How mastering your product mix can elevate On-Time, In-Full performance across complex material categories.
In distribution, On-Time, In-Full (OTIF) isn’t just a supply chain KPI—it’s a promise to the customer. And in the glass, ceramics, and refractories sector, where orders can include anything from custom-cut annealed glass to high-density alumina bricks, hitting that promise means having the right SKUs on hand when they’re needed. Strategic SKU planning is the lever that makes OTIF performance more predictable—and more profitable.
Let’s start with a core truth: your ability to deliver OTIF depends not just on logistics or inventory levels, but on whether you’re stocking the right mix of SKUs to begin with. This is especially important in industries with high product complexity and variable lead times. Stock too wide a range and your fill rates suffer due to underinvestment in high-demand SKUs. Stock too narrow a range and you risk backorders or lost orders when niche needs arise.
Consider a Midwest-based glass distributor who regularly ships to both curtain wall manufacturers and custom window fabricators. The OTIF rate hovered around 82%, far below the 95% target. A root-cause analysis showed most failures stemmed from stockouts in just 40 SKUs—mostly high-moving, standardized laminated sheets. Meanwhile, warehouse space was being eaten up by slow-turning decorative textures and custom tints.
By implementing strategic SKU planning, the team reclassified their catalog into demand tiers:
Core SKUs: High-volume, high-margin, short-lead-time items (e.g., ¼” clear laminated panels).
Strategic SKUs: Lower velocity, but critical for high-value customers or unique use cases (e.g., UV-filtered museum-grade glass).
Long-tail SKUs: Rarely ordered, low-margin, or single-customer items.
Stocking decisions were then aligned to each tier, with tighter reorder points on Core SKUs and build-to-order policies for Long-tail ones. Within two quarters, OTIF rates climbed to 93%, with fewer emergency shipments and reduced dead stock.
The story is similar in ceramics. Distributors serving industrial kilns and laboratory applications often face OTIF pressure due to the sheer dimensional variance in items like setters, tubes, and insulation boards. One Canadian ceramic distributor used SKU-level forecasting to spot seasonal spikes in cordierite kiln furniture demand—triggered by annual maintenance cycles in ceramics manufacturing. Pre-positioning those SKUs before the spike dramatically improved delivery rates.
Refractory distributors, meanwhile, often juggle dense bricks, castables, and mortars across multiple temperature ratings and installation styles. Without SKU-level planning, they run the risk of overstocking SKUs with outdated specifications or insufficient compressive strength. And when kiln shutdowns depend on fast turnarounds, the cost of a missed OTIF event is measured in days of lost production for the customer.
So what does strategic SKU planning entail?
Lead Time Mapping: Identify which SKUs have long supplier lead times and either buffer inventory or shift them to a make-to-order model.
Customer Usage Profiles: Know which customers order which SKUs, how often, and in what quantities.
Vendor Reliability Ratings: Don’t rely on SKUs from suppliers who can’t deliver reliably—no matter how niche or profitable.
Service-Level Prioritization: Not all SKUs deserve the same safety stock levels. Allocate based on OTIF sensitivity, not just past demand.
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Improving OTIF in the glass, ceramics, and refractories sector isn’t just a function of better freight or tighter SLAs—it starts with smarter SKU planning. By aligning your product mix with demand realities and operational priorities, you not only hit delivery targets more often, but do so while reducing waste and boosting margin. That’s the kind of supply chain maturity buyers remember—and reward.
