Problem
A Patchwork of Spreadsheets and Headaches
A precision electronics manufacturer building PCB assemblies for aerospace and regulated industries faced an all-too-common challenge: manual inventory tracking with high stakes. Each customer work order required surgical accuracy—not just for what was built, but exactly which lot and serial numbers were used. Compliance required full traceability, yet inventory lived in spreadsheets, purchase orders were fragmented, and scrapped components had no structured capture.
The result? Time-consuming reconciliations, costly errors, and zero confidence in available stock. Receiving, kitting, and consumption processes required constant cross-verification. The most basic question—“Do we have enough of part A to start production?”—was rarely answered without delay. And even then, wrong lot usage or missing serials created downstream quality and cost headaches.
As they prepared to scale operations, they knew their current workflow couldn’t meet the rigorous needs of aerospace traceability, cost reporting, or inventory accountability.
Q1
Solution
A Lot-Centric, Work Order-Driven Inventory System in SmartSuite
SmartSuite was implemented to completely revamp the company’s material control—from initial BOM intake to lot-level consumption tracking. The team built a custom solution using five interconnected tables:
- Parts Master Table for all components, including MPN, cost, and specs
- Work Orders and BOMs, linking required components to builds
- Lot Numbers, generated at receiving with full traceability: date code, serials, expiration, PO linkage
- Inventory Usage, capturing pulled, returned, and scrapped quantities per lot
- Purchase Orders, including open vs. received tracking
Manual processes like lot assignment, over-pull for kitting, and post-assembly returns were streamlined with linked workflows. Conditional logic highlighted shortages in real-time. Spotlight indicators flagged components that were technically “in stock” but already allocated. Label printing and document designer tools enabled barcode traceability.
The system not only supports their existing workflow—it introduced structure and automation where there was none, without sacrificing the manual control they still needed.
Q2
Result
Compliance, Control, and Confidence Across Every Build
SmartSuite’s platform transformed a fractured inventory process into a unified, traceable, and auditable operation. The manufacturer now tracks:
- Which lots were used, in what quantities, across every build
- What parts were pulled, scrapped, or returned by job
- Where every component is stored, with bin- and job-level locations
- Cost of goods sold and scrap, by part and project
- Which jobs caused the highest loss, and why
The time to assemble traceability reports dropped dramatically. Overages, scrap, and unused components are now logged by reason and financial impact. Real-time visibility into available vs. allocated stock has eliminated accidental over-promising and enabled better purchasing decisions.
SmartSuite didn’t just digitize their workflows—it made them manufacturable at scale.
Q3
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