A slip-up on the circus high wire can be deadly; slipping up in parts will kill your profits.
Successful parts departments keep enough of the right parts to meet consumer demand while avoiding the overstock issues that can destroy your cash flow. To strike that perfect balance, its crucial to monitor a lot of daily and even hourly activity in parts. Carefully monitor lost saleseach lost sale. Should it have been a stocking part? Why wasnt it one?
Service techs often ask for parts that are not in stock. Every minute that a service tech waits for a part to arrive is a minute when youre losing money. If this scenario sounds strangely familiar, take a look at your DMS set-up. It may be out of date.
Active parts management means:
Updating re-order points
Adjusting phase-in and phase-out criteria
Properly recording in the DMS when a requested part number is not in stock
Be sure to record each demand in the DMS in the language that your inventory control system speaks. If you dont, thats a lost opportunity. KEEP READING to get started.
Instructor Chris Bavis teaches Fixed Operations Parts in week 2 of 6 in the NADA Academy program. Reach him at cbavis@nada.org. Call 800.557.6232 or visit NADA Academy o download the schedule and applications for all programs.The Article The High Wire Act of Active Parts Management appeared first on Automotive Digest.