Logistics 101: Warehousing and Distribution in Kansas City

You might think that location, location, location is the only important thing about warehousing, and it is a crucial component. You don’t want your goods out in the middle of nowhere and have it cost you more to ship them to your customers. For any business, however, a comprehensive storage and management solution will save the owner money. Learn how computers play a role in logistics and warehousing and distribution in Kansas City.

Inventory Management

You must know at all times what you have in inventory. You cannot run your business without this crucial piece of information. With the advent of online commerce, inventory can be double, triple, or even quadruple purchased before you ever realize it. It used to be a client would phone or come into your facility and place an order, now you might have multiple clients ordering the same thing online at the same time. You need a comprehensive inventory management system that can keep up with the demand, as you and your personnel cannot be in the warehouse all day.

A computerized inventory management system plays a primary role in your overall logistics plan. The computer keeps the inventory activity up to date in real time, which means if one customer places his or her order seconds before another customer does, the second order will not go through. This prevents you from unintentionally selling stock you don’t have, and it also helps you reorder quickly so that the second customer doesn’t go elsewhere for your product. In fact, warehousing and distribution in Kansas City can be set up to alert you when supplies are low, or even auto-order.

Barcoding and EDI

A comprehensive storage facility that has your business’ best interests at heart will provide barcoding and EDI capability as part of its service. This helps you keep track of your product and its sales and shipment. Even better, you will be able to dial into your inventory management system at any time from any computer so you can track the day’s activity and know exactly where your product is at. The number one reason why businesses need logistics is so they can track everything from start to finish. Armed with this knowledge, you can better determine where adjustments need to be made, including getting rid of stock that doesn’t sell or is too expensive to run through your logistical stream.

This is something many business owners might think about at first. A great new product that flies off the shelves is, of course, a money-maker, but if it’s costing the business too much to warehouse and ship it, it might not be as much of a money-maker as initially thought. A comprehensive warehousing and distribution system helps you see where your business might begin to hemorrhage just a little, even if the product does do well in sales.

For more information on how warehousing and distribution in Kansas City can help your business streamline its logistics and boost its profits, seek expert advice from a professional storage company. Get a handle on your inventory today.