By Neil Metcalfe, Posted on 29/11/2024
Whether your business is a humble petrol station, a warehouse, a national chain of department stores, or anything in between and more, bins and locations can be used to give even more control of your inventory management. But how can kiwi businesses of all sizes make use of this feature?
Bins? Locations? What’s the difference?
A location in its simplest terms is a place where your inventory is stored. This can be as many or as few items as required.
Bins in contrast are sub areas within the location that houses inventory items, specifically the smallest storage unit within that location. Theres no limits on the number of bins that can be set up within a location. Bins are specific to the location they are set up in.
How can a small business make the most of bins and locations?
Let’s consider a simple small business, a small shop with a shipping container out the back to hold extra stock. How could they use it?
In a case like this, the shipping container, and any back storeroom could be set as locations. This helps your staff by letting them know where the items are stored.
When items are taken from the shipping container, record a product transfer so you know where the different items are. Additionally, this will help stocktakes as the products in the shipping container are separate to the backroom stock.
How can a medium business make the most of bins and locations?
What about a machine part supplies business with two stores in the city and a van to conduct on-site repair services?
At first glance each store being its own location seems like the obvious and only locations. Not the case however, as the repair van could also be set as a location – especially if there are spare parts carried in the van and used during the repair. This will let you see how profitable the repair van service is, by reporting on the location set as the repair van.
This also lets you set a level of inventory in the van, such as if there’s a specific loadout of inventory items you want the repair van to have on hands at all times. You can then transfer the balance used during the day and keep a track of each day’s item usage.
Theres also the option to use Bins here in the Van, specifically one bin for the standard quantity of items and a second bin for one off items that are being used for a specific repair.
How can a large business make the most of bins and locations?
As an example, let’s consider a nationwide retail store, operating in both the North and South Islands, with a distribution centre on both Islands. This is probably the most traditional use of locations and bins.
The distribution centres would each be their own locations, and would have a number bins set up for each. The bins could be a specific shelf/bay combination, a shelf, a bay, or an aisle. Using bins would make it easier to find inventory items, narrowing down its location from an aisle, bay or shelf.
As with the medium business each store be setup as its own location, giving you the ability to track each store’s on hand inventory.
Inventory Management with Infusion Accounting Software:
Infusion Accounting Software is a powerful inventory management system in New Zealand that seamlessly integrates with accounting functions. This comprehensive solution offers a clear view of your finances and stock, making it ideal for small, medium, and large businesses. As a versatile accounting software in New Zealand, it supports customisation and features like multi-location inventory tracking, and more. With reliable local support, it ensures quick and effective resolution of any issues, tailored to the unique needs of New Zealand businesses.
Which plans have access to Product Locations and Bins?
As a part of the inventory functionality, Bins and Locations are available on the Infusion Accounting, Infusion Select and Infusion Insight plans for Infusion Accounting Software.
Get Started Today!
Ready to take control of your inventory with advanced product location and bin management? Infusion Accounting Software has you covered. Sign up for a free trial today to experience the benefits firsthand. You can also schedule a demo with one of our experts to explore the software in depth and discover how it can be tailored to meet your any business needs.
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Ready to transform your business? Contact us at 0800 424 948 or email us at sales@infusionsoftware.co.nz to book your demo today!