Maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) inventory is a major expense for industrial organizations. By some estimates, it accounts for as much as 40% of an organization’s annual procurement budget, with replacement parts alone making up as much as 15% of total operating expenses.
This significant investment presents a clear opportunity to improve inventory control and reduce costs – without sacrificing maintenance effectiveness. In this article, we’ll explore what MRO inventory control is, why it matters for maintenance teams, and how a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) can help streamline the process.
What is MRO Inventory Control?
MRO inventory control, sometimes called stock control, is the process of tracking and regulating the level of MRO inventory within an organization, from the time it is received to the time it is consumed by maintenance work. It involves knowing what inventory items are available, how many are in stock, where they are located, and their condition (when applicable).
Effective inventory control provides real-time visibility into daily spare part usage and availability. This accurate data informs inventory management decisions, helping to ensure the right parts are on hand when needed. As a result, organizations can reduce inventory-related costs and minimize equipment downtime.
Inventory Control vs. Inventory Management
Inventory control and inventory management are often used interchangeably, though they are technically different concepts. While both involve tracking and managing stock, there are some key differences.
| Inventory Control | Inventory Management | |
| Definition | The process of tracking and regulating the level of MRO inventory within an organization, from the time it is received to the time it is consumed by maintenance work. | The process of procuring, storing, using, and replenishing the materials and supplies used for maintaining assets at the lowest possible cost. |
| Scope | Operations-level daily tracking of MRO inventory. | Higher-level tracking of MRO inventory ordering, stocking, replenishment, vendor management, and reporting. |
| Purpose | Track the quantity, location, and condition of MRO inventory items within the facility. | Ensure the organization has the right amount of stock, in the right place, at the right time, and at the right cost. |
Inventory control refers to the process used to monitor and regulate stock that is already on hand within a facility. It focuses on storage, organization, and ensuring inventory levels remain accurate. It does not typically include purchasing or replenishment activities.
Inventory management, on the other hand, involves all aspects of inventory, from tracking item specifications and monitoring usage, to forecasting demand, making purchase decisions, and managing supplier relationships. It addresses both current inventory and the sourcing of future stock.
Effective inventory management depends on strong inventory control practices to provide accurate, real-time data for making decisions related to restocking and overall inventory strategy.
| Learn more about Maintenance, Repair, and Operations (MRO) Inventory Management
MRO inventory management is a key component of effective maintenance operations. Because of its complexity, the topic deserves further exploration. Check out our related articles to expand your understanding: |
Why MRO Inventory Control is Important
Proper inventory control benefits maintenance organizations in 4 key areas: inventory accuracy, productivity, procurement, and inventory cost control.
Inventory Accuracy
Inventory control gives organizations a reliable, real-time view into what stock is available and in what quantities. This helps identify overstocked or understocked items, which informs better replenishment decisions.
Accurate inventory data also improves maintenance planning. When working from accurate stock counts, planners can schedule work around part availability and proactively address shortages to avoid delays.
Productivity
Poor inventory control leads to lower productivity and increased downtime. When parts aren’t available where they should be – or aren’t in stock at all – technicians must search for alternatives or wait, delaying repairs and disrupting production. By tracking part locations and quantities, technicians spend less time hunting for parts and more time performing maintenance.
Procurement and Reordering
Consistent inventory tracking provides insights into usage patterns and turnover rates, helping organizations determine ideal stocking levels and set accurate reorder points. This reduces the risk of overordering or running out of critical parts.
Inventory Cost Control
Strong MRO inventory control prevents excess spending on unused, obsolete, or expedited parts. It allows organizations to keep enough spare parts on hand to meet maintenance needs while freeing up money for other projects. Reducing the total cost of inventory also supports lean maintenance budgets and can help boost the organization’s overall profitability.
Key Elements of MRO Inventory Control
MRO inventory control involves knowing what items are carried in inventory, their quantities, their stocking locations, and conditions.
Maintaining Accurate Inventory Records
Organizations may use hundreds – sometimes hundreds of thousands – of spare parts to keep equipment running. With such a large volume of parts, accurately tracking inventory items and their quantities is essential to maintaining control.
To ensure accurate inventory records, organizations audit their inventory using a few key methods:
- Cycle Counting: Counting a subset of inventory on a rotating basis. Compared to a full inventory count, cycle counting is less disruptive, requires less labor, and can be done more frequently.
- Physical Inventory Counts: Periodically, organizations may perform full or spot-check physical counts, where they reconcile any discrepancies between the physical shelf and inventory records.
- Barcode Systems: Barcode labeling and scanning helps maintain accurate stock levels by reducing manual data entry errors and improving tracking efficiency.
- MRO Inventory Software: Many organizations use computerized inventory systems – such as a CMMS – that store inventory records and automatically update stock levels. While CMMS software provides real-time visibility into your inventory, it still requires some oversight to reduce data entry errors, mislabeling, and other mistakes that can introduce discrepancies over time.
During the audit process, organizations identify items that are obsolete, expired, or slow-moving and determine whether they should be scrapped, sold, or disposed of. This helps free up space for additional inventory and improve access to necessary spare parts.
Learn more about managing inventory with a barcode system.
Tracking Stocking Locations
Effective inventory control depends not only on knowing what’s in stock, but also on knowing exactly where items are located. Depending on an organization’s size and structure, MRO inventory may be stored in a single centralized storeroom or spread across multiple locations, such as additional storerooms, supply closets, cribs, vending machines, and technician carts. Within these spaces, items may be placed in specific aisles, racks, shelves, or bins.
With so many possible storage locations, it’s essential to monitor what is stored in each location and in what quantity. Without clear location data, technicians may spend up to 25% of their time searching for parts – time that could be spent carrying out maintenance work. That’s why location tracking is critical for MRO inventory control – it ensures part availability, increases technician productivity, improves audit efficiency, and reduces unnecessary reorders.
Check out our guide on how to organize your maintenance storeroom.
Maintaining Inventory Condition and Quality
When evaluating inventory locations, organizations must also consider whether those environments support proper storage conditions. Over time, items may become compromised due to dust, humidity, oxidation, corrosion, or other environmental factors. Supplies like chemicals, oils, and lubricants can degrade or expire if not used within their shelf life.
Damaged inventory may fail to perform as intended or even pose safety risks if used in maintenance work. Regularly inspecting storage spaces, stored items, and monitoring expiration dates helps ensure that only serviceable parts are available for use.
Monitoring Inventory Movement
Inventory control goes beyond knowing where an item is stored – it also involves tracking items as they move from place to place. Inventory may be relocated for many reasons, such as restocking storage areas, resupplying technician carts or service vehicles, or checking tools out from a crib. In some cases, inventory is moved strategically to improve efficiency and decrease travel time to a central storeroom.
Tracking these movements ensures inventory remains visible and available when needed. Without proper movement tracking, stock may appear to be missing, leading to unnecessary reorders, confusion, and downtime.
Not all inventory movement is physical, however. Organizations commonly use a check-out system for shared items like tools, temporarily transferring them to a technician’s custody. Documenting these transfers helps keep them accountable for proper usage and timely return.
Whatever the case, documenting inventory movement is essential for maintaining accurate records and preventing disruptions to maintenance operations.
MRO Inventory Control Tools
Historically, MRO inventory has been managed with spreadsheets, printed records, and basic accounting software. While these methods may work for smaller operations, they often lead to errors, inefficiencies, and a lack of real-time visibility as inventory stock grows.
A more effective and scalable solution is to use computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) software to control MRO inventory. CMMS software centralizes inventory data, automates tracking, and integrates inventory control with the broader functionality of the system. A robust CMMS supports MRO inventory control in the following ways:
- Real-time Inventory Tracking: Monitor inventory quantities as parts are assigned, used, or received, including automatic stock level updates when items are consumed on work orders.
- Stocking Location Management: Know an item’s exact location within storerooms and storage locations, and track quantities when they move to new locations.
- Barcode Scanning Support: Use a barcode system to improve the accuracy of data entry or retrieval.
- Inventory Stock Notifications: Receive automatic alerts when stock level fall below predefined reorder points.
- Usage History and Reporting: Analyze usage trends to forecast demand and optimize stocking levels.
- Integrated Purchasing Tools: Generate purchase orders to replenish stock, and automatically receive quantities into inventory.
- Cost Management: Track inventory costs at the item level to better understand true inventory costs and improve MRO budgeting.
By leveraging a CMMS, maintenance teams can improve inventory accuracy, reduce costs, and ensure the right parts are available when needed. With better inventory control, organizations strengthen their entire maintenance operation and improve overall maintenance effectiveness.
Professional Development for Inventory Control
In addition to using software tools, professionals can benefit from formal education and certification programs focused on inventory and supply chain best practices. The following professional organizations offer learning opportunities and certification programs:
- Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM), formerly known as the American Production and Inventory Control Society (APICS)
- Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP)
- International Warehouse Logistics Association (IWLA)
Maintain Control over Your MRO Inventory with FTMaintenance Select
Inventory control is a critical maintenance management function that enables you to make strategic, data-driven decisions about your spare parts inventory. With the right tools in place, you’ll have more visibility of what items you stock, where they’re located, and their condition.
FTMaintenance Select is spare parts management software that helps you manage your spare parts catalog, automate stock updates, and maintain visibility into inventory availability across locations. Request a demo today to see how FTMaintenance Select streamlines MRO inventory control for your maintenance team.