Medical supply distribution combines the hardest parts of several industries.
Products carry lot numbers and expiration dates, like food. Many are regulated, with identifiers that must be captured and traced. Customers buy through group purchasing contracts with pricing set by someone else. And when a manufacturer issues a recall, a distributor has to know within hours which customers received the affected lots.
This guide explains what medical supply distributors need from an ERP system and the scenarios to test before choosing one. For how to evaluate any distribution system, see our guide to distribution ERP software.
Most medical supplies are tracked by lot, many devices by serial number, and nearly everything by expiration date. That affects every step: receiving must capture lot and expiration, picking should follow first-expired-first-out (FEFO), expired stock must be blocked from shipping, and every shipment needs the lots recorded against the customer. Capturing this by barcode scan, rather than by hand, is what keeps it accurate. See serial number tracking for distributors.
Several regulations shape what medical distributors must capture and keep:
Requirements depend on exactly what you distribute and to whom, and they change over time. Check current FDA guidance and your regulatory advisors for your product mix, and make sure your system can capture and report the data those requirements call for.
Hospitals, clinics, and other providers often buy through group purchasing organization (GPO) contracts negotiated with manufacturers. The distributor sells at the contract price and then claims the difference from the manufacturer through a chargeback. That requires:
Errors here leak margin quietly. Ask every vendor to demonstrate contract pricing and chargebacks with your own contracts.
When a manufacturer recalls a lot, a distributor must quickly identify every customer who received it, notify them, quarantine remaining stock, and manage returns. With lot numbers captured at every step, that is a report. Without them, it is days of searching. Run mock recalls to prove the process works. See product recall management for distributors.
Inbound product may need inspection before release. Some items need temperature control, special storage, or restricted access. The system should support quarantine on receipt, holds and releases by lot, and location rules that keep products where they belong.
Healthcare customers often order by EDI or through procurement systems, want par-level or scheduled replenishment, and expect accurate, fast deliveries. A B2B portal and EDI reduce order-entry work and errors. See cloud ERP and EDI.
Real screens from Bizowie, not mockups. Click any screen to enlarge.
Bookings, open orders awaiting fulfillment, and inventory value at a glance.
Every receipt, transfer, build, and quarantine move by SKU, lot, bin, and location.
Purchase orders with approvals, receiving, ASNs, and vendor invoices on one screen.
Customers search items, place orders, and check order and invoice history themselves.
For GPO chargebacks and the specific regulatory data your products require, bring your contracts and processes to a demonstration so we can show you exactly how they would work.
“We have seen immediate economic benefit for our business in terms of productivity from our warehouse staff, eliminated processing errors, and better stock control.”
Julius Hart — Managing Director, LensesOnline
Have a question about your own system? Talk to the team that builds Bizowie.
When a distributor sells to a provider at a group purchasing contract price below the distributor's cost, the distributor claims the difference from the manufacturer. That claim is a chargeback.
In practice, yes. Lot and expiration tracking is essential for recalls, FEFO picking, and customer and regulatory requirements, and many devices are also tracked by serial number.
Unique Device Identification is the FDA's system for identifying medical devices through a unique identifier on their labels, which can include information such as lot, serial number, and expiration date.
Tell us what you distribute and how your customers buy. We'll show you how Bizowie would handle a mock recall and a contract-priced order, and if we are not the right fit, we will tell you.
Tell us a little about your operation and we’ll reply with an honest assessment of fit, not a sales pitch.
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