To work with warehouse documents in Business Central, you must be set up as a warehouse employee. The warehouse employee setup links your user ID to one or more location codes. You can only see and work with warehouse documents on the locations you are assigned to.
If you cannot see warehouse shipments, picks, or put-aways for a location, the most common cause is that your user ID is not set up as a warehouse employee for that location.
You can mark one location as the default location in the warehouse employee setup. You can only have one default location per user. Business Central uses the default location to suggest which location your warehouse activities apply to.
Why a warehouse employee setup is required in Business Central
Before a warehouse employee can work with warehouse documents in Business Central, the employee needs to be set up correctly. This applies to all the warehouse documents you handle in daily operations: received and put-away shipments, pick documents, and similar warehouse activities.
The setup is straightforward. You assign a user ID and a location code, and you create that combination for the warehouse employee. For example, if you set up the user ABSUPER on a given location code, that user can then work on that location.
How location codes filter the documents you can see
The combination of user ID and location code acts as a filter on what you see. You only see warehouse documents for the locations you are assigned to.
Take a practical example. Say you open a warehouse shipment list and see two shipments: one on location code Main and one on location code WMS Center. You see both because your user is set up on both locations. If your user is ABSUPER and you are assigned to Main and WMS Center, both shipments show up.
Now remove the user from the Main location in the warehouse employee setup. Go back to the warehouse shipment list, and you will only see the shipment on WMS Center. The Main shipment disappears from view because you are no longer a warehouse employee for that location.
A common mistake when users start using new locations
This filtering is a frequent source of confusion. Users often cannot figure out why they do not see certain documents. The reason is usually that they have started using a new location but have not been set up as a warehouse employee for it.
If someone reports missing warehouse documents, check the warehouse employee setup first. Make sure the user ID is assigned to the location code in question.
The default location and how it is used
In the warehouse employee setup, you would often also enter a default location. You can only have one default location per user. If you try to add a second default, Business Central returns an error.
The default location is used across several warehouse activities to suggest which location you are working on. This applies when you work with warehouse picks, warehouse put-aways, and similar activities. Setting a sensible default saves time and reduces mistakes in daily warehouse work.
Q&A
What do I need to do to let a warehouse employee work with warehouse documents in Business Central?
Set the employee up as a warehouse employee. In the warehouse employee setup, assign the user ID together with the location codes the employee should work on. Without this, the employee cannot work with received shipments, put-aways, or pick documents.
Why can a user not see warehouse shipments for a location?
The user is most likely not set up as a warehouse employee for that location. The combination of user ID and location code filters which documents the user can see. Add the missing location code to the user’s warehouse employee setup.
Can a warehouse employee be assigned to more than one location?
Yes. You create a separate user ID and location code combination for each location. A user assigned to both Main and WMS Center sees warehouse documents for both.
How many default locations can a warehouse employee have?
Only one. If you try to set a second default location for the same user, Business Central returns an error.
What is the default location used for?
It suggests which location your warehouse activities apply to. Business Central uses it across several warehouse activities, such as warehouse picks and warehouse put-aways.