"We have $1 million in spare parts, but we had to overnight a $50 bearing because we couldn't find it."
This paradox kills profitability. MRO Inventory is often the "Wild West" of the factory. It isn't managed with the same rigor as Raw Materials or Finished Goods.
But in a tight economy, the storeroom is the first place to look for cash. Reducing inventory by 10% releases immediate working capital.
However, you can't just slash inventory blindly; you risk downtime. You need to identify the bad inventory habits that are bleeding your budget.
Here are the 7 signs your storeroom is a liability, and how to fix it without risking the plant.
1. You Have "Squirrel Stashes"
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The Sign: You find expensive sensors, bearings, and seals hidden in technician toolboxes, desk drawers, or behind machines.
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The Cause: Lack of trust. Technicians fear the part won't be in the storeroom when they need it, so they create their own "safety stock."
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The Fabrico Fix: Mobile Accessibility. Make it easier to find and checkout a part than to hoard it. If the digital count is 100% accurate, trust returns, and the stashes disappear.
2. The "Overnight Shipping" Bill is High
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The Sign: You regularly pay 3x the part cost for expedited shipping.
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The Cause: Reactive maintenance. You didn't know the part was needed until the machine broke, and you didn't know the bin was empty.
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The Fabrico Fix: Usage-Based Alerts. When inventory hits the "Min" level, the system alerts Purchasing instantly. Better yet, link maintenance to Condition Monitoring so you order the part before the failure.
3. Duplicate SKUs (The "Data Mess")
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The Sign: You have a "6204 Bearing" in Bin A and a "Bearing, Ball, 20mm" in Bin B. They are the same part, but the system thinks they are different.
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The Cause: Poor data entry and lack of standardization.
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The Fabrico Fix: Photo Verification. Use photos in the part record. Technicians can visually verify it's the same part, allowing you to merge SKUs and lower total stock.
4. Shelf Dust (Dead Stock)
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The Sign: You have parts on the shelf covered in a thick layer of dust.
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The Cause: You are stocking parts for machines that were decommissioned in 2019. Or you bought "insurance parts" for a failure mode that never happens.
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The Fabrico Fix: Usage Analysis. Run a report: "Show me parts with Zero movement in 24 months." Mark them for liquidation or return to vendor.
5. "Gut Feel" Min/Max Levels
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The Sign: Your reorder points haven't changed in 5 years.
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The Cause: Settings are based on opinion, not math.
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The Fabrico Fix: Data-Driven Levels. Look at the actual consumption rate over the last 12 months. If you use 2 per year but stock 10, lower the Max.
6. No Link to Assets
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The Sign: You know you used 50 motors this year, but you don't know which machines ate them.
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The Cause: Parts are checked out to "General Maintenance," not "Line 4 Filler."
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The Fabrico Fix: Forced Association. You cannot check out a part without scanning the Asset QR code. This reveals "Bad Actor" machines that are consuming 80% of your budget.
7. Manual Cycle Counting
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The Sign: You shut down the storeroom once a year for a painful "Annual Count."
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The Cause: Lack of real-time transactional discipline.
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The Fabrico Fix: Cycle Counting. Have storekeepers count 10 bins a day via the mobile app. This keeps accuracy high year-round without shutdowns.
Conclusion: Cash on the Shelf
Inventory isn't just "stuff." It is cash.
Every dollar sitting on a shelf is a dollar you can't spend on new equipment, training, or R&D.
Use Fabrico to clean up the mess, build trust, and unlock your working capital.
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