The Cubex® Q-Bud System

On the other hand, complex technology can make lives more difficult. A good example of this is the remote start on my car. I live in Idaho and, in the winter, I dislike getting dressed and going outside to start my car to warm it up. With remote start, I stay in my warm house and start my car with a push of a button. On the flip side, I recently wanted to edit some family home videos. I purchased some software and spent hours and hours before eventually giving up.

When I am looking at purchasing new technology, I ask myself two questions: Is it simple to use? Will it make my life easier? If I can answer “yes” to both questions, than it’s worth the purchase. The Cubex® Q-Bud system, offered through MWI Animal Health and its sister company, Micro Technologies, is both simple to use and will make your life easier. Let me explain.

When an individual is out treating an animal and runs out of a needed animal health product, this system offers a simple and fast way to obtain more product without interrupting daily activity.

For example, the individual would:

Enter a secure room where the Cubex Q-Bud system is installed.
Use his/her fingerprint to log into the Cubex Q-Bud system.
Select the task to be performed. If it’s taking product from the system, the individual finds the product on the shelves and presses the “Take” button on the Q-Bud. The Q-Bud communicates this wirelessly back to the computer.
The employee verifies on the computer monitor that what he or she took from inventory is accurate, clicks “exit” and then leaves the room.

This verification of information is important for a number of reasons: The system knows who took the product with a date and time stamp. It also knows that there is one less of that item; once the product is below the minimum level, it will automatically make a recommendation to the user to reorder that product back to its maximum level. This is the key to avoid running out of product.

Cubex Q-Bud Benefits

Features user-friendly reporting
Eliminates emergency stock outs
Automates inventory management potentially using existing shelves and coolers
Does away with manual processes by automating supply tracking and reordering
Enhances visibility to supply usage
Improves inventory accuracy with wireless automation technology
Identifies shrink or loss of product
Enhances employee accountability
Reduces inventory that is not often used, resulting in increased cash flow
Organizes an existing animal health room
Creates a standard operation procedure for employees

You might look at this and say, “Oh it’s easy to use the Cubex Q-Bud system to check items out, but surely it is going to require a lot of manual entry to get the items into the software.” The answer to that question: “It is simple to use and will make your life easier.”

The system makes the recommended order, and the individual who is ordering the animal health products approves the order. Once the order is approved, the Cubex Q-Bud system then automatically enters all items into the farm’s mwianimalhealth.com shopping cart. The product order is transmitted to MWI, product is pulled from the closest MWI warehouse and is then delivered next day.

Once the product arrives, the individual who is responsible for restocking the shelves enters the Cubex Q-Bud room and logs into the Cubex Q-Bud software with his/her fingerprint. The individual selects “Restock” on the computer screen and selects the Purchase Order that is related to the product delivered. Once this is done, the system lists everything the farm received. The individual verifies the order, accepts the PO into the system, and restocks the shelves with the product in its designated spot. The Cubex Q-Bud system has just been restocked and is now ready for use.

I have heard people say, “Well it’s a neat system but it probably won’t work at my facility.” I then ask these questions: “Do you use animal health products? Do you have a room where you store those animal health products? Do you dislike running out of product? Would you like to automate your current manual process?” If they answer “yes” to these questions, then Cubex Q-Bud is a great solution.

It’s easy to get started. We need a list of products you are currently using and a maximum number and a minimum number you want on hand for each item. We can adjust these numbers anytime. We evaluate your current medicine room and gather some employee information. An install usually takes place a couple of weeks after we receive back the product list. We work with the people who will be accessing the medicine room to organize it in a way that is comfortable for them. We install the hardware and computer. We cycle count all product into the Cubex Q-Bud system and finish with training. The install team is usually on site for a day and a half. The entire process is painless.

The bottom line: This truly is a system that is simple to use and will make your life easier. If you would like to learn more about the Cubex Q-Bud systems please contact Jerry Corman at jcorman@microtechnologies.com, Marcus Dorsey at mdorsey@microtechnologies.com.