WHAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN AN INVENTORY

How to Write an Effective Inventory

An inventory is a detailed list of all the items in either an institution or an organisation. For instance, in a school setting, there are items like buildings, furniture, textbooks, games, etc. Usually, it is hard to know off-hand the number and condition of items in such an institution, but with a proper, well-organised record-keeping system, it becomes easy for managers to keep track of all the items and their condition, hence the need for inventories..

All institutions are therefore required to keep inventories of all the properties they own for the purposes of insurance or clear record-keeping for future reference and accountability. It is vital to keep in mind that a good inventory should contain the following sections in order to capture all the important details required:

• Quantities of items

• descriptions and specifications of particular items.

• Date of purchase or delivery

• Date of issue to the user(s)

• signature of the person who has issued the item from the storekeeper

• Balance of items after each issuance

• condition of the item

 

Since we have understood the important sections to include in the inventory, let us now examine why it is important to keep an inventory. An inventory is important since it helps:

       i.    To keep a check on what you have.

    ii.      To keep a record of what needs to be replaced or repaired.

 iii.        To provide the basic information for quick auditing.

 iv.         To eliminate pilfering (employee stealing) of institution property.

    v.         To ease the job of store keeping and general institution management.

 vi.          To give information on items that need to be constantly replaced.

 

A Sample of An Inventory

 

Mariachi Girls’ High School Inventory

S/n	Item	Quantity	Description	Date of Purchase	Condition	Units issued	Signature	Balance	Item Value Ksh
1	Bus	1	Isuzu 54-seater	2019	New				7 Mil
2	Buildings	9	permanent	1982	Good				100 mil
3	Computers	40	Desktops	2018	Good	45		5	1 mil
4	Books	1000	Textbooks	2019	Good	550		450	2 mil
5	Desks	700	wooden	2017	Good	550		150	1mil
6.	Chairs	800	wooden	2018	Good	600		200	1 mil

 

KATMAI GIRLS’ HIGH SCHOOL INVENTORY AS AT 4th MARCH,2020

S/NO	ITEM CATEGORY	ITEM	QUANTITY	DESCRIPTION	APPROXIMATE VALUE KSH
1	Laboratory Equipment	Test tube Microscope	15 5	Good condition Damaged	1200 9800
2	Electronics	Radios Computers Printers	3 50 6	Damaged New ones Working	74000 120000 70000
3	Furniture	Teachers’ tables Staffroom chairs Classroom chairs Students’ lockers Office cupboards	50   49   1600     1600   50	Good Condition   Newly Bought   Good Condition     New ones   Good Condition	100000   150000   5000000     200000   50000
4	Games Equipment	Footballs Volley balls Basketballs Nets Uniforms Whistles	20 25 30 10 50 19	New ones Punctured Good condition Old New ones Good condition	50000 20000 10000 5000 100000 2000

Records Kept By: Job Sum

                              (Signature)

                              School Store Keeper.

Find out how to write an internal memo here.

Assignment

Design an inventory using the subject given below, you can estimate the values of items and use imaginary dates of purchase for the items.

a) Design an inventory of all the items in your class

b) Design an item of all the items in your house/home

c) Design an inventory of all the things you own.