FIFO

How it is used

Used in warehouses, on the shop floor and in accounting. Racks and lanes are designed so FIFO happens naturally, for example by loading from the back and picking from the front. In food and pharma, FEFO (first expired, first out) is often used instead.

Example sentences

1. Please follow FIFO: take the pallets with the oldest labels first.

2. The new flow racks make FIFO automatic for small parts.

Common collocations

• follow FIFO
• FIFO lane
• FIFO rule
• FIFO rack

Related terms

• inventoryAll the materials and products a company holds: raw materials, parts, work in progress and finished goods waiting to be sold.
• raw materialA basic material, such as steel coil, plastic granules or cotton, that a factory turns into parts or products.
• finished goodsProducts that are completely made, checked and ready to be shipped or sold to customers.
• kanbanA signal, usually a card or an empty bin, that tells the previous step or the supplier to make or deliver more parts. The Japanese word means 'signboard'.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

• FIFO · Food Science & Technology
• FIFO · Logistics & Supply Chain
• FIFO · Culinary Arts & Cooking

More terms: Inventory and Materials

• work in progress
• safety stock
• reorder point
• economic order quantity
• ABC analysis