The warehouse tab on the item card in Business Central holds the advanced inventory fields you need when you run advanced warehouse management with bins, picks and put-aways. These fields let you control where an item is stored, how it is handled, how often it is counted, and whether it can be cross-docked.
You define the warehouse class code to control storage conditions such as dry or frozen. You use the special equipment code when an item needs a specific truck, gear or protection equipment. You set a put-away template code and a put-away unit of measure code to control how items move into the warehouse.
You use the physical inventory counting period code to define how often an item should be counted, and Business Central can generate counting suggestions automatically. You enable the cross-docking checkmark to move an item directly from receipt to outbound without putting it away on inventory first. For bar code scanning, Abakion recommends the item cross reference list with bar codes rather than the ADCS item identifiers in most cases.
Where the advanced warehouse fields are on the item card
On the item card in Business Central you have some basic inventory fields that are relevant for the warehouse, and then you have a set of advanced inventory fields on the warehouse tab. These advanced fields are relevant if you run advanced warehouse management with bins, picks and put-aways. When you do, you can add a lot of warehouse-specific information directly on the item.
Controlling where and how an item is stored
The first field is the warehouse class code. Here you define a code for where to store the item in the warehouse. If the item has specific needs, for example it has to be kept dry or frozen, you use the warehouse class code to control where it is placed by default.
The special equipment code is used when an item requires specific handling. If you need a special truck, special gear or protection gear to handle the item, you define that in the table you pick from on the item.
Put-away settings for the item
You can define a put-away template code to control which put-away routine is used for the item when it is placed into the warehouse.
You can also define a put-away unit of measure code. If the put-away unit differs from the base unit of measure or the purchase unit of measure, this lets you put the item away in another unit of measure when the warehouse handles it differently.
Physical inventory counting for the item
The physical inventory counting period code controls how often you want to count the item. Business Central can create counting suggestions automatically, and you set different values to define how frequently per year an item should be counted. This relates to a function that calculates those counting suggestions for you.
When you run that function, several fields are updated:
- Last physical inventory date: the last date the item was counted on the inventory. You can drill down to see it.
- Last counting period update: the last time someone ran the batch job that calculated when to count the item.
- Next counting start and end date: the period within which the item needs to be counted.
Item identifiers and bar code scanning with ADCS
The identifier codes are used with the ADCS functionality in Business Central. With ADCS you set up item identifiers per unit of measure and per variant, which makes it easy to scan the item directly per package or per item number on the inventory.
If you are not running ADCS, we normally suggest using the item cross reference list instead. You can set up item cross references with bar codes there. If you are handling ADCS on the warehouse, the item identifiers on the warehouse tab are the standard way to do it.
Cross-docking the item
The last field is the used cross-docking checkmark. When you enable it, the item is allowed to be cross-docked. That means if you have a demand on the outbound side, you can transfer the item directly from the receipt zone to the outbound zone using cross-docking, instead of putting it away on inventory and picking it again.
Q&A
When are the advanced warehouse fields on the item card relevant?
They are relevant when you run advanced warehouse management in Business Central with bins, picks and put-aways. If you do, you can add detailed warehouse handling information directly on the item.
What does the warehouse class code do?
It defines where to store the item in the warehouse based on specific storage needs, for example keeping it dry or frozen.
What is the special equipment code used for?
It defines the special equipment needed to handle the item, such as a special truck, gear or protection gear.
How do you control how often an item is counted?
You set a physical inventory counting period code on the item. Business Central uses it to create counting suggestions automatically and to calculate how frequently per year the item should be counted.
What gets updated when you run the counting calculation function?
It updates the last physical inventory date, the last counting period update, and the start and end date of the next counting period.
Should you use ADCS item identifiers or item cross references for bar codes?
If you are not running ADCS, Abakion normally recommends using the item cross reference list with bar codes. If you handle ADCS on the warehouse, the item identifiers on the warehouse tab are the standard way to set up bar code scanning.
What does the cross-docking checkmark do?
When enabled, it allows the item to be moved directly from the receipt zone to the outbound zone to meet outbound demand, instead of putting it away on inventory and picking it again.