Setting Up Consumable Item Type in Cheqroom
Manage your equipment, accessories and consumables all in one place. Tracking consumables in Cheqroom provides accurate inventory, proactive notifications and the assurance that your teams have what they need for a successful project.
What are Consumables?
Consumables are items that get used up over time and need regular replenishment. Proper tracking of these items is crucial for maintaining inventory accuracy and ensuring smooth operations. Examples of consumables can range from disposable parts associated with other gear (lightbulbs, batteries) to event giveaways, to marketing materials.
There are two key components to consider when adding consumables in Cheqroom.
- In Cheqroom, any bulk item can be designated as “Available for Consumption.” This allows for the item quantity to be reduced on check in for accurate inventory management.
- A Item Type can be added specifically for Consumable items. This item type can encompass a combination of bulk items, consumables and individual items that share a common use case at a company.
Setting Up Consumables as an Item Type
Having a dedicated item type for consumables allows you to add fields specific to consumable items that may not apply the rest of your Cheqroom inventory. This is particularly helpful when tracking characteristics like vendor, size, color, or expiration date that are critical when thinking about consumables, but aren’t applicable to other equipment.
- Create a dedicated item type: Set up a specific item type for consumables to distinguish them from regular equipment. Select a name and icon that fits your specific use case.
- Establish settings: As consumables are typically lower value items and always meant to be used to disposal, we recommend disabling warranty date and residual value for system fields. Typically, consumables will not be available for custody.
- Configure custom fields: Add relevant fields like unit of measurement, minimum stock level, and reorder quantity
For more information on setting up item types, see:
How to Enable and Use Custom Item Types
Enabling Bulk Items for Consumption
- Add bulk items: Use importer or “Add item” action button to add inventory. Selection option for “As a bulk item” and set quantity.
- Mark bulk items as consumable: In Item settings, enable toggle for “Available for consumption”. This allows the quantity of the item to be reduced on check in. This setting can also be managed through import/export
- Set initial quantity: Enter the starting quantity accurately when adding new stock
Setting up Low Stock Notification
Adding an email notification for when bulk items drop below a certain quantity can help ensure you always have the stock you need on hand.
To set up low stock notifications for your consumable items in Cheqroom:
- Navigate to Notifications: Go to your Account Settings and select the "Notifications" tab
- Create a new notification: Click on "New notification" and select "Item Quantity" from the dropdown menu
- Configure threshold: Set the minimum quantity threshold that will trigger the notification.
- Select Locations and Item Types: If you’d like to trigger this notification for specific locations or item types, select one or more from the drop down menu.
- Select recipients: Choose which email address(es) or distributions listss should receive the alerts
- Compose email message: By default, the email will include the item and quantity remaining. Learn more about customizing notifications in Cheqroom
- Test the notification: Temporarily lower a threshold to ensure alerts are working properly
These automated notifications will help ensure you never run out of essential consumable items and can reorder in a timely manner.
Bulk Item Reporting
Check current quantity of all your bulk items and consumables with the Bulk Item Utilization report.
- Open Reports: Using the left hand navigation menu
- Select Bulk Item Utilization: Open Report
- Add filters or groupings: Further customize the report by adding filters like item category or brand. Group report by fields on reservations or checks outs
Report provides details on current available quantity (not checked out), total quantity, and last modification date
Examples of Consumables in Cheqroom
Cheqroom can be used to effectively track a variety of consumable items, including:
- Production supplies: Gaffer tape, colored gels, markers, batteries, memory cards
- Photography/video accessories: SD cards, lens filters, cleaning supplies
- Office supplies: Printer paper, toner cartridges, stationery
- Event materials: Name badges, lanyards, promotional items
- Promotional materials: Giveaways, freebies, swag items, marketing materials
- Safety equipment: Disposable gloves, masks, sanitizing products
By tracking these items in Cheqroom, teams can maintain optimal inventory levels, reduce waste, and ensure availability when needed.
Best Practices for Managing Consumables
- Regularly update inventory levels as items are used by marking items as “consumed” during check in
- Set up low stock alerts to maintain adequate supplies
- Check reports and document usage patterns to optimize reordering
- Use Spotchecks to perform periodic physical inventory counts