Raw material inventory management software

Ultimately, raw material inventory management software comes with features designed to give you the ability to optimize how you manage and receive your essential supplies necessary to complete a production run and fulfill orders. 

If you’re not using software that can automate this process, you’ll have to rely on manual methods like spreadsheets, which means your inventory management is reactive. But this type of software supports you in being proactive, by giving you real-time information on stock levels, so you know if you have enough material to fulfill demand or if you need to order some more. 

And not only does it give you accurate and up-to-date information on raw material inventory levels, but it also tells you and your team which parts of the warehouse items are stored in and how the items should be used to make a final product. 

Some tools, like Digit, automatically update stock levels as materials are purchased, consumed, or moved between locations, helping you understand exactly what’s happening on your shop floor and what you have in your warehouse, helping you avoid costly production stoppages caused by stockouts and eliminating the delays that come from manual tracking or outdated spreadsheets.

Another feature that will help you improve production efficiency is the ability to set safety stock levels and reorder points. Let’s say you have a spike in orders, and you’re consuming raw material faster than you initially anticipated. During that rush, it’s easy to concentrate on fulfilling orders and neglect your inventory management responsibilities. These two features allow you to set a point and receive an alert when inventory levels are running low, reminding you to place an order before you run the risk of a stockout. 

To cut a long story short, raw material inventory management software exists to make sure you have the items you need to do a production run, while also keeping carrying costs low. 

The best raw material inventory management software will help you reduce your costs by giving you everything you need to keep your raw material stock perfectly balanced to keep production running without stockouts or inflated costs from overstocking. 

There are many different types of software available on the market, all doing different things, so we’ll use Digit as the example. 

In the case of Digit, it gives manufacturers the tools to maintain optimal stock levels to meet demand, which is the main driver of savings. How Digit achieves this is by automating inventory management with real-time updates to prevent overstocking, understocking, and (even worse) stockouts. The reduction in costs will come in the form of: 

• Freeing up capital tied to stock stuck in inventory 
• Increasing your storage capacity and utilization 
• Improving material handling and optimized routes 
• Drastically decreasing product delays 
• Reducing last-minute emergency procurement purchases 

With Digit, you can also greatly improve your demand forecasting and use this data to better perform production scheduling based on actual inventory levels and current demand. 

Savings also come from automating many processes that would otherwise need to be performed manually — freeing up time and money to put toward other areas of your business. 

For example, Digit automatically updates inventory levels based on purchasing, manufacturing, and sales orders generated and fulfilled. Digit also comes with barcode scanning, which allows you and your team to perform inventory counts and update inventory movements with a point and a click of a barcode scanner or smart device, eliminating the chance of accidentally typing in the wrong number when updating your raw material inventory software. 

Yes! 

For example, Digit supports you in managing multiple warehouses, production sites (including third-party manufacturers), and all your different storage and fulfillment locations in one unified system. 

Wherever items are, whether they are in a warehouse, on the production floor, or in transit between sites, Digit automatically updates all your inventory data in real time so you and your team have the latest updates on inventory levels, eliminating the need for manual reconciliation and reducing the risk of data errors. Unified demand forecasting and reorder point management enable you and your team to monitor and plan where to store and use inventory across all your different sites, preventing one location from running short while another holds excess.