A heat pump that won't run, a machine at a standstill, a customer on the phone. Your technician knows what's broken, but the part isn't there. It costs a few euros, but the second visit, the unhappy customer and the lost time cost much more.
For companies that sell and maintain appliances, spare parts logistics is often the poor relation. The warehouse is set up for pallets of machines, not for thousands of small items. These are the five most common causes of slow deliveries, and what you can do about them.
1. Nobody knows what's really in stock
The system says there are three left, but the bin is empty. Or the part is somewhere, but not in its fixed location. Parts are small, look alike and are often grabbed quickly without being recorded.
Solution: give every item a fixed location (bin, shelf or drawer), scan every movement and count regularly per zone instead of everything once a year.
2. Urgent isn't really urgent
An urgent order for a technician goes into the same queue as a restock for a dealer. By the time it's picked, the last collection has left.
Solution: flag urgent orders separately and give them priority when picking. Agree on a clear cut-off: anything in before that time ships the same day.
3. Wrong or incomplete deliveries
A part with an almost identical item number, the wrong version, a parcel missing the gasket. The technician only finds out on site.
Solution: scan every item against the order when picking. Track versions and serial numbers where relevant, and assemble service kits with everything needed for a specific repair.
4. Returns and defective parts pile up
Defective parts coming back for warranty or repair end up in a corner. Nobody knows whether they've already been claimed from the supplier, and the replacement parts are missing from stock.
Solution: register every return on receipt, with reason, photo and serial number. Send defective parts to the supplier or for repair in batches, and track what's still outstanding.
5. The warehouse isn't built for small items
Pallets of machines and bags of screws need a completely different layout. If you handle both with the same processes, you lose a lot of time on the small items.
Solution: use bins and racks for small items, grouped by how often they're ordered. The fast movers sit closest to the packing station.
What does it deliver?
Fast, reliable spare parts delivery means fewer second visits, technicians who complete more jobs per day and customers who are helped faster. And it strengthens your service contracts: you can promise short response times, because you know the part will be there on time.
Outsource or do it yourself?
Doing it yourself is possible, if you have the space, the people and the system to give spare parts the attention they need. Many companies outsource their spare parts and service warehouse, so their own team can focus on the machines and the customers. How Sendwit approaches this is explained on our page about technical fulfilment.