Best Practices for Tracking Returnable Containers and Packaging

Forward-thinking businesses that understand the value of protecting and maintaining their returnable assets focus on improving efficiencies, enhancing productivity, and driving profitability.

A returnable container system, with dedicated software seamlessly integrated into workflows, offers numerous advantages that can significantly impact a company's bottom line.

Reusable cylinders and containers are often more valuable than the products they transport, and with replacement costs rising, they are becoming increasingly difficult to source. That’s why it’s essential to ensure these assets are being utilized efficiently, without being misplaced, damaged, or prematurely discarded.

Improve Utilization

One of the biggest benefits of implementing a returnable container system is being able to optimize the use and application of your assets. From the moment you start tracking containers, you're immediately going to take advantage of your past inefficiencies and remove all that waste out of the supply chain, says Doug O’Dell, Vice President of Sales at TrackAbout. 

Through serialized tracking – effectively the perpetual tracking of individual items – users are instantly able to locate each asset, know how long it's been there, and if it's sitting stale. Containers will no longer be left unused somewhere for months. Instead, they can be brought back into service or moved to a different location. By making better use of what you have rather than having to replenish stocks with expensive new assets, the savings can be considerable.

By monitoring these assets individually, a wealth of valuable data will also be at your fingertips. You’ll instantly have access to important information about the product you’re carrying, the container itself, and the customer – allowing you to make more informed strategic decisions, says O’Dell.

It’s all too easy to lose control of your assets if you’re not monitoring them all the time. When any business starts serialized tracking their containers, there’s an initial phase of so-called "black hole recovery." This refers to assets of yours that a customer has that you just didn’t know about. At TrackAbout, we’ve seen many scenarios where our users mistakenly think a customer has a certain number of containers at their site, only to discover they have far more when they begin serialized tracking, he says. 

Discovering assets you didn’t even know you had is a huge win. Individual gas cylinders can easily cost in excess of $300, while containers used in the chemical sector may be worth up to $15,000. So, not only are you saving money, but by quickly getting them back into circulation, you’ll be earning additional rental revenue.

Regardless of industry, if you're renting out containers and switch to serialized tracking, it’s perfectly feasible to see at least a three to five percent rental revenue increase.

Time Is Money

In addition to these advantages, serialized tracking delivers substantial time savings in your daily operations. Within just a few mouse clicks, you’ll know exactly where it is located – so there’s no longer a need to wander around warehouses searching for a specific container. That means employees can instead turn their attention to more pressing, high value tasks, says O’Dell. 

And with all your documentation now digitized, there’s less physical paperwork to file and store, less human intervention, and fewer opportunities for manual errors such as transposing digits or misreading someone’s handwriting. 

Enhance Customer Relationships

How many times have you had queries about a container’s whereabouts? Have customers ever argued that they haven’t received their product, or that they have already returned their empty containers to you?

By accurately tracking and monitoring the journey of individual assets, you’ll never have to deal with potentially incendiary conversations like this again.

Instead, you know exactly where your assets are, and your customers can be kept informed every step of the way. Accurate, real-time updates about the status of a shipment, its condition, and who’s handled it means issues can be promptly remedied – resulting in fewer delays or discrepancies, happier customers, and more robust long-term relationships.

Boost Your Safety And Green Credentials

Safety is also critical for businesses shipping potentially hazardous materials, and tracking can be a powerful tool for ensuring returnable assets are properly maintained and fit for purpose.

By logging information about inspections and repairs, and having a transparent chain of custody, employees and customers are better protected.

Traceability is particularly pertinent for companies dealing with products that are used for human consumption, such as the food and beverage industry, adds O’Dell. Should a recall ever be necessary, serialized tracking enables containers and their contents to be located quickly and easily, thereby minimizing any potential safety repercussions.

Returnable container management is also proven to have countless environmental benefits. With sustainability and the circular economy now a key pillar of most corporate strategies, asset tracking software empowers the reuse of packaging, ensures more efficient working practices, allows the adoption of robust maintenance programs and therefore provides greater longevity, and helps reduce waste and the need for unnecessary replacements.

Best Practice Makes Perfect

Businesses that tend to see the biggest gains when starting to track their returnable assets are those that follow these three simple steps:

• Get buy-in from everybody. Before you start your asset tracking journey, it’s important to get your team and wider organization onboard. Integrating your new software into your workflows doesn’t have to be complicated – but communication is key. This is, after all, a culture change that requires employees to work a little differently. Success is only possible if you’re collecting accurate data and following procedures correctly. It’s also a good idea to discuss the changes and benefits of tracking with your customers, so they fully understand their obligations and how it will help them.

• Plan and prepare properly. With TrackAbout as your software vendor, you’re guaranteed top service and support – but you’ll still need to think carefully about the implementation process, which will dictate not only how simple the set-up is but the overall effectiveness of your inventory management moving forward. You’ll need to carefully consider how you’re going to properly label all your assets – quite a feat if you’ve got thousands of cylinders in a warehouse, but perfectly manageable if you put appropriate plans in place. We can even arrange a visit to your facility to help with the initial tagging of your assets. Think about the information you want to capture and make sure your team fully understands what’s required of them to collect the data on a day-to-day basis. 

• Use the right tools and technologies. TrackAbout has various software modules available to suit your specific needs. Besides the core Tracking module, we have another six modules to choose from, including Proof of Delivery, Customer Portal, Bulk Delivery, Photo Capture, Palletization, and Maintenance. Next, you’ll need to decide whether to invest in dedicated devices to scan your barcodes and QR codes or download TrackAbout’s mobile app to your mobile phones and tablets. It’s also important to ensure you have good internet connectivity and that your facilities have reliable WiFi. 

There's certainly a lot to consider when introducing inventory management to your operation and some may find the process a little overwhelming, but TrackAbout's expert team is always on hand for advice and guidance, adds O'Dell. 

In the ever-changing landscape of supply chain management, the efficient handling of returnable containers is crucial for both operational success and environmental sustainability.

If you'd like to learn more about how effectively managing returnable assets can help improve business efficiency, boost productivity, and increase profitability, reach out to our sales team today at sales@trackabout.com.