In high-demand industries like oil and gas, mining, and heavy off-highway equipment manufacturing, uptime isn’t a luxury — it’s the lifeblood of success. Every hour of production lost to missing components or extended lead times can translate into thousands of dollars in lost revenue, wasted labor, and damaged customer relationships.
Procurement and maintenance teams face the constant challenge of balancing inventory costs with production readiness. Too much stock ties up capital. Too little, and operations grind to a halt. The answer lies in preparation — and Southwest Steel Processing’s (SSP) Stocking Program was built to deliver exactly that.
Traditional stocking models are simple: put parts on the shelf and hope demand matches the forecast. But hope isn’t a strategy. SSP’s approach is different.
Our Stocking Program is built on a foundation of purchase orders (POs) and annual volume projections — allowing us to manufacture to your specific demand curve. This proactive approach ensures your forged components are already in production or in our controlled inventory pipeline before you need them, eliminating last-minute scrambling and unplanned downtime.
Rather than storing generic parts, SSP produces dedicated inventory based on your product mix and usage trends. Our system functions as an extension of your own production planning — you maintain flexibility while we handle the scheduling, logistics, and readiness.
How it works:
This model combines predictability, responsiveness, and fiscal control, transforming procurement from a reactive process into a competitive advantage.
When equipment sits idle waiting for a forging, the costs go far beyond the part itself. Missed deadlines, diverted labor, and contractual penalties all add up. Even worse, the reputational hit from delayed projects can last much longer than the downtime itself.
SSP’s Stocking Program prevents those problems before they start. By aligning production with your long-term needs, we ensure you always have access to the critical components that keep your equipment — and your business — running smoothly.
The result:
Preparation isn’t just about being ready for what’s next — it’s about maintaining confidence in every operational decision.
Procurement managers often face a tough balancing act: maintaining readiness without overburdening budgets. SSP’s Stocking Program bridges that gap through structured, predictable cost management.
With blanket POs, pricing is stabilized and tied to your projected volumes, insulating you from market volatility and raw material fluctuations. Meanwhile, the program’s design minimizes your carrying costs — you don’t have to warehouse excess parts or absorb capital tied up in unused inventory.
By shifting inventory responsibility upstream, SSP delivers the peace of mind that comes with cost control and supply chain visibility — two things that matter most when margins are tight and demand is unpredictable.
The SSP Stocking Program isn’t theoretical — it’s already working in the field.
In one partnership, a major OEM faced mounting pressure to reduce lead times and control costs. Traditional ordering wasn’t keeping pace with their production schedule, and the delays were beginning to impact customer deliveries.
SSP partnered with the customer to implement a no-cost ship-from-inventory stocking solution, tailored to their annual forecast. By producing to projection and maintaining dedicated inventory, SSP was able to ship critical forgings immediately upon request — at no additional cost for warehousing or expedited processing.
The result was a dramatic reduction in lead times and a stronger, more predictable supply chain.
Read the full case story here.
This real-world example underscores the value of proactive planning and demonstrates how SSP’s model can scale across multiple industries with equal success.
Global supply chains have grown increasingly fragile — extended transit times, unpredictable freight costs, and import delays have forced OEMs to rethink their sourcing strategies. SSP’s domestic forging and heat-treating operations in Newport, Arkansas provide a stable, high-quality alternative.
By keeping production close to home, SSP helps customers reduce risk while maintaining the flexibility needed to adapt to shifting market conditions.
This isn’t just about where your parts are made — it’s about the confidence that comes from knowing your supplier can deliver when it matters most.
At its core, the SSP Stocking Program is about partnership. It’s about aligning your goals for uptime, efficiency, and profitability with our expertise in forging, scheduling, and logistics. By forecasting together, we help ensure your success is never left to chance.
SSP’s long history of supporting mission-critical industries has shown one thing time and again: those who prepare, perform.
With the Stocking Program, you can:
Because at SSP, we don’t just forge components — we forge confidence, reliability, and readiness into every part we deliver.
Your operations deserve a partner who plans as far ahead as you do. Discover how SSP’s Stocking Program can reduce downtime, simplify purchasing, and stabilize your supply chain.
Contact our team to discuss your annual volume projections and create a custom stocking strategy that keeps your business moving forward.