The right strategic partnership guarantees product availability and more
Procurement teams and engineers face many challenges regarding the maintenance, repair and operation (MRO) of their organisation’s assets and facilities. The supply chain for indirect materials is complex due to the number of stakeholders involved, a fragmented supply base and the quantity of products that are split across categories.
There is also constant pressure from senior management to reduce costs. One way to respond to these challenges is by streamlining processes – and here is an example of the benefits this can generate.
The challenge
To help its undergraduates develop in-demand skills, the Faculty of Engineering at a leading university in the north of England provides a workshop and makers’ space to students with low-cost parts and spares readily available and free of charge.
However, ensuring availability was proving to be a challenge. First, ad hoc ordering and laborious stock-checking processes were creating huge amounts of admin and eating into productive time. Approximately half a day a week would be taken up simply assessing stock levels. Second, if components were not available, students would either have to wait or find a workaround. That often meant buying their own materials, which a lot of the time were low-priced, substandard items that risked projects failing and could even represent safety concerns.
The solution
RS has tackled both aspects of the challenge by creating an easy and time efficient process to maintain healthy stock levels and guarantee that users of the makerspace have access to high-quality items, all within the budgetary constraints.
How? By installing ScanStock®, its inventory replenishment solution.
RS ScanStock® reduces the time and cost of replenishing low-value, fast-moving industrial supplies. In this case, resistors, LEDs and other low-cost items are made available in storage cribs. These are topped up regularly following routine, scheduled stock-taking visits every two weeks from a dedicated RS account manager to keep things running smoothly. The institution receives a monthly summary that provides visibility of invoices and costs.
From the installation of storage facilities and labels with barcodes to taking responsibility for regular stock checks and replenishment, the RS team manages the strategy as well as the system, meaning less complexity for the institution. It is also now possible to start to predict which items are likely to be in high demand by analysing data relating to course content, modules being studied and ongoing projects.
The outcome
One of the most immediate and visible benefits of working with RS has been effectively outsourcing the management of stock levels to RS ScanStock®. Ordering the most-needed items virtually takes care of itself, while careful regular stock checks avoid any unexpected shortages.
For students who have come to rely on the workshop, this means a steady supply of the products they need is always on hand. Furthermore, the quality of those products is assured, so they needn’t worry about parts failing, leading to problems with their finished work, and they don’t have to source their own, cheaper parts.
“The space gets a lot of use and is growing all the time. We hope one day it will have its own dedicated building,” says its Lead Technician. “The feedback we get from students is overwhelmingly extremely positive. But as the facility grows, the pressure to keep it operating smoothly grows with it and the more time can be taken up keeping everything in order. RS ScanStock® has freed up a lot of time for us.”
But there have been other, less tangible benefits from the strategic partnership between RS and the university. Students are now coming into regular contact with – and getting invaluable exposure to – a leading industry partner. This is opening them up to new skills and insights.
RS is also getting more involved with activities at the makerspace, even sponsoring a recent hackathon event and providing practical, hands-on advice on the day as well as the components. Growing a relationship like this, and finding new places to add value, is one of the core ways RS sets itself apart in a competitive market.
For more information about RS ScanStock®, click here
