Warehouse audit: processes and loss analysis

An inventory count tells you what is missing; a warehouse audit tells you why. If every count shows a shortage, customers receive the wrong goods, receiving documents are entered late, or a new employee still cannot find the right bin after a week, the cause usually lies in the process rather than in one person. During the audit we follow the path of goods from receiving to dispatch on the warehouse floor, check documents and the stock database, find where losses arise and propose a plan to reduce them.

What the audit covers

• Receiving: checking goods against the delivery note, recounting, recording defects, how quickly receipts are entered in the system.
• Put-away and storage: bin-location storage, bin labelling, expiry date control (FEFO), similar-looking items stored side by side.
• Picking and dispatch: order picking errors, checks before dispatch, packing.
• Document flow: internal transfer, return and write-off records, unposted documents and negative balances in 1C.
• Responsibility and access: financially responsible persons, shift handover, who enters the warehouse and when.
• Stock accuracy: a control count in selected product groups.

How we run the audit

1. Briefing. We agree the goal with management: reducing losses, speeding up operations or preparing for the annual count. We collect the symptoms, the warehouse layout and the results of the last inventory.
2. Data review. We study stock and movement reports from 1C, past differences, returns and write-offs.
3. On-site observation. Across different shifts we watch how receiving, put-away, picking and dispatch actually run, and talk to storekeepers, operators and drivers.
4. Sample control count. In several product groups we compare book and physical stock, which shows in figures how far the records can be trusted.
5. Ranking the findings. For each problem we assess where it arises, how often it recurs and how much damage it causes.
6. Closing meeting. We go through the results and recommendations with management and agree the first steps.

What you receive

• a written process report, with an example for each finding (document number, location, photo);
• a loss source map showing at which stage goods "disappear" and which errors occur most often;
• the result of the control count — stock accuracy in the selected groups;
• a recommendations table in Excel with owners, deadlines and priorities, ranging from quick steps (for example, a second signature at receiving) to changes in procedures and storage layout.

If you would like to check your documents and warehouse order yourselves before the audit, download the preparation checklist: many of its points — documents, the stock database, warehouse order — are also checked during the audit. How an audit differs from an inventory count is explained in detail in a separate article.

What affects timing and price

In an audit the main work is analysing processes rather than counting, so the price grows much more slowly than the number of items. Calculator reference points: 1,000 SKUs cost about UZS 12 million, 10,000 about UZS 25 million and 50,000 about UZS 42 million. The minimum order is UZS 2 million. You can work out an estimate in the online calculator by selecting "Warehouse audit"; the exact price is fixed in the contract after the briefing and a site visit.

Timing and price depend on:

• the number of warehouses, branches and shifts;
• the depth of the audit: all processes or only selected stages, such as receiving and dispatch;
• the state of the stock database and how easily the required reports can be produced;
• the size of the control count.

Who it is for

Audits are most often needed by distributors and 3PL warehouses, pharmacy chains (batch and expiry control), online shops selling through Uzum or Telegram (picking errors), raw material stores at manufacturing plants and building materials depots. Typical reasons:

• shortages or item substitutions come back at every count;
• a move to a new warehouse or a redesign of the storage system is planned;
• processes need to be put in order before introducing a WMS or a new 1C configuration;
• the warehouse manager has changed, or the owner wants an independent view of the warehouse.

To keep the audit results from fading over time, the audit can be followed by ongoing stock control: periodic counts show whether the recommendations are working.