Solution
Safety stock: the emergency reserve in your warehouse
Safety stock (also called buffer stock) is the reserve quantity that absorbs fluctuations: unexpectedly high consumption, late deliveries or scrap. It is not touched in normal operations and enters the minimum-stock calculation as a buffer. Too little reserve risks downtime, too much ties up capital — it is about the right amount per item.
Last updated: · Lavesy editorial team
Sound familiar?
- A delivery delay or extra consumption – and stock suddenly hits zero.
- Blanket buffers ("always 20 %") fit A-items and C-items equally badly.
- Nobody checks whether the reserve still matches actual consumption.
How Lavesy helps
Buffer inside the minimum stock
Safety stock feeds into the minimum-stock threshold that Lavesy monitors.
Consumption in view
The movement history shows real consumption – the basis for a realistic buffer.
Per item instead of blanket
Critical items get more reserve, uncritical ones less – adjustable individually.
Easy to re-tune
Thresholds can be adjusted anytime when consumption or lead times change.
How it works
- 1Rule of thumb to start: safety stock ≈ daily consumption × buffer days.
- 2Choose the buffer time by criticality (downtime cost vs. tied-up capital).
- 3Feed the result into the minimum-stock formula and store it in Lavesy.
- 4After a few weeks, compare it against real consumption from the history.
Frequently asked questions
What is safety stock?
The reserve quantity that absorbs consumption and lead-time fluctuations and is not touched in normal operations – the warehouse’s "emergency reserve".
How do you calculate safety stock?
Common rule of thumb: daily consumption × desired buffer days. More precise methods account for the variance of consumption and replenishment time.
Does safety stock count as available stock?
It is physically there, but should not be planned against – it exists precisely for the exceptional case.