The most expensive job of the day: searching for materials

Ask a technician what they enjoy doing most, and chances are the answer won't be: searching for materials. Yet it's something they deal with every single day. Checking whether an item is still in the service van, walking to the warehouse, calling a colleague, and eventually making a trip to the wholesaler anyway.

It may seem like a small part of the workday, but over the course of a year, it costs installation companies and contractors hundreds of productive hours. Time that adds no value for the customer and can't be billed.

Searching costs more than you think

Many companies underestimate how much time is lost searching for materials. If a technician spends just 15 minutes per workday looking for parts, a team of ten technicians loses more than 550 hours each year. That's the equivalent of nearly fourteen full working weeks.

Those hours don't appear anywhere on a report, yet you pay for them every single day through labour costs, project delays, and reduced productivity.

The problem lies in the process

When a technician has to search for materials, it's usually not their fault. They simply don't know where the item is. Is it still in the warehouse, in a service van, or has it already been taken to another project?

Without that information, searching becomes part of the workflow. Technicians call colleagues, check multiple locations, or reorder materials that are actually still in stock somewhere else.

From searching to finding

With BarTrack, every inventory location is assigned a unique inventory label, and materials are linked to a fixed location. Whether an item is in the warehouse, a service van, or on a project site, employees can instantly see where it is and how many are available.

As a result, technicians no longer have to search for materials, and planners can rely on accurate, up-to-date inventory information. This prevents unnecessary trips, duplicate orders, and a significant amount of wasted time.

Get more done with the same team

The labour market remains tight. That's why it's more important than ever to make the most of the capacity you already have. Every minute a technician doesn't spend searching for materials is a minute that can be spent on work that adds value.

BarTrack helps businesses gain full control over the entire material flow—from the warehouse to the service van, and from project inventory to returned materials. By reducing the time spent searching, companies increase productivity and can complete more work without hiring additional staff.

Summary

Searching for materials may seem like a small part of the workday, but over the course of a year it costs organisations hundreds of productive hours. The issue usually isn't the employee—it's the lack of visibility into where materials are located. With BarTrack, employees instantly know where materials are, reducing search time, increasing productivity, and enabling businesses to complete more work with the same workforce.