Product version control and expiration tracking are paramount details for meeting unique business requirements. Luckily for our clients in the healthcare industry, Fulco Fulfillment Inc (FFI) has software with sophisticated capabilities that supports tracking expiration dates on regulated products.
Organizing inventory according to expiration date is not only extremely important for healthcare companies, but for financial and manufacturing customers too. Product version control is the process we use to identify and track major or relatively minor revisions and version changes made to any kind of product. Using settings defined by our customers’ business parameters, we make it easy to aggregate goods based on their lot, expiration date, or version.
Product Version Control Relies on First In, First Out
Every version of a product is assigned a sequential number. The FFI order management system (OMS) automatically funnels through these numbers from the top down, until it finds the current version, otherwise known as FIFO (first in/first out). Inventory rotation can be set as FIFO or FEFO (first expiring/first out) which captures serial numbers. Another feature our system offers is the ability to turn versions on or off.
Think about your everyday visit to the store, and you’ll see the FIFO method in practice. When an employee restocks products, they put the newest inventory items on the back of the shelf and the oldest inventory in the front. That makes it more likely that all the stock will be sold before the product expires.
FFI uses the FIFO model for physical inventory flow in order to rotate incoming inventory. Stockers place newer items at the back of the shelf and move the older ones to the front. When a customer places an order, the picker will pick the older stock from the front of the shelf, so inventory moves out in roughly the same order in which the warehouse received it.
When the order for the product is fulfilled, the correct product version is picked, packed, and shipped. For example, the OMS sees your product as a bottle of vitamins, but the warehouse management system (WMS) sees it as two separate products, or two separate versions. Each of these versions have a distinct SKU (stock keeping unit). When an order is placed for the bottle of vitamins, the OMS will automatically select its current version. Picking and packing will be performed with confidence knowing that the most current bottle of vitamins is shipped to the consumer.
Since successful inventory management comes from traceability, we keep careful inventory of how many units of each SKU remain in our distribution center. If the expiration date passes, you will receive an alert from FFI’s OMS. You can then decide what to do with the spoiled inventory in our warehouse. Customers can choose to return the product, destroy the product, or do something completely different. Ultimately we want to see our customers succeed with up to date and accurate product version control.
Trust FFI with Your Product Version Control
We understand how important it is to keep your stock of products up to date so consumers aren’t receiving expired or old products, and you’re meeting your regulation requirements. You can trust our sophisticated software and your dedicated Customer Service Representative team to faithfully serve your account. Your team is composed of professionals who understand your business and can address urgent needs immediately. Contact FFI to learn how we can make product version control a breeze.