Inventory Control

September 2019

The effectiveness of any organization is driven both by the vision and expertise of its leadership, as well as the commitment of its people to driving operational efficiency, accuracy and consistency. This Department Spotlight is the first in a series to familiarize you with the Cardinal Health 3PL Services team members that are committed to driving your business forward.

Knowing every product’s location, where it’s been and where it’s going is the task of the Inventory Control team at Cardinal Health 3PL Services. From processing receiving folders and releasing product, performing inventory transfers within the warehouse, handling product destruction and meeting the latest DSCSA requirements, this team performs some of the most essential tasks within our 3PL Services business. They also conduct inventory audits – a process you may want to reach out to your CRM to schedule now.

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While the work is fast paced to ensure timely movement of product in and out of the warehouse, there’s an exacting eye for detail that’s required in handling over 2,000 SKUs for our clients daily. In FY19, the team set a high standard with 99.9997 percent inventory accuracy, according to audit records. To continually improve upon their performance, Inventory Control team members walk the warehouse floor doing routine spot audits and counts. In addition, preliminary counts before product is picked permit monitoring accuracy prior to the cycle counting performed on all picked locations before product leaves the building. 

New requirements related to DSCSA compliance have added additional responsibilities for department. The Inventory Control team is involved when Receiving recognizes serialization issues with incoming products – which can happen with product delivered from contract manufacturers in the early stages of DSCSA implementation. Inventory Control runs necessary reporting, connects with the EPCIS team to confirm data has been sent and uploaded, and involves the client to facilitate data reconciliation and product release.

Within the Cardinal Health 3PL Services organization, Inventory Control interfaces with Receiving, Customer Service, New Business, Picking, Outbound, Account Management and the EPCIS team. For our clients, each company is assigned a dedicated primary point of contact within the team, supported by a team structure that provides continual cross-coverage and ensure continuity to meet business needs.

Maintaining the integrity of your products, the accuracy of your customer orders and a consistent count of inventory are the driving principles of this team.  Strong communication and customer service skills are essential in Inventory Control, particularly when damages, discrepancies, or mis-picks occur as product moves through the supply chain. However, you’re most likely to interact with your Inventory Control contact for physical inventory audits, which most of our clients perform on an annual basis.

Check your Distribution Agreement to confirm the frequency for your audits. If your company is due for audit, contact your CRM to schedule yours now. October through December is the busiest time of year for physical inventory audits in order to get a comprehensive product count for year-end.