Checking the state of warehousing and safety is one of the most important audit procedures. For a comprehensive study of this area of the organization's activities, the auditor examines warehouses, pantries, workshops and other places of storage of industrial stocks and finished products, checking the conditions of their storage, the state of fire safety, the equipment of warehouses with equipment, machinery, instruments and the correctness of their operation, the state of protection of warehouses. The unsatisfactory organization of storage facilities indicates a low level of internal control over the safety of inventory and finished products.
Special control functions in this regard are assigned to the chief accountant of the enterprise. With his direct participation, all organizational work is carried out to prepare places for storing material assets, to provide them with the necessary weight measuring and fire-fighting equipment and containers.
In the course of the survey, attention is paid to checking the organization of the liability of employees associated with the acceptance, storage and release of material assets and products. One of the conditions for ensuring safety is the development and delivery of standards or job descriptions to financially responsible persons, which define the duties and rights of employees, their work schedule, the procedure for accepting and issuing valuables, their documentation, keeping records in warehouses in natural meters, the deadlines for submitting accounting reports, etc.
Verification of warehouses and containers for storing material assets and finished products is recommended to be carried out by inspecting them in kind at the beginning of the audit. Auditors establish the technical condition of certain premises (the presence of a serviceable roof, walls, floors, glazed and fenced window openings, external and internal bolts on doors and gates, equipment with shelving shelves), necessary weights, calculation tables, measuring containers and other measuring instruments, as well as maintaining the regime of humidity, temperature and illumination. It must be remembered that materials in sections of warehouses, and within them in separate groups and standard, sort sizes, should be placed in such a way as to enable them to be quickly accepted, issued and checked for availability. In places of storage of each type of material, labels must be attached, which indicate the name, item number, unit of measure and stock rate.
For storage, for example, spare parts in warehouses, racks are used, where each type has its own shelf or part of it; separate spare parts due to their weight, size are stored on the floor; building materials, lumber are stacked; for the storage of bulk products, bins, bunkers, trenches are used; oil products are stored in tanks, barrels.
The correctness of the readings of scales and other measuring instruments is checked by weighing or outweighing a pre-prepared batch of valuables, weighing weights or measuring the volume of containers. The results of such an audit are reflected in the interim act, which is signed by the auditor, the financially responsible person and other persons who took part in this audit. If discrepancies are found in the readings of the instruments, the auditor requires a written explanation from the financially responsible persons and establishes the reasons for the discrepancies and the consequences to which they could lead or have led.
In practice, there are often cases of theft and losses due to poorly organized security and fire protection of warehouses. In this regard, it is necessary to find out whether locks, alarms, lighting of approaches to warehouses, guards are installed, whether fire fighting equipment is available and in good condition, whether the deadlines for charging fire extinguishers are observed.
The state of work on the acceptance and release of material assets and finished products in warehouses, pantries and other places of their storage is subject to a thorough check. To do this, it is recommended during the audit to conduct actual control of the receipt and release of certain types of products and materials.
In particular, being present at the acceptance of certain inventories, the auditor can establish how the established acceptance procedure is observed in terms of quantity and quality, whether acceptance certificates and commercial acts are drawn up in cases of violation of the integrity of the packaging, sealing of wagons, shortages of material assets along the way, whether they are drawn up correctly internal documents and records in the warehouse accounting registers for the posting of incoming valuables, whether they are labeled, labeled. When checking the release of certain types of material assets, the presence of the basis for this business transaction, the correctness of the requested and actually released quantity, the timeliness of the reflection of this operation in the warehouse registers are revealed. The correctness of accounting in places of storage of valuables has a great influence on the state of warehouse accounting, since when it is neglected, the most favorable opportunities for violations and abuses are created. To do this, you need to familiarize yourself with the actual state of warehouse accounting in individual warehouses. It is checked: the presence of a sufficient number of books or inventory cards of the warehouse accounting of materials; the correctness of their filling and maintenance; the timeliness of the implementation of accounts in them and the preparation of monthly reports on the movement of material assets; correctness and timeliness of inventory; comparing its results and taking appropriate measures to regulate inventory differences.
Unrecorded surplus of materials and finished products can be created by:
replacement of raw materials in the manufacture of finished products;
calculation of deliverers of raw materials and materials in weight, humidity, lowering their grade;
body kit, calculation, measurement of buyers when they release finished products;
unreasonable registration of acts on the loss of materials during their transportation or storage in warehouses.
Unaccounted for surplus materials are usually stored separately. To identify them, you should use the warehouse accounting data. If there are unrecorded surpluses, then the consumption of certain types of values for certain periods, as a rule, exceeds their income. Such an overrun is covered by the subsequent receipt and posting of materials of similar names. The surplus is withdrawn at the expense of subsequent receipts or drawn up with non-commodity documents until their actual presence is checked during the inventory.
Inspection of the state of the warehouse and verification of the safety of material assets, combined with subsequent documentary verification, make it possible to draw reasonable conclusions about the safety of the inventory and finished products and develop preventive measures.
Warehouse logistics audit.
A logistics project is usually carried out after a logistics audit that answers the question:
What to do?.
The logistics project answers the question:
How to do?
Warehouse logistics auditis the most demanded job in the field of logistics consulting , which, as a rule, consists of the following sections of the TOR:
Receipt and analysis of initial data on the layout, goods movement of the warehouse. Commodity, information, documentary flows, economic efficiency, IT and technical equipment of the warehouse are analyzed. Data is obtained from various sources: questionnaires, employee surveys, site inspections, downloads from IT databases, etc.
Analysis of the overall performance of the SC, incl. warehouse logistics systems, warehouse layout, product placement schemes, technical equipment of the warehouse, technical and economic performance indicators, product range, product distribution and document management systems in the warehouse, to conduct an examination of the information system, motivation system and the level of training of warehouse personnel.
Data is obtained from various sources: questionnaires, employee surveys, site inspections, downloads from IT databases, etc.
Preliminary analysis of the effectiveness of existing technologies for the receipt of goods, storage, commissioning, packaging, release, etc. Identify "bottlenecks"
Identification of the main problems in the functioning of the warehouse logistics system, setting goals and management tasks, ranking tasks.
Preliminary determination of the cost of development and implementation of projects for optimizing the management of warehouse systems and reengineering technologies for cargo handling.
Preliminary assessment of the possibility of reducing the share of storage costs in the final cost of products with various options for management decisions.
Forecast of long-term results.
Based on the results of the audit, the logistics expert submits to the Customer the final reporting document on 30-50 pages which includes the following information:
Generalized statistical data on the dynamics of trade turnover, cargo turnover and technical and economic indicators of the overall efficiency of the UK to the performance indicators of the logistics system of the UK and its elements, processed according to questionnaires
Analytical part with audit findings
All proposals and recommendations of the expert on optimization and efficiency improvement presented in the final document are of an applied practical nature , allowing the Customer the opportunity to apply them for:
Evaluation of the effectiveness of the existing SC logistics system
Making managerial decisions to improve the overall efficiency of the SC
The expert can take part in the process of implementing and adapting recommendations on the logistics system of the Customer's warehouse within the framework of an additional agreement.
According to our practice very often, in agreement with the Customer in the TOR, as part of the recommendations of the logistics audit, the expert performs work on the development of the concept of the warehouse and the technology of its operation, describes the business processes "as is", conceptually describes the technology "as it should", develops several planning solutions for the warehouse with an approximate calculation of zones and the number of racks.
But these developments are of an approximate nature and do not have the detail and quality of a logistics project.
The duration of the audit is 3-4 weeks.
Composition and procedure of warehouse logistics audit | logistics expert N. Lobanov (relevant for 2017) | |
| Name of service | What for? What does the customer get as a result of the service. | |
| Definition and coordination with the Customer of the Purpose and Tasks of the audit | Increased efficiency from investments in logistics audit | |
| Creation and approval of the WG - a working project group of key employees. Appointment of RP by the customer. | Risks are reduced when an expert interacts with company employees, the quality and efficiency of work in the audit process are improved | |
| Stage No. 1 Collection of initial information | ||
| .1 | Preparation of data sheets (questionnaires) to collect initial information, in accordance with the objectives of the audit | Standardization and unification of information in the OL allows to reduce the time of collecting the initial information. The quality of the original data is improved. It becomes possible to conduct a comparative analysis of the work of the warehouse with similar warehouses in the industry. |
| .2 | Obtaining through the RP from key employees the initial information that is required for the audit | The coordination and interaction of the work of the WG in the project is improving. The risks of "sabotage" of employees when receiving initial data are reduced |
| .3 | Analysis of the information received in the OL, its verification. Request for additional information if there is any doubt about its correctness. | As a rule, when collecting initial data, there is always a "deficit" of information and its distortion, intentional or unintentional. Several sources of obtaining information, conducting several iterations during its verification, can reduce the risk of errors in the audit and improve the quality of recommendations to the Customer. |
| .4 | Obtaining initial information directly in the warehouse through employee interviews, photographs of the working day, research of warehouse PSUs and on-site operations. | The work of an expert directly at the warehouse allows to reduce the risk of errors in the analysis of information received remotely by OL. This method is used to obtain the missing initial information that is not in the corporate information system and the company's workflow. Allows you to establish contact with warehouse employees and more effectively conduct an audit. |
| Stage No. 2 Analysis of the initial information | ||
| .1 | Analysis of GO-freight turnover, TO-goods turnover, TK - commodity stock, assortment matrix in the context of: days, weeks, months, years (3 years). Analysis of the turnover of commodity groups, illiquid assets. | Allows you to get a complete picture of the movement of goods in the warehouse and the correct data to evaluate its effectiveness. |
| .2 | Analysis of basic KPIs - key performance indicators of the warehouse. Comparison with industry KPIs of other warehouses. | Numerical calculated KPIs are the basis for correctly assessing the performance of a warehouse in comparison with similar warehouses in the industry. |
| .3 | Analysis of indicators of "capacity of the warehouse", indicators of the efficiency of the use of warehouse volumes. Determining the level of "peak" loads on the warehouse. | Allows you to determine the marginal human and technical resources of the warehouse, which reduces the risk of failures in the warehouse and failure to fulfill its operational tasks. |
| .4 | Analysis of the technology of the warehouse for the main business processes. (Acceptance, storage, assembly, replenishment, selection, shipment, inventory). | The level of technology is the basis for efficient operation. The analysis of the main BPs makes it possible to find PAs in the technological process and then eliminate them. |
| .5 | Analysis of the warehouse system for its effectiveness in terms of labor productivity, customer service level, economic indicators, inter-warehouse movements. | If there are several warehouse premises remote from each other, there are problems with inter-warehouse movements and warehouse storage, which entails additional costs and a decrease in the efficiency of the warehouse system. The analysis allows you to identify the UM in the warehouse system and optimize the work of the warehouse. |
| .6 | Analysis of the layout (topology) of the warehouse for its effectiveness for the selected work technology. | The layout of the warehouse should provide the possibility of implementing the selected work technology. Inadequate warehouse layout technology will "slow down" warehouse operations, reducing their efficiency. |
| .7 | Analysis of PTO-handling equipment for efficiency with the selected technology and layout. | Warehouse mechanization and IT should be adequate to the chosen technology and warehouse layout. "Manual labor" is unproductive. |
| .8 | Document flow analysis (electronic and paper). | Primary accounting documents must be drawn up at the warehouse in accordance with PBU. Electronic document management allows reducing the "human factor", increasing the productivity and quality of the warehouse. Allows you to make inventory accounting "transparent". |
| .9 | Analysis of the "Accounting policy", cost accounting systems, their "distribution base", checking the correctness of the calculation of the cost of warehouse logistics operations. | Cost management allows you to reduce the cost of goods, is the basis in the inventory management system (CMS), which increases the profitability of the entire company. |
| .10 | Warehouse IT equipment analysis. Checking the functionality and strategies of WMS. Verification of the application of ABC and XYZ analysis methods. Checking the level of automation of operations, the interface between WMS and CIS (corporate information system). Study of the principles of building an address storage system and a system for marking goods and equipment. | Allows you to significantly increase the productivity of warehouse operations, reduce their costs, improve the level of service. On the basis of the Pareto Rule 80/20, a whole branch of mathematical analysis, the so-called ABC-analysis, is built, which is based on the division of the object of analysis into three groups according to their degree of importance and effectiveness according to a certain criterion. In logistics, the 80/20 methodology and ABC are axioms, as they work very well in practical application. There are many examples. 20% of operations have 80% of labor intensity 20% of customers bring 80% of the company's turnover |
| .11 | Analysis of the TC-technological map of the warehouse, BP Regulations (business processes), Functional instructions. | Business processes can only be managed by a Torda when they are described and formalized. Process management allows you to automate 80% of operations and reduce the influence of the "human factor" in administrative management. |
| .12 | Analysis of the rationing system for warehouse BP and operations. | The rationing system is the basis for planning operations, which allows you to reduce risks and increase the efficiency of the warehouse. Also, the rationing system allows you to calculate the duration of operations, their labor intensity, allows you to calculate the required human and technical resources. |
| .13 | Analysis of the system for planning the work of the warehouse and the interaction of the warehouse with related departments of the company. | Without a planning system, a warehouse cannot be efficient. Warehouse BPs are located in the middle of the supply chain, so the efficiency of warehouse BPs is highly dependent on the incoming and outgoing BPs of adjacent departments. The regulation of the interaction of the warehouse with adjacent departments allows you to coordinate and synchronize the BP of the entire company. This achieves a synergistic effect. |
| .14 | Analysis of the warehouse personnel motivation system. | Personnel motivation is the basis for the effectiveness of the implementation of the BP. Good warehouse motivation increases the productivity and quality of work of the warehouse staff by up to 70%. |
| Stage 3 Based on the analysis of the initial information, the definition (UM) of "bottlenecks". | This paper uses the concept of "supply chain", part of which is the theory of "bottlenecks" Goldrat or "weak link in the chain". (Recipe by Dr. Goldratt. About the theory of constraints by Eliyahu Goldratt (Theory of constraints; TOC). | |
| .1 | Definition of UM in the warehouse system and warehouse layout | Allows you to optimize the warehouse system, eliminate problem areas in the layout of the warehouse, which increases the utilization rate of the storage volume, increases the capacity of the warehouse, and increases labor productivity. |
| .2 | Definition of UM in warehouse operation technology | Technology is know-how. The improvement of technology leads to an increase in the efficiency of the warehouse as a whole, as well as the entire company. |
| .3 | Definition of UM in the technical equipment of the warehouse and the use of IT. | Allows you to reduce the level of "manual" unproductive operations |
| .4 | Definition of UM in the accounting policy of the warehouse | It allows efficient use of warehouse resources, making the calculation of the cost of goods planned and estimated, which entails a decrease in warehouse stocks, a decrease in the share of logistics warehouse costs in the company's turnover, increasing its profitability. |
| .5 | Definition of UM in the warehouse automation system, assessment of the level of formalization of BP (business processes) | Allows you to implement a more efficient process management system. |
| .6 | and etc. | |
| Stage No. 4 Recommendations for the elimination (LM) of "bottlenecks" and optimization of the warehouse. | ||
| .1 | Recommendations directly for each identified UM. | For each UM, the Customer receives an answer to the question: What to do? in order to eliminate it. |
| .2 | Recommendations of a systematic nature for optimizing the work of a warehouse in a company | "Patchwork optimization" of warehouse PSUs is much less effective than optimization with a systematic approach to the supply chain. |
| .3 | Assessment of the potential for reducing the share of storage costs in the final cost of products with various options for management decisions. Forecast of long-term results | An assessment is given on the limits of the possibilities of optimizing this warehouse. |
| .4 | Assessment of the level of investments and payback periods in the systemic modernization of warehouse logistics | An assessment of investments in warehouse optimization is carried out according to the main recommendations and the payback period for making a management decision on further work within the framework of a logistics project. |
| .5 | Recommendations for the reengineering of the entire company and, as a result, the improvement of the logistics system. | |
| Standard set of warehouse logistics audit services | Price from see rub, duration 4-6 weeks | |
| "Travel" expenses of the expert (outside the Moscow region) | from 50 000 rub | |
| Total for the audit: | from under the contract rub | |
| Additional services within the framework of the logistics audit of the warehouse. | ||
| .1 | Research and analysis according to OL No. 8 Cyclograms of the warehouse operation during the day according to the main BP. Cost of services: 70 thousand rubles | Warehouse cycle diagrams allow you to make the optimal work schedule for warehouse personnel by shifts and BP groups, which reduces warehouse costs and improves the quality of the service level. A cyclogram can be made only if there is a WMS, from which you can download data in a certain format! |
| .2 | Carrying out selective timing of the main warehouse operations in order to verify the correctness of the warehouse operations rationing system. Cost of services: 70 thousand rubles | "Correct" standards for warehouse operations can improve the efficiency of the warehouse planning system and the personnel motivation system. "Incorrect" regulations can lead to "sabotage". A selective check of the standards will make it possible to determine the UM in the system of rationing warehouse operations. |
| .3 | Description of the main BP "As is" Cost of services: 100 thousand rubles | If there is no description of formalized BP in the warehouse, then the description of BP "As is" will initiate further work on the formalization of BP, without which automation of BP in IT resources is impossible. |
| .4 | Development of new planning solutions for the warehouse Cost of services: 80 thousand rubles | If gross errors in the topology (planning) are made in the warehouse, then the development of 2-3 optimal layouts is required, which is the initial stage of the logistics project. |
Auditing the state of warehouse facilities and ensuring the safety of inventories on the example of JSC Trade and Service Center
Checking the state of storage facilities and the safety of inventories is one of the most important audit procedures. For a comprehensive study of this area of the organization's activities, the auditor examines warehouses, pantries, workshops and other places of storage of industrial stocks, checking the conditions of their storage, the state of fire safety, the equipment of warehouses with the necessary equipment, machinery, instruments and the correctness of their operation, the state of protection of warehouses. The unsatisfactory organization of storage facilities indicates a low level of internal control over the safety of the inventory.
In the course of the survey, special attention is paid to checking the organization of the liability of employees associated with the acceptance, storage and release of material assets. One of the conditions for ensuring the safety of material assets is the development and delivery of financially responsible persons with standards or job descriptions that define the duties and rights of employees, their work schedule, the procedure for accepting and issuing valuables, their documentation, keeping records in warehouses in natural meters, terms providing reports to the accounting department, etc.
When inspecting the places of storage of MPZ, according to the documents available to financially responsible persons, they check whether they process the acceptance and release of valuables in a timely manner and make entries in books or warehouse accounting cards. Unrecorded surplus of materials and finished products can be created by:
Substitution of raw materials in the manufacture of finished products;
Calculation of deliverers of raw materials and materials in weight, humidity, lowering their grade;
Body kit, calculation, measurement of buyers when they release finished products;
Unreasonable registration of acts on the loss of materials during their transportation or storage in warehouses.
Unaccounted for surplus materials are usually stored separately. To identify them, you should use the warehouse accounting data. If there are unrecorded surpluses, then the consumption of certain types of values for certain periods, as a rule, exceeds their income. Such an overrun is covered by the subsequent receipt and posting of materials of similar names. Surpluses are withdrawn at the expense of subsequent receipts or are issued with non-commodity documents until their actual presence is checked during the inventory.
Inspection of the state of the warehouse and ensuring the safety of material assets, combined with subsequent documentary verification, make it possible to draw reasonable conclusions about the safety of the inventory and develop preventive measures.
Stocks can be stored in several warehouses, and in this case it is advisable to carry out their inventory at the same time in order to exclude the possibility of transferring valuables from one warehouse to another. If for some reason this is not possible, then the auditor needs to track the internal movement of stocks between departments (warehouses) from the moment the inventory starts at the first warehouse to its completion at the last warehouse.
When conducting an inventory, the auditor may have difficulty in obtaining evidence of reserves, caused by the peculiarities of the technological process. This may sometimes require expert advice.
It may also be difficult to obtain evidence related to the determination of the amount of reserves, which are due to:
a) using sampling. As a rule, within the framework of one check it is impossible to check all stocks by a continuous method, however, if there is a clear discrepancy between stock records and their actual presence, it is necessary to check all inventory items;
b) the specifics of control procedures - it is necessary to make sure that there were no repeated counts and accidentally or deliberately unaccounted for values. Control reconciliations provide an opportunity to make sure that the calculation of values was carried out correctly.
c) the nature of inventory values (for example, inventory of wood stocks at pulp and paper mills, rolled metal, etc.). In such cases, the auditor can use estimating methods when counting and measuring part of the reserves, and then extrapolate the results of the audit to their total amount. The representativeness of the extrapolation results can be controlled by comparing them with accounting and warehouse accounting data.
The presence of some types of stocks cannot be checked for availability by simple recalculation, for example, in continuous industries - chemical or steel. In this case, the auditor will have to rely on internal control procedures, and, with the permission of the client, involve experts to inventory such material assets.
Sometimes, for a number of reasons, it is not possible to conduct an inventory. For example, when by the time the audit contract is concluded, the inventory at the end of the year has already been carried out by the client, and he refuses to carry it out again, or when the inventory is quite expensive. In this case, the auditor can apply mathematical methods that, with a certain probability, allow estimating the amount of reserves. It may happen that the client does not want to conduct a complete inventory, but at the request of the auditor, he will conduct an inventory of a part of inventory items.
Ensuring the safety of material assets largely depends on the selection and placement of materially responsible persons. Persons who had a criminal record for embezzlement, embezzlement and who did not justify trust in previous jobs should not be accepted for such positions.
There are also such violations as: the export of material assets on one pass twice; export of material assets by passes signed by a person who does not have the right to do so; export of material values according to oral permissions and notes, etc.
In the process of auditing the state of warehouse accounting at JSC TSC, warehouses, pantries, workshops and other places of storage of industrial stocks at the enterprise were examined, the conditions for their storage, the state of fire safety of warehouses, the equipment of warehouses with equipment, machinery, devices and the correctness of their operation were checked , the state of protection of storage facilities. Also, for the audit, an audit test was compiled to check the state of the warehouse and the safety of the inventory (table 3.1.)
When inspecting the places of storage of inventories according to the documents available to financially responsible persons, it was revealed that the registration of acceptance and release of material assets, as well as entries in books and warehouse accounting cards, are made in a timely manner.
Stocks at the enterprise are stored in several warehouses, and in this case their inventory is carried out simultaneously in order to exclude the possibility of transferring valuables from one warehouse to another.
Table 3.1 - Audit test for checking the state of storage facilities and the safety of the MPZ Khakhonova N.N. Fundamentals of accounting and auditing. Rostov n / a: PHOENIX, 2005. - 89 p.
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Note |
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1. Is the territory of the enterprise protected? |
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2. Are the premises equipped with fire alarms |
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3. Have any material liability agreements been concluded: |
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Correctness of registration |
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Applied liability system: |
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a) individual |
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b) collective |
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c) pledge system |
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4. Do the positions of the MOL correspond to the approved List of positions and works to be replaced and performed by employees with whom the enterprise can conclude written agreements on full liability |
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5. Have materially responsible persons created conditions to ensure the safety of the MPZ: |
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Availability of closed warehouses |
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Availability of wardrobes, safes |
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Availability of necessary containers for storing valuables |
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Possibility of access to MPZ only MOL |
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6. Equipping of MPZ storage sites with the necessary measuring instruments |
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7. Is there control over the procedure for the export of valuables from the enterprise and the issuance of powers of attorney to receive them |
The Company ensures constant control over the safety of existing inventory items. An important method of such control is the inventory, which allows you to control both the safety of the Company's property and the correctness of accounting.
When inventorying material assets, they check the availability of inventories on a certain date by recalculating, weighing, determining their volume and comparing the received, actual data with accounting data.
The Company conducts both partial, when they check the availability of valuables in individual storage places, and complete, when all valuables in the enterprise as a whole are covered by the check. A mandatory full inventory is carried out annually before the preparation of the annual report within the time frame established by the inventory instructions. In addition to the annual inventory, the company checks for the presence of residues in kind throughout the year.
A special commission is being created at OAO TSC to conduct an inventory. The results of the check are documented by the inventory list and the corresponding act. The head of the enterprise personally reviews the inventory materials and makes appropriate decisions based on its results. The surplus identified during the inventory comes. This creates an accounting entry:
Debit 10 "Materials" Credit 91 "Other income and expenses"
Shortfalls in inventories, as well as losses from damage to valuables, are debited to account 94 “Shortages and losses from damage to valuables” from the credit of the corresponding material accounts. If the shortages were identified by audits in the current year, but they relate to previous years, then the corresponding amounts are charged to the debit of account 94 from the credit of account 98 “Deferred income”. The missing products of the current year are written off at the planned cost. In the future, after a decision is made to write off losses and shortages, they are written off from the credit of account 94 in the prescribed manner. In conclusion, we note that, as such, no shortcomings in the state of warehouse accounting were found. Warehouse accounting is carried out in accordance with established rules.
The main purpose of the warehouse audit (audit from lat. audit- listens) is to obtain objective data on the state of the company's logistics system, the ability to analyze the efficiency of the warehouse.
In foreign practice, there are the following types of audit:
- Financial audit - checking whether the principles and requirements of accounting are observed.
- Operational audit - verification of business process algorithms.
- A special audit is an expert opinion on a specific area of activity that can be provided to another party. For example, terms of reference for warehouse automation, logistics analysis, warehouse optimization, warehouse design.
Is the warehouse to blame?
The warehouse is an indicator of the "health" of the business, because it is in the warehouse that all the problems associated with the unsatisfactory activity of the purchasing and sales departments are concentrated. The purchasing department can order a quantity of goods that significantly exceeds the capacity of the warehouse. Accordingly, access to other goods is blocked, the speed of all warehouse operations is reduced. It would seem that the purchasing department was mistaken, but the warehouse reveals the problem like litmus paper.
Warehouse audit, what results to expect:
- Improving the efficiency of inventory management.
- More efficient use of the warehouse maintenance budget.
- Increasing the level of efficient use of warehouse space, warehouse equipment.
- Improving performance indicators.
- Improving the efficiency of the business process algorithm for performing warehouse operations.
… which means an increase in the “health” of your warehouse!
A practical example of organizing the activities of a warehouse that needs to optimize the work of the warehouse and audit the warehouse
How was the client before the project
The warehouse of the distributor company is about 3000 square meters, 10 meters high to the bottom edge of the beam, shelving in 4 tiers, docks, there are shipping / receiving / finished orders / storage / reject areas.
Description of the problem
At 9:00 in front of the docks, there is a congestion of cars for loading and heavy trucks of the arrival. Cars are loaded manually. The trucks of the arrival are waiting for the end of the loading of the expense. During the shipment of an issue, no other warehouse operations are performed. In the storage and picking area (including aisles) there are a lot of randomly scattered, dusty goods. Moving goods is possible no higher than 3 tiers due to technology. Accordingly, the 4th tier is 90% empty, the 3rd tier is 50% full, and the 2nd tier is full. Goods are labeled either without specifying the delivery date, batch number and product code, or not labeled at all.
Goods of 3-4 tiers do not take part in the inventory.
There is no principle of placement of goods upon acceptance (FIFO, for example).
1/3 of the goods of the total volume actually turn around, 2/3 - take the place of the warehouse as a "dead weight". Marriage is located together with all other goods, write-off occurs once a week. The warehouse staff works for 3 months, from inventory to inventory. Highly paid inventory managers who have never been in the warehouse and do not understand the algorithm of warehouse processes work in the main office. Bonuses from the distributor for inconsistent in terms of arrivals of consignments of goods that exceed the norms of receipts.
As a result, warehouse processes are slowed down or completely stopped. The warehouse is overflowing with "frozen", badly turning over goods. Goods are placed in the aisles. Warehouse expenses exceed income from bonuses.
What to do? Warehouse Optimization Needed!
The correct organization of work and the distribution of employees for specific operations allows you to achieve coherence in their actions and, ultimately, leads to minimization of costs and an increase in the efficiency of the warehouse.
Description and scheme of the process of acceptance, placement and storage of finished products
Finished products, poured and packaged in various types of containers, are delivered on conveyors to the territory of the warehouse complex. Further, the shift supervisors of individual warehouses control the quantity and type of products received, shipping documents are drawn up. Inside the warehouse, products are sorted by storekeepers and distributed by loaders on racks. The shift operator documents all the processes of unloading, receiving and storing products, and keeps a strict record of the quantity of products arriving at the warehouse and leaving the warehouse. The completed report on the operations carried out during the shift is transferred to the main warehouse operator.
The control of storage conditions for finished products is provided by the shift supervisor, the results are documented by the shift operator. Installation and dismantling of the necessary equipment, as well as its maintenance is carried out by a warehouse mechanic.
Products are unloaded and sent for sale in coordination with the work of the Sales Department and are carried out only if there are documents confirming the order of the authorities. These processes are also controlled by the shift supervisor and the shift operator.
The management of all warehouse operations is provided by the head of the warehouse complex, the organization of processes is carried out by the head of the warehouse and his deputy, whose duties also include the selection of service equipment, the establishment of storage modes, etc. All manipulations with finished products are strictly monitored and documented.
Rationale for the selection of quality elements to be tested
The process of acceptance and storage of finished products in the premises of the warehouse complex is quite complicated. To maintain the high efficiency of the department, employees must be well trained and strictly follow job descriptions. The following are the steps in the process where nonconformities are most likely to be found:
1. Acceptance control of products in terms of quantity and quality. In case of poor-quality control of products, the reporting of the warehouse may be violated and the enterprise will incur unaccounted losses. 2. Placement of products in the warehouse. In case of unsatisfactory work of loaders and storekeepers, damaged packaging or product containers may occur. This is unacceptable in the food industry, as this may result in contamination of products with m / o or the introduction of chemicals into it, which will entail the cost of marriage. 3. Product storage. If the storage conditions are violated, the products may become unusable, which will entail high costs for marriage.
Audit program
The main objectives of the audit are: establishing the competence of employees, their awareness of the latest regulatory documentation, the quality and compliance of the declared production processes with the regulatory ones (Appendix). The audit will include checking the documentation of the enterprise, the awareness of managers about the work and effectiveness of the audited department, auditing the department's employees on the spot, checking the conditions for fulfilling the tasks assigned to the department.
An internal audit of the warehouse operations department will reveal the reasons for the decrease in the efficiency of the department and bring the quality of its processes to a new level.
Elements of the quality system checked during the audit:
1. Management responsibility.
2. Documentation and data management (logging and reporting on the acceptance and sending of finished products for sale).
3. Management of control and other equipment.
4. Process management (control over the fulfillment of duties of warehouse workers).
5. Management of nonconforming products (identification of nonconforming products and sending them for disposal).
6. Loading and unloading operations, storage.
7. Compliance of the conditions of acceptance and storage of products with regulatory indicators.
8. Data logging management.
9. Maintenance.
10. Personnel training.
Audit Responsibility Matrix
Division audit schedule
Drawing up a checklist
| Quality system object | In accordance with regulations | Result of checking |
| Normative documents | The documentation is in the public domain for all employees of the warehouse, there are at least 2 copies in each warehouse. | It is in the public domain for each of the employees, all employees are familiar with this documentation and once every six months they undergo additional certification. |
| Warehouse accounting documents | Documents contain only reliable information and are completed in a timely manner. The information is presented in an accessible and easy to understand form. | Documents are filled out in accordance with the requirements. Delays were identified in the preparation of reports and their transfer to superiors. |
| Control equipment and equipment for product unloading | The equipment is in working condition, operated only by qualified personnel. | All equipment meets standards and is serviced by mechanics. |
| Nonconforming products | Products are registered in magazines and disposed of. | All requirements for registration and disposal of defective products are met. |
| Qualification of warehouse workers (storekeepers and loaders) | Employees are at their workplaces acc. with the duty schedule, comply with job descriptions and follow all the standards in force at the enterprise. | Employees do not follow the established work schedule. Responsible for compliance with the schedule - shift supervisor. |
| Terms of acceptance and storage | Acceptance is carried out in terms of quantity and quality, unloading is carried out in accordance with the product placement plan. Storage conditions correspond to GOST R 51174-98 “Beer. General technical conditions "clause 7 | Discrepancies between the storage conditions of products and the standards were revealed: the temperature in the warehouse ranges from 12 to 26 ͦС. |
Auditor Questionnaire
| Poll object | Questions |
| Head of warehouse complex | What goals and tasks facing the department of warehouse operations at the present time would you call paramount? In what direction is the development and improvement of the structure of warehouse operations and technologies management going? With which departments of the enterprise does your department cooperate? department with a sales department and a logistics department? In accordance with what regulatory documentation is the acceptance and storage of finished products in a warehouse carried out? How often and in what form are you provided with work reports from the heads of individual warehouses? |
| Head of separate warehouse | How often and how is the control of the activities of structural divisions of the warehouse carried out? What skills and work experience should the employees under your subordination have? For what reasons the work plans of your department approved by the authorities cannot be fully implemented? How is the preparation of proposals for improving and increasing the efficiency of this unit? What conclusions does the analysis of the unit's activities in terms of financial and quantitative indicators lead to? |
| Deputy head of warehouse (technologist) | How often and according to what indicators is monitoring of employees' compliance with work technology carried out? How are employees' working hours recorded? |
| Shift Supervisor | What changes in the work of the department would you call necessary at this stage of work? Describe the quality of work of the employees of the department, taking into account all the duties assigned to them? How often do violations occur in the work of warehouse employees? What principles are used to organize work in your department? the level of quality of work of this unit? How often do non-conforming products enter the warehouse? |
| Mechanic | How often do equipment failures in the department slow down the acceptance and placement of products in the warehouse? Why do equipment failures occur? How often are existing equipment upgraded or replaced? |
| Storekeepers (2 persons) | How often do problems arise with the acceptance and placement of products in the warehouse? What are your suggestions for adjusting the conditions for the acceptance and storage of finished products? The work of which department employees negatively affects the efficiency of processes? |
| Loaders (10 people) | How often do you have to work with automated equipment? What difficulties arise when working with automated warehouse equipment? |
| Chief warehouse operator | What documentation accompanies products entering and leaving the warehouse? How quickly and with what frequency are written reports received by management? |
| Operator on shift | How long does it take to document the facts of receipt and dispatch of products from the warehouse? Which stages of documented accounting take the most time? What changes would you suggest in accounting? |
| Human Resources Department | How high and how high is the staff turnover in the Warehouse Operations Department? |
Drawing up an audit report