Design and creative production: Inventory software for product design studios
Inventory software for product design studios that tracks prototype parts, material samples and test rigs, so you know what is on hand, which project is using it and what is still usable.
Where stock drifts for product design studios.
The workshop shelves at product design studios are packed: material samples from suppliers, loose components such as switches and small motors, leftover prototype parts and models from finished projects. Nobody knows exactly what is there. A designer orders a stepper motor that was already sitting in a drawer, or picks a sample of a plastic the supplier no longer makes. A prototype that should have been kept for a client gets stripped for parts. When a client asks about a model from a few years back, nobody knows whether it still exists or where it is. On top of that, some parts belong to the client.
Inventory software for product design studios
Example- 1
Register samples and parts
DoneMaterial samples, components and prototype parts get a record with location, supplier and, where relevant, the project they belong to.
- 2
Reserve items per project
In progressA designer who needs a component or sample reserves it for their project.
- 3
Keep or release prototypes
NextWhen a project closes, the project lead decides for each prototype whether it is kept, returned to the client or can be taken apart.
From receipt to use.
Register samples and parts
Material samples, components and prototype parts get a record with location, supplier and, where relevant, the project they belong to. A label or code on the bin makes them easy to find. For each sample you note properties designers often look for, such as finish, hardness or colour code, so the register also works as a library.
Reserve items per project
A designer who needs a component or sample reserves it for their project. A colleague then sees that the last sensor of that type is already spoken for. Parts supplied by the client are marked as theirs and cannot be used on other projects.
Keep or release prototypes
When a project closes, the project lead decides for each prototype whether it is kept, returned to the client or can be taken apart. That decision is in the register. A kept model gets a fixed location, so it can be found quickly if a follow-up question comes in.
Alongside your purchasing and suppliers.
Studios currently track this in a spreadsheet, on labels or in the workshop manager's head. Orders from suppliers go through email or web shops and sit in the accounts. We decide what gets registered and who manages the workshop register. The accounting package remains the source for purchasing and invoices; the register is about what is physically present. The client owns supplied parts and, after handover, the prototypes. The studio looks after them while they are in the workshop.
Register everything or only valuable parts
Registering every screw is unworkable. Registering only expensive or hard-to-get components covers most problems. Material samples are a category of their own: cheap, but time-consuming to hunt for. A studio that does a lot of material selection benefits from a sample library even if the samples themselves are worth little.
Keep prototypes or clear them out
Keeping them takes space, but an old prototype is sometimes exactly what a client wants to see for a follow-up project, or what helps in an intellectual property discussion. Clearing them out frees space but cannot be undone. A fixed review at project close, with an owner for each kept model, stops the workshop filling up with forgotten models.
One workshop manager or everyone registers
A single manager keeps registration consistent but becomes a bottleneck when absent. Letting everyone register is faster but quality varies. A combination often works: anyone can reserve and take items, and the manager periodically checks that the register matches what is actually on the shelves.
Clients in other industries.
No customer story from this industry yet. This is how the software works for businesses elsewhere.
All customer stories
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Read the storyWhich stock we record.
Components, material samples and prototypes are recorded with location and trajectory, with reservations per trajectory and, on completion, a fixed choice of what happens to each prototype. The workshop manager helps decide which categories go first. We run an ordinary workshop week together and a week when a client unexpectedly asks for an old prototype back. A searchable sample library and alerts for nearly exhausted components are switched on later.
View pricingSupport and updatesGood to know.
Explore pricing and optionsDo we have to take stock of the whole workshop at once?
No. You start with newly arriving parts and samples and with prototypes from current projects. Older stock gets registered as you come across it or need it. The register builds up without the workshop standing still for a week of counting.
How do we tell client-supplied parts from our own stock?
Supplied parts are marked on arrival with the client and project name. They can only be reserved for that project. When the project closes you see which parts need to go back, so nothing ends up in another model by mistake.
Can we track which material samples are still available?
You can record the supplier and date received for each sample, and flag it when you learn the material has been discontinued. A designer choosing a sample then sees whether it is still a realistic option for production.
Does it work with labels or codes on the bins?
Yes. Each shelf or bin can get a label with a code that can be scanned with a phone. You see what belongs there and can quickly take or return items. It also works without labels, but finding things takes longer.
What often connects to this.
- Digital job cards for product design studiosDigital job cards for product design studios in the form of a prototype card with a change log, so every adjustment made to a prototype finds its way back into the specification and design file.
- Website for product design studiosA website for product design studios that explains which design services and prototype types exist, when each one makes sense and what a client should know before the first meeting.
- Enquiry form for product design studiosAn enquiry form for product design studios that asks about product function, users, constraints and the intended manufacturing route, so the first estimate rests on more than an idea.
Know what is really there.
Start with a short intake. Then we schedule a call to show the software with your services, team and way of working.
WhatsAppinfo@vorlyo.com Inventory software for product design studios: prototype parts, material samples and models per project, showing what is available and what is reserved.
- Register samples and parts
- Reserve items per project
- Keep or release prototypes