How to Prevent Errors Within Maintenance BOMs

For BOMs to be adequate they must be complete and accurate which means that they must be free from errors. BOMs that contain errors and give workers incorrect information can lead to major disruptions within a warehouse. When you are in the process of building BOMs or upgrading existing ones, take the following steps to ensure that your BOMs will be error free.

Avoid Spreadsheets

Many companies use manual effort to maintain BOM data which can not only be costly and time consuming, but can result in a higher rate of errors. Spreadsheets can possibly work in small-mid sized companies but they must be kept up-to-date frequently to avoid mistakes, and even then they can be complex and difficult to manage. The complexity of spreadsheets can make it difficult for workers to find spare parts as they will have to sift through multiple sheets to find what they are looking for without assurance that it is accurate and up-to-date.

Consistent Formatting

Formatting through consistent naming conventions helps make things clearer for workers. If on the other hand, an employee formats certain parts one way and another employee formats parts another way then it can lead to a lot of confusion. If data is incorrectly interpreted as a result of inconsistent formatting then it can lead to errors when new data is created based on that interpretation. Aside from standardized naming conventions, it’s also key to have consistently formatted parts descriptions, manufacturer names, file names and more.

Keep Track of BOM Building Process

When building BOMs it is important to keep track of the progress. Keeping track of progress prevents errors from occuring and keeps everyone involved on the same page. Also, it avoids duplication of effort, inefficiency and allows you to tackle the task in prioritized way that delivers the most benefit to your business.

How We Can Help

NRX AssetHub can reduce the amount of time it takes for you to build BOMs and provide a cloud based interface that can allow you to easily keep track of the BOM building process to prevent errors from occurring. To learn more about how we can help to build or improve BOMs, contact us to book a demo or download our brochure.