Stock and transfers

Inventory records an entity’s product quantity at a warehouse and location, with a lot number when applicable. Custody state separates available goods from held, picked, in-transit and production quantities. Warehouse Manager can see what is on hand, reserved and still available for an order. A dealer commitment should reserve only eligible available stock; physical ownership and the ability to promise a carton are related but different questions.

Stock events keep the source of each change. Picking, transfer dispatch, receipt, return, production output and count adjustment produce distinct evidence. Stock layers preserve cost provenance while the inventory position remains the current balance. This is useful when the same cosmetic item arrives in separate lots at different costs and only one lot is allocated to an order.

• Position. Product, entity, warehouse, location, lot and custody identify the available balance.
• Movement. A stock event and movement connect a physical change to its source and accounting effect.
• Review. Transfer and count decisions limit who can release goods or adjust a discrepancy.

A transfer has an explicit source and destination. Dispatch places the quantity in transit, and receiving consumes the exact remainder. A second receipt must not create duplicate stock. Count locks protect the selected scope while a blind count is taken; the expected quantity remains fixed for review.

List the entity ownership for each warehouse, allowed locations and which products require lot control. Agree whether a warehouse is permitted to hold stock for more than one entity. Set who can reserve, pick, release and receive a transfer, and which variance needs Finance Manager review. Count tolerance values should reflect the business’s actual unit and value risk.

The team should also decide how held and damaged lots are segregated. A change of status should have a reason and a stock event. If expiry allocations are used for dealer orders, confirm the order line, lot, expiry date and quantity before promising a shipment. That is an allocation aid; the actual inventory position remains the quantity authority.

Receive two lots of the same product into one warehouse. Reserve a quantity from one available position for a dealer order. Start a transfer for the other lot, dispatch part of it and receive only that dispatched amount at the destination. Check that in-transit quantity is still owned once, and that an attempted duplicate receipt is rejected. Count a selected location while another user tries to change the locked scope; review the variance before any adjustment posts.

• Available lot stock — Product and lot quantities with reservations and free balance.
• Count schedule — Planned and active counts with start and end times.
• Order progress board — Dealer commitments that may need allocation or release.

Read stock to counted balance and dealer commitment to dispatch. Confirm the implementation sequence before migration.