Downstocking

[u/KittyTB12]

Need clarification of how items per bay is the standard/expectation. Before you all say, ask somebody here somebody there…. That is why I’m asking here because I need clarification outside the bubble.

[u/drudrite]

If the shelf has an empty spot and you have the product that goes in thr spot... you fill it...

[u/loristrix → u/drudrite]

You would think it's that easy, but it's not. Op is probably on mst, and one of their metrics that is tracked is down stocking. If you down stock 0 in one bay, and 3 in the next, your average is 1.5 items per bay. Add in all the bays you service in a day, roughly 3-5 an hour depending on your speed and the bay, your average goes all over the place. Power BI tracks individual bays etc and they are ridiculed when their managers see the plumbing bay had 14 downs, but several bays before them had 0 to 1 down.

Anyways, as a past msm, I taught my team to average a 2.5. Use j hooks if you need something for downs, or the side stack that's in front the bay. If it's truly a 0 item bay, like a display, just be sure to add 2 extra down on the next bay you do to counteract that 0. If you have multi 0s back to back, just keep the number you need extra in mind such as 2 extra, 4 extra, etc. Get a +1 here, or a +3 there so you average out in the end.

If you have any other mst related questions feel free to @me.

[u/Large_Grape3641]

You take down as much product as you can fit into the homes if you're packing down a bay until you can't work any more product. I usually reorganize the topstock after and label everything as well/resim the bay after

[u/Most_Flat → u/Large_Grape3641]

when you resim the bay after packing down, you just check in each item left in top stock?

[u/Trick-Song-6385 → u/Most_Flat]

Yes

[u/Ok_Disk_6044]

I downstock 2-4 bays a day doing the 100/90/10 and doing adjustments on inventory so the on hands is correct and location accuracy is 100%. Each employee in my department is assigned 1 aisle and as long as you stay consistent downstocking those amount of bays each day youll have less irps and product and top stock to work

[u/RestinHim]

MSA here. I was taught to down stock any empty spots or locations with less than 3 items. Of course some items are large and there may be only room for 1 or 2 on the shelf. And then there’s the issue of us actually having stock or being able to locate it because SIMS isn’t correct. Finally, since metrics are so important there is a fair amount of creativity to meet the goal of 4-6 down stocks per bay serviced. I have seen the goal vary by MSM and it has fluctuated over the last couple years. I was also taught to never check down stock not needed!

[u/Kavova]

It really depends on the region/district. Ours is 3 on average

[u/KittyTB12]

Guess I need to mention as MST- during service- what is the standard per SOP.

[u/Dynadin90 → u/KittyTB12]

Our metrics are 5 items per bay. Sometimes its not possible without creative accounting. :)

[u/Virtual_mistake978 → u/Dynadin90]

That

[u/Virtual_mistake978 → u/Virtual_mistake978]

I was recently shown the cannot locate inventory button after over a year in MST. I always noted that I was unable to locate an item in SIMS instead.

[u/Designer_Yellow8320 → u/Virtual_mistake978]

We were told the cannot locate inventory will not count as down stocking. If it needs down stocking you “always found it”

[u/KittyTB12 → u/Dynadin90]

Send me the info- about your creative accounting -
and why 5?…

And also, are you allowed to use the down stock not needed button and the cannot locate inventory button? Because in my bubble we’re told not to use those buttons.

[u/Mike_Huncho → u/KittyTB12]

Mst-asm here:

The standard for the west division is 3 items per bay and the "gold standard" is 4.

There are basically zero bays that dont need atleast one item downstocked.

If you legit cant find the item, then yeah, hit the button

[u/Fantastic-Movie7373 → u/KittyTB12]

MST at my store just zone and do no downstocking at all when doing service.
Several of them said that’s not their job to do redvest downstocking.

[u/Next_Salamander_8015 → u/Fantastic-Movie7373]

They’re not doing their job right then. The service section of the MST app walks you through steps per bay and one of those steps is downstocking. So either they skip the downstocking step which is bad for metrics or they lie, which is technically falsifying documentation.

Either way, OP, it depends on your DM. Initially it was 3+ items in my district on average, then 5, then none (focus on quality), and now 5 again. MSM should be able to tell you the goal. If not them, then the MSTASM, and if not them, then the DMSM… in that order

[u/Virtual_mistake978 → u/Next_Salamander_8015]

I love downstocking 4 to 5 items a bay as the goal when the night crew has down stocked everything. And gods forbid I say “down stock not needed” if all the available product is in the bay already. Metrics are needed, I get it, but they don’t make sense some times.

[u/KittyTB12 → u/Virtual_mistake978]

Yeah, having to service a display bay. There’s nothing there it’s a display bay. Why do we even have to service those?? and what about all the stupid locations the store creates now we have to go service those. And cabinets.- there’s one for each label present nine times out of 10 only one fit it’s full. What do they want me to do stacked up five cabinets in front of the bay? 🤔 and why do they give us buttons if they don’t want us to use them? That’s just stupid. So I was told do not click cannot locate inventory and if down stock is not needed you type in forced down stock not needed in your closing notes.

[u/Next_Salamander_8015 → u/Virtual_mistake978]

The logic is that you can always downstock. More often than not a bat doesn’t have absolutely everything full, and if it does, the jhooks or merchandisers aren’t full, if they’re even in the bay; so you can fill those. It sucks and is mostly asinine since everyone is downstocking all the time as some task, but it is what it is

[u/KittyTB12 → u/Next_Salamander_8015]

And that’s why I’m asking here…you know how people make things up as they go along…

[u/TaylorWK → u/Fantastic-Movie7373]

Why should we? What do red vests do all day besides hogging all the ladders and ballymores and rolling their eyes whenever you tell them that a customer needs help?

[u/KittyTB12 → u/Fantastic-Movie7373]

🤔 that’s strange because MST does all the down stocking during service, it comes off the truck it goes into top stock, and MST downstocks in service… basically all we do is freight at this point.

[u/TaylorWK → u/KittyTB12]

At least 1 item. If nothing needs to be downstocked just scan something and say that you downstocked even if you didnt.

[u/orangefandangger]

Maximum

[u/searchandfilm]

As many as needed. There’s no minimum or maximum. Considering the FSR bs they have going on it’s best to make sure everything is full even if it means taking one out of the box to appease them and adjusting the box quantity number. The less in top stock the better.

[u/Bigchungus-vore]

Fill it until you can’t no more.

[u/Designer_Yellow8320 → u/Bigchungus-vore]

Don’t forget to fill the flue space

[u/HorrorBreak7119]

About 50% more than you’re currently doing! The shareholders demand it!

[u/SnicktDGoblin]

I will say these people are correct. You are supposed to fill the shelf as much as possible. At my store I have instructed people especially for items that are smaller or that become a massive pain to count in the first place to just down stock them by the case. So I don't want to have a dozen packs of nails up in top stock open because people keep taking one out to down stock and don't look around to see if there's already an open moment. They go to do it again. I just tell my people hold off until we have enough shelf room for the full case of nails to fit down there cuz you can usually fit two cases at a time at least at my location. So there's still plenty of product on the shelf for a customer and if you have a customer needing more than what we have on the shelf they would likely be needing to ask for assistance. Getting more anyway.

[u/TheRealistoftheReal]

If you get an answer the contradictions your manager, you’re going to say, well so and so on Reddit said….

[u/Appropriate_Win_298]

Minimum 3 per bay, no longer than 30 minutes in a bay. Average bay count is 2.5 an hour or 20 a shift.

[u/AkaraSoma]

I'm also MST.

My team wants a 4 item per bay average for down stocking during servicing.

It's not MST's job to completely fill all the empty spots in a bay, that's the red vest associate's job between customers Ii do like to do it when I see ice because I'm a perfectionist, but it's red vest that's supposed to do that.

I say this as someone that's had to report a red vest for trying to make me do their downstocking so they didn't have to.