City Implements "Unique" Supply Store

9/26/2012 12:03:00 PM
NEWS BRIEFS
City Implements “Unique” Supply Store

+ click to enlarge

MEDIA SPOTLIGHT— Officials in Redlands, CA, have installed a fully-automated inventory system to provide equipment, tools, parts and other supplies to city employees.
Redlands is touting the fully automated warehouse, completed in mid-August, as “the first of its kind in the nation.”

“Gone are the outdated computers and rows of dusty shelves filled with inventory at the city’s warehouse on Park Avenue,” the city stated. “In their place stand 42 state-of-the-art vending machines designed to dispense safety gear, fasteners, fittings and other items city workers need to do their jobs.”

The machines — and the products in them — are provided by Fastenal under a contract approved by the City Council in May.

Installation, machine maintenance and stocking are provided by Fastenal, with the city paying only for the inventory at the time it is dispensed — eliminating the need for the city to “purchase and maintain hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of inventory.”

In addition, the City receives Fastenal’s bulk discount pricing on inventory from a variety of suppliers.

Currently, more than 150 city employees utilize the warehouse by entering an employee ID number.

“In the past, everything was done manually – ordering, receiving, counting, reporting – but we simply didn’t have the resources to do it all efficiently and effectively,” said Purchasing Services Manager Dana Abramovitz, who used to spend an hour or two each day managing inventory and handing out supplies at the store. “Now all of these processes are automated, giving us more time to focus on serving the city and taxpayers.”

Another key benefit? City personnel no longer have to plan projects and preventative maintenance around the store’s operating hours, previously limited to fours hours a day, four days a week. Products are available on a self-serve basis around the clock, 365 days a year.

Additional benefits include vendor consolidation and elimination of obsolete inventory – outdated medical supplies, floppy discs, and other things that, according to Abramovitz, “were needed by somebody five years ago but were just gathering dust.”

Necessity is driving this innovation. The city has reduced its budget and staff across most departments despite an increased workload.

“Automating the city’s supply store is part of the city’s efforts to accomplish more with less and maximize every taxpayer dollar.”

While Fastenal has installed more than 15,000 of its industrial vending machines with corporate and government customers, the City of Redlands believes its automated supply store – an unstaffed facility with so many machines in one location – represents a new concept in industrial vending.

“I truly believe this is the future,” added Abramovitz. “Normally you see private companies taking the lead with this kind of supply chain innovation. I’m proud that the City of Redlands is setting an example not only for other cities of our size across the state and nation, but also for private industry.” ©2012 GlobalFastenerNews.com

Editor’s Note: Articles in Media Spotlight are excerpts from publications or broadcasts which show the industry what the public is reading or hearing about fasteners and fastener companies.

City Implements "Unique" Supply Store

Related Posts

Asian Customers Boost Emhart Fastener Sales

Jim Derry Succeeds Bill Derry as Field Fastener President

Indutrade Group acquires Fastener Distributor Techno Skruv

MacDermid Hosts Fastener Summit

Leave a reply Cancel reply