Using Counting Scales For End-of-Year Stocktaking

Stocktaking can be a tedious and time consuming process. For any business, the end-of-year stock-take can prove to be one of the busiest times of year, requiring laborious counting tasks and sometimes lengthy overtime shifts to ensure all is in place for the start of the new financial year. So, what if I told you that there was a way to save you time and money?

Counting scales offer a solution to help businesses balance the books, drastically reducing the time it takes to perform a stock count, whilst eliminating manual counting errors.

This post will outline the importance of stocktaking and demonstrate how a professional counting scale is a must for any business wanting to save time and money.

Knowing Your Inventory

If you own a business that’s involved in retail, wholesale, construction, manufacturing or storage, it’s likely that your company stocks a variety of products and supplies equipment used in day-to-day operations.

knowing your available inventory is essential for smooth operation, especially if you’re selling products. In retail and wholesale establishments, owners rely on stocktaking to ensure the goods on the shelf and in the warehouse match the amounts they’ve purchased and not yet sold. Therefore, accurate item counts help you know what products you have available to fill orders and to meet customer requests. Counting scales provide an efficient and effective solution to the issue of keeping track of inventory on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.

Why are counting scales important?

Some business operators keep track of office supplies, paper goods, packaging, and other items used to run the company. Even if your business deals strictly in service, an inventory of office equipment and other materials allows efficient operation and the ability to effectively meet customer needs. Therefore, counting scales can benefit any business that places importance on effective administration and has the potential to boost customer satisfaction as a result.

The importance of stocktaking

Stocktaking provides a way to gauge the assets of your business, whether it’s a large or small. Inventory control helps minimise waste and helps you optimise your purchasing, storage, production, usage and distribution of products.

The information you collect during stocktaking can be used to make sure your business has the right amount of product available. Surplus stock can tie up your money for no reason, and also take up valuable warehouse space. On the other hand, an inadequate product supply could mean having to quickly place a costly rush order to meet a customer’s needs. Not only will you have to absorb the added cost, you might lose a sale if that customer can find the product readily available elsewhere.

When should I do a stock-take?

It’s up to each business owner to decide when and how often to do stocktaking. Regular audits are recommended, and companies with large numbers of items should consider stocktaking on a regular basis. End-of-year stock tally also provides information for financial reports, and allows compliance with tax laws.

Stocktaking in November and December is popular, although March and April are commonly understood to be the best times to stock-take as this falls before the beginning of a new financial year. If you’ve done an inventory audit previously, you already know what to do. But if this is your first attempt at it, you might appreciate a few tips:

Try conducting interim or end-of-year stock takes

By planning and implementing good stocktaking procedures, you can keep the headaches to a minimum and get accurate inventory figures. For some businesses, a complete physical inventory can be a major undertaking. It’s a good idea to do year-end stocktaking when things are slow in the workplace, or even after business hours.

Note the location of products ahead of time

To make sure the process goes smoothly, assemble a basic list of the items and their approximate location within your warehouse. This can be amended if you find any surprise items hiding in unexpected places. You can use pencil, paper and clipboard, or you can whip up a quick spreadsheet on your computer.

Counting Scale Uses for Businesses

If you own a business that sells small pieces and parts, it’s not always easy to keep tabs on all those tiny items, but it’s essential to know what inventory you have on hand. Consider using a counting scale to make the stocktaking process fast and easy, and your tallies will be markedly more accurate.

Let’s say you need to count a whole box full of nails. Instead of counting each individual nail (and inevitably losing count each time the phone rings), take 10 nails and place them on the scale. The total weight is 5 grams, which tells you that each nail weighs half a gram. When you weigh all the nails, all you have to do is divide the total weight by the weight of one nail (in this case, half a gram). This gives you a fast, accurate count of the number of individual nails in the box.

Recommended counting scales from Inscale

Inscale offers many types of counting scales that can make your stocktaking endeavours go more smoothly:

CBC Bench Counting Scale

The CBC bench counting scale offers intelligent functions that are practical for any counting application. Intuitive software is user-friendly and keeps track of the count, automatically optimising the unit weight for greater accuracy. Designed to be tough, the CBC features ABS housing, stainless steel platform, non-slip feet and load cell protection. RS-232 interface allows easy communication with computers and printers.

CBD Bench Counting Scale*

Durable and accurate, CBD bench counting scales can tackle complex counting procedures and boost productivity in factory, warehouse and industrial settings. Intuitive software is user-friendly, so it keeps track of the count and optimises unit weight automatically. The CBD can function either separately or connected to an external base, increasing the capacity and count accuracy in more complex counting applications. Featuring stainless steel platform, non-slip feet and load cell protection, the CBD provides the ultimate in performance.

Cruiser CCT Approved Bench Counting Scales

Reliable performance and durable construction make the CCT unmatched in value for industrial weighing. Well-suited for many applications, CKT handles basic weighing, parts counting, and checkweighing with LED limit indicators. Repetitive weighing tasks are accomplished quickly with the CCT's large stainless steel platform and generous back-lit display.

GBC Bench Counting Scale

GBC is a fully featured counting scale with numeric keypad for unit weight and sample entry. The large, brightly backlit display shows unit weight, total weight and number of pieces. With a grade 304 stainless steel pan and pillar-mounted ABS plastic indicator, the GBC provides a durable, reliable solution for industrial counting tasks. Power is supplied by AC adapter or the built-in, rechargeable battery.

GFC Floor Counting Scale

GFC is equipped with the features needed to make heavy-duty counting tasks fast and easy. A numeric keypad simplifies unit weight and sample entry, and facilitates check counting to a predefined weight or count. The large, back-lit display shows unit weight, total weight and number of pieces. A durable industrial scale, the GFC offers a grade 304 stainless steel pan, adjustable non-slip levelling feet, and a pillar-mounted ABS plastic indicator.

CCEU Coin Counting Scale*

Adam Equipment’s CCEU coin-counting scale offers the ability to quickly count coins and tokens, delivering speedy, accurate results. With nine preset values and three token values, CCEU can be configured to count any currency. The scale includes a rechargeable battery, so it can operate when power is unavailable. Memory accumulation keeps track of amount totals, displaying the figures on a back-lit LCD that is visible in any lighting conditions. A durable stainless steel platform is easy to clean, while the CCEU’s large size accommodates a variety of container sizes. Security is essential when counting currency, and the CCEU coin-counting scale provides password control to eliminate unauthorised use.

A&D FC-i Counting Scale

The FC-i high-resolution counting scale offers easy operation. A&D’s exclusive Automatic Count Accuracy Improvement combines the two most critical performance requirements of counting scales: count accuracy and operational efficiency to correct errors caused by variation in unit weights. The bright display simultaneously shows count, weight, comparator results, unit weight, identification number and item code with up to 12 alphanumeric characters.

A&D HC-i Counting Scale

HC-i counting scales by A&D offer a unique accumulation function that works in automatic or manual mode, allowing the total piece count to be stored in memory. The automatic count accuracy feature automatically corrects errors caused by variation in unit weights. When the count approaches target quantity, an audible weighing assist function alerts the user.

If you have any question about the products we offer or would like us to recommend the best weighing scale for your business then please Get In Touch.

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*No longer available as of 2023