3
TIPS
TO KEEP YOUR
PARTS DEPARTMENT
RUNNING SMOOTHLY
The parts department is one of the most complex
parts of any dealership. There is the constant balance
between having enough inventory on hand to meet the
demands of both the service department and counter
customers, but not having too much inventory that it
just sits on a shelf tying up precious dollars. Establishing great processes in your parts department will help
set up your dealership for success during season.
1.
HAVING THE RIGHT
INVENTORY ON HAND
Your inventory integrity is all about having a process and a system in
place to make sure that you have what you need when you need it. If a
part is not where it’s supposed to be you’re wasting time, and bleeding
money, just looking for it. With thousands of parts and maybe several
hundred thousand dollars invested in your parts inventory, not being
able to find what you need promptly means a system breakdown. Keep
in mind that a well-run parts department has a well-run system.
By having the right parts in the right place, your parts team won’t have
to spend time sorting through a box of parts to hopefully find the one
they are looking for, wasting your customer’s valuable time. The best
way to make sure you can maintain the balance is by utilizing your
business management software and using the information from the
system to help manage the department.
2.
PHASING INVENTORY
IN &OUT
Your “phase-in” point is the number of unique demands for a part before you consider making it a normal part of your stocking inventory.
In most of the dealerships I consult with, we typically “phase-in” a part
when we have received three demands for that part in a 90-day period
of time. It is imperative that your parts team is documenting lost sales
-- times when a part is requested but the customer leaves without the
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part. These should always be factored into your “phase-in” point. Using
your business management software, it is simple to run a report evaluating the demands and make a decision based upon the information.
The “Phase-out” point is when your parts department will discontinue
keeping a part in the stocking inventory because of the lack of demand.
In most cases, when a part demand becomes less than three for a
12-month rolling period you would remove the part as a normal item
in your inventory.
3.
MAINTAINING
RESTOCKING LEVELS
Most business management systems are able to alert you when a part
falls below a certain level of inventory. I can’t tell you how important
it is to use this feature! As an example, if a mower blade is a bestseller the alert can be set to a minimum inventory of six blades and a
maximum setting at eighteen blades. Once the level reaches six, your
software will automatically let you know that it’s time to reorder so
they don’t go out of stock.
Making sure you have the right inventory and maintaining it at the correct levels will go a long way in reducing the number of both special
and emergency orders you have to process on a daily basis.
800-480-0737 • www.BobClements.com
NATDA Magazine www.natda.org