In the office furniture world, an Inventory Management System and an Asset Management System are basically the same thing. If you are responsible for maintaining excess office furniture, an effective method of managing this inventory can be beneficial for your company.

• It can be cost effective when you reuse furniture instead of purchasing new furniture.
• Furniture can be readily available for new employees.
• If you have need to rent furniture on occasion, you may have what you need in your inventory.

Inventory management software saves both money and time when tracking your inventory. Excess furniture can be bar-coded and inventoried before put into storage. The condition of each piece of furniture can be noted. Or this furniture can be cleaned, repainted, touched up, or reupholstered first so it's readily available when needed.

Warehouses that are experienced in asset management may already have an inventory management system in place. If they don't, you might consider purchasing the software program that is best suited to your needs or sharing the cost with the warehouse. Many software companies will train staff members to use their inventory management system programs. TIP: The ideal situation would be that the warehouse that manages your inventory is owned by your office furniture dealership. There are several reasons for this, but the primary reason is that the warehouse only "works" for one dealership.

If you are considering implementing an inventory management system, here are some issues you should consider and discuss with your office furniture representative.

• monthly storage charges
• approximate delivery and/or installation charges
• can the warehouse arrange for cleaning, repainting, touch ups, or reupholstery; if they can, ask for a breakout of approximately charges for each function
• will you have online access to the inventory information; if not, will you receive updated reports after changes are made
• how long will it take for updates after furniture has been removed or brought into the warehouse
• will your product be covered by insurance; you may want to go into detail about the actual coverage
• would the warehouse store and track non-furniture items such as equipment, computers, etc.
• will your stored furniture be racked so it doesn't sit directly on the floor

TIP: Make sure you visit the warehouse where your furniture will be stored. Some warehouses are immaculate and others look like an indoor garbage dump. The furniture stored should be on racks or stored in another manner so it won't get wet in case of flooding.

About the Author

Janet Vogel, who is retired from the office furniture industry, is now the owner of Homemade Gift Basket Ideas which she created to supplement her retirement income