Storekeeping
Storekeeping is a crucial aspect of material control and involves the task of maintaining safe custody of all items of supplies, raw materials, finished parts, purchased parts, and other items.
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These materials are held in a storeroom, with a storekeeper acting as a trustee. In essence, storekeeping can be defined as the process of receiving and distributing stores or supplies.
Definition of Storekeeping
Alford and Beatty said that “Storekeeping is that aspect of material control concerned with the physical storage of goods”
Primary duties
A storekeeper’s primary duties are:
- Issuing requisitions,
- Accepting materials into the stores,
- Checking materials for quality and quantity,
- Safe storage of materials,
- Issuing materials against proper authorization,
- Maintaining records,
- Replenishing materials when necessary,
- Advising management on the affairs of the stores department
Main Objectives of an Efficient Store keeping
The main objectives of an efficient store keeping system are:
- Ensuring an uninterrupted supply of materials and stores to various production and service departments without delay.
- Preventing over-stocking and under-stocking of materials.
- Checking all materials in terms of quality and quantity.
- Minimizing storage costs.
- Ensuring effective and continuous control over materials.
- Optimizing the utilization of available storage space and workers engaged in storekeeping processes,.
- Protecting materials from loss and wastage due to defective storage.
- Identifying and locating materials in storerooms without delay.
- Safeguarding material items from pilferage, theft, fire, and other risks.
- Developing a system that provides complete and up-to-date information about all stored items.
To achieve these objectives, storekeeping functions include issuing purchase requisitions, receiving purchased stores, verifying and preparing Goods Received Notes, placing and arranging stores, minimizing storage and handling costs, issuing stores to various departments, adhering to issuing procedures, reviewing inventory control systems, maintaining proper stores records, and safeguarding materials from theft and other risks.
The location and layout of stores are also essential factors in storekeeping. The location should minimize material handling efforts, consider the nature of materials, and be free from risks of loss. Flexibility for future expansion is also a determinant of store location.
The layout of stores should consider factors such as similarity of items, popularity, size, nature of materials, physical movement of materials, and physical facilities to ensure effective utilization of space and efficient store keeping processes.
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