Tools Inventory Protects Health of Auto Repair Centers

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Business at automotive repair centers may be down, but the need for a tools inventory system continues to be a smart strategy for their financial health – especially now when many of them undoubtedly are considering how to remain profitable with reduced business.

Pandemic's Effects on Driving Behavior

In late June, Arity, a mobility data and analytics company that provides data-driven solutions to companies invested in transportation, released a report entitled “COVID-19: Driving behavior insights as states reopen.” The report shares the results of a study that analyzed daily total miles driven around the United States before and after the COVID-19 pandemic began. In April, daily total miles driven were down throughout the country. Some states saw a miles driven reduction of more than 60 percent, while others only experienced a miles driven decrease of around 20 percent. The United States experienced a rebound of miles driven as portions of the economy began to reopen; however, the report shares that no states are “back to normal yet.” Most states are still down between 10 percent and 20 percent. Several are still at a miles driven decrease of more than 20 percent compared with their respective averages.

Tools Inventory Maintains Order in the Shop

A reliable and accurate tools inventory system helps automotive repair protect one of their biggest investments: the tools and equipment they rely on to service vehicles and keep their customers happy. Automotive repair shops are using increasingly sophisticated tools to diagnose and fix vehicle issues. Some of those tools may be owned outright, while others may be leased, but all of them must be tracked, appropriately maintained and accounted for on the books for tax purposes.

Tools inventory control is a vital function of any automotive repair shop, as shops want to avoid having to purchase new tools and equipment due to loss, theft or poor maintenance. For starters, automotive repair shops should at any given time know what tools they have, what kind of condition those tools are in, and where those items are located, among other details. Routine audits are essential, as they require shops to compare physical inspections to their records and identify any errors or gaps. Detailed recordkeeping on the shop’s tools inventory and assets is incredibly important to ensure the safety and health of employees.

Each item in the tools inventory should have detailed records including its lease or purchase date, warranty information, maintenance schedule and history, depreciation, user guides and more. A tools inventory system enables auto repair shops to store all of this information for every tool and piece of equipment in a single location – preferably accessible through a mobile app on users’ smartphones. That centralization saves users countless hours hunting down paperwork that may be scattered through a filing cabinet, in computer records, the home office or some other location.

A tools inventory system gives employees the assurance that they’ll have the tools they’ll need to do the job at hand – and that, in turn, helps keeps staff morale high and avoids delays that could result in customer dissatisfaction and even loss. Shops can make decisions about their tools inventory needs based on real-time data, not guesswork, so they’re no spending more than required.

Drivers may not be out on the roads as much as they were pre-pandemic, but in the meantime, shops can take steps with a tools inventory system to reduce costs, increase their repair order accuracy, reduce repair times, and streamline and even improve their processes.

Asset Panda’s tools inventory system is powered by a mobile app that syncs with the cloud, includes a built-in barcode scanner and puts the entire lifecycle of a shop’s tools inventory into the palm of your hand.

By:

Courtney Roush

Courtney Roush is a freelance writer, editor, and communications strategist with 25 years of experience. Her favorite discipline is crisis communications – and it’s a highly relevant one in our present times.

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