Manufacturing software systems can help you make sense of inventory lot sizes without tears. Okay, you’re probably not breaking down crying over the sheer volume of data from your business, but let’s face it— cranking numbers isn’t much fun for most people. With manufacturing software systems in place, you can track inventory lot sizes with ease.

What Is Inventory Lot Size?

Simply put, it's how many products you can make before you have to stop and switch your equipment over to make something else. We're usually talking about finished products rather than components.

When you know your inventory lot size, you can run a much tighter ship. You can cut costs, boost profits, and maximize output. So, what’s the catch? Figuring out the right lot size is neither easy nor simple.

That’s where a manufacturing software system can help.

The Ideal Lot Size: The Goldilocks Dilemma

Do you remember the fairytale about Goldilocks and the three bears? She was always looking for something that was “just right” —the right porridge, the right bed.

Finding the sweet spot for your inventory lot sizes is a lot like Goldilocks searching for the right bed. You have to find the right balance among three things:

• Customer needs: This is the big non-negotiable factor. Obviously, you can’t sacrifice service for efficiency. If your customers are unhappy, they’ll take their business elsewhere, so keeping customer needs front and center is crucial.
• Changeover costs: Every time you switch from one job to another, there are costs. Costs vary according to the equipment, task, and personnel. If you have a manufacturing software system, you should be able to get the numbers from it. Otherwise, you’ll have to take pen to paper and work it out the old-fashioned way.
• Inventory costs: It’s not just the cost to make something that counts. Storage, handling, and packaging all add to production costs. Storing ice cream is a lot pricier than storing bolts, for example, because you have to factor in the constant below-freezing temperatures needed to keep it fresh.

How ERP Manufacturing Software Systems Make Inventory Lot Sizes Easier to Track

I mentioned above that if you have a manufacturing software system, calculating changeover costs is a lot easier. Let’s face it—a good enterprise resource planning (ERP) system for manufacturing makes tracking everything easier.

Not only do these systems track every aspect of your business from accounting to inventory, but they also enable you to pull reports quickly and easily. It gives you the data you need when you need it, so you can actually run the numbers instead of guessing. You can put your calculator down and rely on the manufacturing software system instead to provide you with the numbers.

Let’s take a look at a quick example. In this instance, a chemical manufacturer was dealing with high-mix specialty products that needed long cleanup and setup times between runs.

Calculating the inventory lot size manually would take a long time and require extensive spreadsheet research. Using the ERP system, it took the following steps:

• Pulled historical data from their ERP: past production times, inventory on hand, supply chain info
• Used that data to get a realistic picture of their cleanup and setup timelines
• Factored in customer deadlines to determine the best lot size
• Fed all the results back into the ERP for future scheduling
• Ran the order, then tracked everything afterward
• Followed up with customers on quality, satisfaction, and delivery times
• Logged the feedback, shared results with the team, and used it all to improve the next run

The outcome? Faster shipping, lower costs, happier customers. Isn’t that what we all want?

The beauty of this approach is that it's a cycle, not a one-time fix. You use data to make a decision, take action, measure what happens, and then use those results to do even better next time. It’s repeatable, measurable, and makes a difference to your customers and the bottom line.

Get the Right Manufacturing Software System

Manufacturing software systems offer many of the advantages discussed here, including those related to inventory lot-size calculations and ERP systems. Getting the right software system in place starts with having the right partner. With nearly twenty years of experience serving manufacturing organizations in the Chicago area, PositiveVision can help you close the gap between where you are and where you need to be with your manufacturing software systems. Optimize your inventory, lot sizes and more with the right software from PositiveVision. Talk to one of our experts today.

Robert Baran

Robert Baran is the founder and President of PositiveVision. He has worked in a variety of positions including system analyst, computer consultant and programmer, project manager, and division manager.