When you run a hotel you need to place orders for a multitude of items, from food to linens, alcohol to cleaning materials, and to place those orders you need to fill out a multitude of paperwork such as requisition forms and stock inventory information. By using a hotel EPOS (Electronic Point of Sale) system purchase orders can be created easily which can automate order management and help to reduce over and over ordering of items. Maximum or minim stock levels, as well as Point of Sale sales activities can be used to generate requisitions automatically. Displays of stock on hand will be shown when an order is created so that a rapid stock check can be made. Different modes can be used to create purchase orders and these are able to be saved for future reference and processing.
Food costs in the hotel industry are typically very high, but a hotel EPOS system can help to keep these costs to a minimum. When an order is delivered it can be matched easily for quantity and price verification against the original purchase order. This means that any mistakes can be seen immediately, which is especially useful if those mistakes are to the vendors benefit. An EPOS system also makes it easy to make any modifications to an order so that it can reflect the actual goods delivered. Delivery charges, invoice numbers and delivery notes can also be added to the EPOS order history.
Every business has the potential of having to deal with staff members who are not as honest as they should be, and the hotel industry is no exception. A hotel EPOS system can provide managers with a stock control system that is automated and in real-time, which can act as a strong deterrent to staff who may be feeling light-fingered. By knowing exactly which member of staff is as which EPOS at any one time, responsibility for missing or misplaced stock can be tracked and the appropriate action to be taken. It is also possible for the EPOS system to be linked to CCTV surveillance systems.
In larger hotels where there are numerous storage areas there is a need for transfers of stock to be made between bars, kitchens, stores and other locations. The hotel EPOS system creates multiple storage locations which can make it easier to track changes and transfers between stores. Variances in inventory and inventory reporting can be easily created by either store or outlet, and consolidating reporting made to head office will enable multi-venue areas of stock to be managed easily from one main and centralized location.
This is also an advantage for venues wanting to gain a greater control over their liquor inventories, as they can be linked to a monitoring system for beverages. The hotel EPOS system can track beer flow monitors, computerised dispensing caps and bottle top tags, so that poured alcohol can be monitored, helping to reduce any loss, spillage and waste. Each ounce poured can be compared within the EPOS inventory and accurate analysis then sent to a mobile or PC.