Inventory knowledge
Basic terms & concepts of inventory management
Plain-language articles on the terms and concepts used in everyday inventory management, written to be clear for first-time readers. Alongside the meaning and practice of each topic, we also cover how to apply it in the cloud inventory systemKURAPRO.
BasicsHow to manage inventory
A beginner-friendly guide to how inventory management works. The purpose and main tasks of inventory management, the basic steps of building a product master, recording stock movements, stocktaking, setting appropriate inventory and analyzing, a worked reorder-point example, the difference between paper, Excel and an inventory system, and common mistakes with fixes.
BasicsThe limits of Excel inventory
How to build an inventory sheet in Excel, the common problems — simultaneous editing, input errors, real-time updates, mobile use and over-reliance on one person — the signs you've hit the limit, the benefits of switching to an inventory system, and how to migrate via CSV.
TraceabilityWhat is lot management?
A plain-language guide to lot management. What a lot number means, its role in traceability, first-in-first-out and recalls, which industries need it, the limits of Excel, and how to manage stock by lot in an inventory management system.
TraceabilityWhat is expiry date management?
A plain-language guide to expiry (best-before) date management. Its purpose, the link with first-in-first-out, tips to cut waste, the limits of Excel, and how to separate stock by date and use expiry alerts in an inventory management system.
TraceabilityWhat is first-in-first-out (FIFO)?
A plain-language guide to first-in-first-out (FIFO). The difference from last-in-first-out (LIFO), benefits like quality retention and less waste, warehouse layout tips, and how to enforce FIFO using lot and expiry in an inventory management system.
AnalysisWhat is inventory turnover?
A plain-language guide to inventory turnover. How to calculate the turnover ratio and days of inventory, how to think about benchmarks by industry, what high vs low turnover means, ways to improve it, and how to track it with outbound data in an inventory system.
AnalysisWhat is ABC analysis?
A plain-language guide to ABC analysis in inventory management. Its link to the Pareto principle, the steps to split items into A/B/C ranks, the management policy per rank, cautions, and how to visualize best sellers with an inventory system's ABC analysis.
OptimizationWhat is safety stock?
A plain-language guide to safety stock. Its role in absorbing variability in demand and supply, the difference from the reorder point, how to calculate it, the downsides of too much or too little, and how to prevent stockouts with minimum levels and alerts in an inventory system.
OptimizationWhat is the reorder point?
A plain-language guide to the reorder point. How to calculate it as demand during the lead time plus safety stock, the difference from safety stock, the difference between fixed-quantity and fixed-interval ordering, and how to avoid missing the timing to reorder with minimum stock levels and alerts in an inventory system.
OptimizationWhat is appropriate inventory?
A plain-language guide to appropriate (optimal) inventory. The downsides of excess and shortage, how to find the right level (safety stock, reorder point, maximum), points for maintaining it, and how to hold the right level with min/max levels and alerts in an inventory system.
InspectionWhat is stocktaking?
A plain-language guide to stocktaking (physical inventory). Physical vs. book stocktaking, how ending inventory drives cost of goods sold and profit, full counts vs. cycle counting, preparation and the step-by-step process, causes of stock discrepancies and how to reduce them, and how an inventory system auto-calculates the difference.
TraceabilityLocation & site management
A clear guide to location management and multi-site management. The difference between a "site" (warehouse, store) and a "location" (shelf, room, floor), the benefits of separating stock and how to choose between them, the limits of Excel, and how an inventory management system separates stock per site and location and even tracks moves between locations.
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