Customer Overview
A large UK manufacturer operates a single-site facility with a workforce of more than 500 staff across multiple shifts. High production volumes drive heavy, continuous demand for fast-moving ancillary consumables — PPE such as gloves, safety glasses and ear plugs, along with cutting tools, abrasives, adhesives, and lubricant aerosols.
These items were held in an open, free-issue stores arrangement. With hundreds of staff drawing stock around the clock and no controls at the point of issue, consumption had become impossible to predict, budget for, or account for — and spend was climbing.
The Challenge
The stock of fast-moving consumables was out of control. Open access with no accountability was driving over-consumption, wastage and unpredictable cost:
- Consumables issued on an open, unmonitored basis — no record of who took what, when, or how much
- Over-consumption and wastage rife: items taken in excess, hoarded at workstations, or leaving site altogether
- Critical items still running out despite high spend — no reliable trigger to reorder before stock was gone
- Stores staff spending significant time manually issuing, chasing and counting stock instead of adding value elsewhere
- No usage data by department, cost centre or individual — impossible to hold anyone accountable or budget accurately
Orbic's Solution
Orbic carried out a usage review across the site and installed an Orbic rotary vending machine together with an accompanying locker unit, placing controlled, self-service issue right on the shop floor — available 24/7 across every shift.
Rotary (Carousel) Vending Machine
The rotary machine dispenses high-volume small items — gloves, safety glasses, ear plugs, blades and abrasives — one issue at a time. Every item dispensed is tied to an individual by PIN or fob, so each draw is recorded against a named user, department and cost centre.
Locker Unit
The locker unit handles larger or higher-value ancillary items such as bump caps, power-tool accessories and boxed PPE, with the same PIN or fob access control and full audit trail.
Vendor-Managed Inventory
Minimum and maximum stock levels were set for every line, with automatic replenishment alerts back to Orbic. This vendor-managed inventory arrangement keeps critical items in stock without the customer needing to monitor or reorder — the machine does it for them.
The result is a controlled point of issue that removes casual over-consumption, a live audit trail of every item taken, and full usage reporting the customer can break down by department and cost centre — turning an unmanaged free-issue store into a measured, accountable process.
Results
- 32% reduction in consumable usage — immediate impact from controlled point of issue
- Full traceability of every item drawn, by named user, department and cost centre
- Automated replenishment eliminated stock-outs on critical consumable lines
- Stores staff freed from manual issuing, counting and chasing
- Consumable spend brought under control and made predictable for the first time
- Usage reporting by cost centre enabling accurate budgeting and accountability
Why Orbic?
- Full site usage review before installation — right machine, right product mix, right location
- Rotary carousel and locker units covering both small high-volume and larger boxed items
- PIN and fob access tied to named users, departments and cost centres
- Vendor-managed inventory — Orbic monitors stock levels and replenishes automatically
- Live usage reporting available to management at any time
- Single-supplier arrangement covering both the machine and the consumables inside it