Effective parts and stock management is vital for any contractor looking to deliver a great service. Many field service visits require a part, so if operatives’ vans are not kept stocked with the necessary parts, they may be unable to complete their jobs.
Anyone who manages stock and parts inventories will be familiar with the stock clock. It’s the time an operative spends travelling to collect parts; often prompting secondary visits and ultimately eating into profit margins.
The number one reason for secondary visits is that the operative didn’t have the appropriate parts available to solve the tenant’s issue. That is why many contractors have chosen to increase their focus on parts and stock management within their overall strategy to improve their customer service standards.
This makes sense because the cost of stock imbalance is potentially vast. Firstly, there is the obvious financial impact which quickly accumulates; take a contractor business with 100 field operatives as an example. If each operative works on an hourly rate of £25 and loses 30 minutes per day collecting additional parts, the wasted travel time will amass to an annual cost of £290,000. Additionally, the inevitable frustrations caused by repeat visits, both for the tenant, your client and your operatives, will also result in reputational and financial damage.
Hearing these frustrations was one of the driving forces behind the initial development of Oneserve’s field service management software. We knew it was possible to resolve this costly issue, so we included a parts and stock control element in our solution.
Visible to operatives and managers, the functionality provides real-time insight into the availability and delivery of stock. Furthermore, parts are automatically allocated to individual jobs to give accurate costs. With this insight our customers are able to drive down procurement costs, minimise stock levels and improve cash flow – all of which have a positive impact on the business as a whole.
To find out how Oneserve can support you in better managing your parts and stock inventories and drive down costly return visits, please speak to one of our experienced advisers today.
