Smart Shelves & Sensor-Managed Inventory Help Distributors Manage More Customers With Less Effort

Key Takeaways

• Manual VMI and on-site counts without the benefit of scanning apps or sensors limit how quickly distributors can scale.
  
  

• Sensors and electronic shelf labels (eLabels) automate replenishment and provide remote visibility.
  
  

• With inventory scales and sensors, distributors can manage more customers with fewer site visits and less labor.

Why Manual VMI Limits Growth

For decades, distributors have relied on manual Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) processes. Sales teams drive to customer locations, count items in bins, record quantities, and place replenishment orders. This hands-on approach builds relationships, but it also caps how many customers a team can handle.

Every hour spent driving or counting is an hour not spent growing the business. Site visits take time, fuel, and coordination. In industries like healthcare, aerospace, or defense, where facility access is restricted, on-site inventory management can be even more difficult.

Manual VMI also creates delays. If a customer uses parts faster than expected, the distributor may not know until the next scheduled visit. That lag can lead to stockouts, expedited orders, and missed revenue.

Automation changes the equation. By combining smart shelf sensor solutions such as TrackStock SensorBinsdistributors gain continuous insight into customer inventory levels without stepping foot on-site. While electronic shelf labels don’t provide quantity on hand insights, they do enable customer self-service ordering without VMI reps needing to go onsite. 

Sensor Options for Remote Inventory Management

Modern distributors have multiple sensor technologies available for remote VMI and CMI (Customer Managed Inventory). 

1. Smart Shelves Inventory Scales

Weight-based sensors measure changes in bin weight to calculate quantity remaining. When the bin’s weight drops below a preset minimum level, the system sends a reorder alert through the TrackStock software into the distributor’s ERP system. SensorBins from eTurns are one of the most widely used examples.

They integrate directly with the TrackStock platform to optimize and automate replenishment, allowing distributors to track usage by bin, part, or customer location, all from a single dashboard.

2. RFID-Based Tracking for Digital Kanban

RFID sensors use tags and readers to detect movement in and out of storage areas. These systems are ideal for managing higher-value assets or items that need tight control but can be more complex and costly to deploy than weight-based sensors.

3. Electronic Shelf Labels (eLabels)

eLabels from eTurns display live product data such as part numbers, minimum and maximum levels, and reorder status directly on the label. Customers can initiate replenishment requests with the correct package quantity with the press of a button, allowing distributors to offer self-service VMI/CMI programs that still feed data into the same VMI system.

Together, these tools enable a “virtual VMI” model where data replaces in-person counting, and sales teams can oversee and auto-replenish dozens, or even hundreds, of customer sites remotely.

How Smart Shelves Extend Your Sales Team’s Reach

Smart shelves, such as the TrackStock SensorBins solution, act like an extra set of hands for your sales team. Instead of visiting each customer to verify quantities, your team receives accurate, real-time inventory data on demand through the eTurns dashboard.

This visibility allows distributors to:

• Serve more customers with the same number of reps
  
  

• Focus on higher-value tasks like relationship management and strategic selling
  
  

• Identify usage trends to forecast demand and optimize purchasing
  
  

CASE STUDY: 

A real-world example comes from Gexpro Services, which deployed SensorBins for a manufacturing customer in Colorado. By implementing sensor-based replenishment, Gexpro eliminated stockout-related downtime, reduced on-hand inventory by 10%, and saved its customer $200,000 annually in administrative costs by removing purchase orders and manual order handling.

The solution also cut monitoring time in half for Gexpro’s own team, since they no longer needed to travel to the site to visually check stock. With real-time visibility and automated replenishment, both the distributor and manufacturer gained efficiency, control, and confidence in their supply chain.

How Electronic Shelf Labels Extend Your Sales Team’s Reach

While inventory scales monitor quantity automatically, electronic shelf labels allow for self-service replenishment. 

eLabels display part data to customers, including minimum and maximum levels, default reorder quantity, and live reorder status such as “on order”, “backordered” and “shipped”. When customers need more, they can press the “order” button directly on the label, triggering a replenishment request through the eTurns system.

For distributors, this creates a powerful form of shared visibility. Customers can manage their own stock while still feeding data into the distributor’s VMI platform. This hybrid VMI/CMI setup strengthens trust, simplifies ordering, and reduces unnecessary site visits—all while keeping the distributor in control of data and delivery.

Cost and ROI: Doing More With Fewer Site Visits

Manual VMI requires constant travel and manual labor. Each visit costs time, fuel, and staff hours that could be spent on higher-value activities. Remote management changes that dynamic.

By using sensors and scales to automate replenishment, distributors can:

• Reduce truck rolls and travel costs
  
  

• Eliminate most manual counts
  
  

• Serve smaller or remote accounts profitably
  
  

• Increase total customers managed per sales rep
  
  

For example, if a sales rep can handle 25 sites per week manually, remote visibility through SensorBins can increase that number to over 100 sites. The result is a leaner, more efficient sales operation with measurable ROI.

Distributors often recover their investment in a few months through lower operational costs, faster turns, and improved customer satisfaction. Use the eTurns ROI Calculator to learn more. 

Hybrid Model: Sensors + Mobile Counting

Not every customer requires full automation. For some, a blended approach works best.

By combining sensors for high-volume consumables with mobile scanning for slower items, distributors can scale efficiently while keeping costs balanced.

The TrackStock app allows reps or customers to scan barcodes or QR codes for replenishment. When paired with SensorBins and eLabels, the result is a flexible system that adapts to each customer’s needs.

This hybrid strategy lets distributors expand gradually, automating where it matters most while maintaining control over less critical areas.

FAQs

How do sensors change the VMI model?

They transform VMI from a manual inperson process into a remotely managed, automated,data-driven model. Sensors provide continuous visibility and automatic reorder triggers so sales teams can manage inventory remotely.

Can sensors work with existing customer systems?

Yes. eTurns integrates with ERP systems and supplier portals so that sensor data flows seamlessly into existing workflows.

How do I decide which customers to start with?

Begin with customers that are farthest away, have restricted access, or consume high volumes of low-cost parts. These accounts see the fastest ROI from automation.

Can my customers use electronic shelf labels for self-service VMI/CMI replenishment?

Absolutely. eLabels allow customers to reorder directly from the label while keeping the distributor in control of fulfillment. It’s a seamless way to offer both VMI and CMI through the same platform.