Inventory and transfers

Inventory holds the current owned quantity for a product, warehouse, location, lot and custody state. The legal entity remains part of the identity even when companies share a physical site. Quantity on hand, reserved quantity and available quantity answer different questions. A sales order can claim available stock through a reservation without removing it from the books or implying it has shipped.

Stock layers retain the remaining quantity and carrying value of an accepted receipt, production output or return. Movements and their source event explain changes to a position. A transfer moves the same entity’s stock between warehouses while recording owned transit until the destination acknowledges the exact received portion.

• Stock identity. Product, entity, warehouse, location and lot distinguish the position being moved or counted.
• Exclusive claims. Reservations prevent the same remaining stock from being promised to another demand line.
• Movement evidence. A stock event groups physical movement with its valuation and journal effect.

Name each warehouse’s permitted entities and its receiving, storage, picking, dispatch and held locations. Agree which products require lot identity and which product units convert into the base unit. Warehouse Manager needs an explicit source and destination for each transfer; the destination should not become available merely when the source dispatches it. Finance Manager owns the cost and posting basis where movement changes carrying value.

Set the count policy before opening a count. A scoped lock preserves the counted population, including newly appearing identities. Warehouse Operator records blind observed quantities; review and any adjustment remain separate from the observation. A count variance does not rewrite an old receipt or shipment.

A receiving warehouse accepts part of an order of stocked valves. The accepted portion creates owned inventory at a location and a remaining layer at its reviewed standard cost. A customer order reserves some units. Warehouse Manager approves a transfer of the unreserved remainder to another warehouse. Source dispatch creates transit quantity; a partial destination receipt reduces only the received portion. The rest remains visible in transit until reconciled.

Now count the destination location. Confirm that the count snapshot shows its exact entity, product and lot, while source, transit and destination quantities remain distinct. If the observed amount differs, an independent adjustment records a new event and value. Repeating a source event must not create duplicate stock.

• Warehouse availability — Staff compare owned, reserved and available quantity at a named location.
• Transfer review queue — Warehouse Manager checks the source, destination and requested scope.
• Production schedule — Operations sees released demand that may need material issue.

See stock through assembly and order through settlement.