Here at 888Lots we go through a huge volume of inventory daily – bringing in boxes and repackaging to create our specialized lot categories for you. Looking around the warehouse we are amazed by the number of tools we use to help us process our inventory faster – cutting, scanning, wrapping, cleaning, printing etc. would take a lot of time if we didn’t have them. Many of these tools are invaluable to our business, and thought we should share a list of our favorites that we use all the time. They will help you become more efficient in processing stock for your customers, and make your business run more smoothly.
Also remember that tools are tax deductible, so they can also bring down your taxable income too – bonus!
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EZ Box Cutter 1000 Series / Easy Safety Box Cutter
When you have a lot of boxes coming in you need one of these around! Multi blade settings mean you won’t damage what’s inside your package either. They’re light-weight, and the automatically retracting blade means they’re safer than some other kinds of knives.
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Scotty Peeler Label & Sticker Removers
Plastic and metal – We always have these around, they remove unwanted labels off products easily and can open boxes and cut them down when you can’t put your hand on your box cutter. They work great and are inexpensive.
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Goo Gone Spray Gel
As the title says, removes anything sticky or gummy from most surfaces, we use it to get rid of tape and label residue mostly – anything left over from the Scotty Peeler.
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DYMO LabelWriter 450 Turbo Thermal Label Printer
We love that it doesn’t need to be fed ink to work – we use it mostly for postage and barcodes, but it can be used to print out fragile box warnings or any other box label you might need. Hooks right up to your computer and you can print right from Outlook, Excel etc.
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Better Packages P3S Packer 3s Tape Dispenser
This is our go to tape dispenser – simple to use and you really only need one piece of tape for each end of the box. Don’t go cheap on this item, simple dispensers break easily and will just give you a headache.
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Aviditi Sizer Carton Sizer/Reducer
This product is great, since you don’t want to incur extra weight charges on large boxes, and you don’t want to throw out those big boxes either, for around $15 you can easily cut bulky boxes and reuse them. Problem solved.
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iTouchless Bag Re-Sealer
Professional looking resealing of existing packages, or to seal poly bags when you’re creating bundles – no glue or heat required. With the magnetic backing you can stick it on a filing cabinet or shelving so it’s always in reach. Earns its place in our top 10 easily.
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Zebra / Motorola Symbol DS4208-SR Handheld Barcode Scanner / Imager
Where would we be without the scanner! Typing in a lot of barcodes by hand, that’s where we’d be. The scanner only takes minutes to set up, scans easily barcodes that may seem too shiny, or small, and even manages many damaged codes.
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Bestine Solvent and Thinner
A really gentle glue and rubber cement remover, works really well even removing glues and residue off of paper. Also makes hard and old glue sticky again, so very useful around the warehouse.
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Self Sealing Polly Bags
Last but not least poly bags… ! We use them to group smaller items and keep goods clean and protected. There are 5 sizes of these: 8×10, 9×12, 11×14, 14×20 and 14×20. We always have them around!
There are many more tools we use around here, but these are the ones we’re always reaching for, smoothing out the processing of inventory, and have the greatest impact on our business. We are always trying out new tools, the more efficient our business the better! What are your must-have tools? Share yours in the comments section.
