Worked scenario
Stock ordered for one customer, held for two years
Specialist stock bought against a job becomes dead inventory the moment the job changes, and nothing marks it as such.
3 min read
Standard stock turns over. Specialist stock — a particular weight, finish or colour bought because a customer wanted it — turns over only if that customer comes back.
The remainder has no owner
When a run finishes, leftover specialist stock goes back on the rack. It is not wrong to keep it, but nobody is now responsible for it, and it will be found at the next stocktake having aged.
Flag at job close
The moment to decide what happens to a remainder is when the job closes, while its origin is remembered and while the customer relationship is live enough to ask about repeat work.
Substitution at quoting
The most effective way to clear specialist stock is to offer it on the next suitable quote. That only happens if whoever is quoting can see what is sitting in the store — which, in most printers, they cannot.
What changes
- Stock purchased against a job identified as such
- Remainders flagged when the job closes, not at stocktake
- Ageing on specialist stock, separate from standard lines
- Substitution possibilities visible when quoting new work
Questions about anything here, or a situation this does not cover? contact@anantatechhub.com