This is what you should expect from a quality warehouse

Make sure your warehouses provide you with the following data:

• Stock list, with quantities and locations

  This is your basic info. Consider it your minimum requirement for your warehouse. If it’s not 100% in order than you are in trouble. Your warehouse should be able to supply you with an 100% actual and accurate list. Preferably you want it to align or te be synced with your own information technology in the matter you prefer to make sure both your business administration as well as sales logistics needs are met.

• Pictures of all in- and outbound orders

  Confusion about cargo shipments, both incoming and outgoing, it happens. Don’t panic or get stressed. If you have pictures of all in- and outbound orders en you can track any order at any moment in time and recapture the actual event when needed. And a picture says more than words. Imagine you are able to produce both if needed. It’s important to prevent potential liability issues to get out of hand.

• Any item movement can be traced

  Having a stock list might be your minimum requirement regarding your stock, complete traceable stock should be the standard. It will provide a complete view: when was this item booked in, was there a stock movement within the warehouse, on which orders are the goods being picked and where did the cargo finally go? With dates, order(s) and contact persons. You’ll be able to recall all orders that went down in the past.

• Warehouse has scales and label printers

  Nowadays the smallest details can save a lot money and trouble. With the VGM (Verified Gross Mass) Verification Requirement in order all cargo needs to be weighed. This can be done by weighing a container before and after it has been packed. This occurs extra costs. The other method is weighing all the cargo and contents. With a pallet scale, it can be done with almost no additional costs. And using the scale for outgoing airfreight orders is even a bigger benefit. You now know what the exact weight is of your cargo, so it will never surprise you when being billed by an airliner.

  When dealing with goods that go to different countries, you might have different labels for each destination. Wouldn’t it be easy if your labels can be placed in the warehouse without sending the actual label from your company to the warehouse? If there is a professional label printer you only have to send the template of the label and your partner can both print and place your new label. That’s cost effective!
  

• Monthy Cycle counting (inventory audits)

  Each company has an yearly inventory check. Done by the end of the year to validate year reports and actual stock. But is this the only time you want to know that the stock on paper is equal to the stock in your warehouse? The simple answer is NO!If you care for your stock, have it check upon on a regular basis. Perhaps not the whole stock, but a random check of 20% of your stock positions every monthly is very useful. Identify possible errors early so it can be solved. Do not wait a year, it might cost you a lot of time and some bad nights.