20 products out of the stock you keep in the warehouse. That’s potentially hundreds or thousands of products sitting in your warehouse, taking up space. And if no one orders them, they’re just sitting there collecting dust and wasting your valuable space. On the other hand, if you’re using JIT, you’d receive the order for 20 products, then order enough supplies from your suppliers to fill that order.
Is JIT Efficient?
You might wonder if JIT is efficient enough, especially with the heavy reliance on suppliers. You do need to have a good relationship with extremely reliable suppliers who are prepared to fill orders quickly and most likely often. Explore JIT if you know you have suppliers like this. It also helps if your suppliers are local or at least relatively close by- if your supplies are coming from another country, this increases the risk of a late delivery, which can cause late order fulfillment on your end, which of course, isn’t a way to acquire repeat business. As long as you know you have a reliable supplier nearby, then JIT can be one of the most efficient ways to run your supply chain.
Mezzanines For Excess Inventory
If you do run into the problem of having too much inventory in your warehouse at any given time, a mezzanine may be just the solution you need. A mezzanine is a large platform, usually made of steel, intended to create overhead space in a warehouse or other large building. If you’re looking for a bit of extra space in which to store your supplies, even for just a little while, mezzanines are a great option! They can be installed temporarily in a warehouse facility and be taken down at a later date. They are usually very cost-effective, coming in at an average of around $20-$30 per square foot. You can also rent mezzanines. Whether it’s best to purchase one or rent one will, of course, depend on your needs as a business.
Looking for a Warehouse?
Contact us for help finding the perfect warehouse space for lease or purchase! Schwarz Properties specializes in commercial and residential Property Management in Virginia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. We lead the market for industrial and warehouse spaces for lease and our portfolio also includes retail space, restaurant space, residential, office space, and many more. Please contact Schwarz Properties at 336-625-6076 or visit our website..
