How do you work with fixed bins?
Let’s look at the property fixed bin on the bin content table. From an item card, I’m entering the bin content and in the bin content, I can see where the items are in inventory, for instance, 800 pieces on this bin, etc. If it’s a directed put away and pick location, it’s possible to have unit of measure so you can set up bin per unit of measure as well.
This is what happens in the video
In Business Central, the Fixed field on the Bin Content table controls which bin the system suggests when you create put-aways for an item. If you have no fixed bin set up, the system suggests a bin where the item already exists. If you mark a bin as fixed, the system suggests that fixed bin instead, regardless of where the item is currently stored.
You can set up a separate fixed bin for each unit of measure code, and you can have more than one fixed bin per unit of measure. This lets you decide exactly where boxes, pallets, or individual pieces should be placed.
A bin content line with a fixed bin can hold a quantity of zero. When you empty a non-fixed bin, the bin content record disappears, but a fixed bin stays in place even when it is empty.
Where to find bin content from the item card
You access bin content directly from an item card. The bin content shows you where the item is in inventory, for example 800 pieces on one bin. In a directed put-away and pick location, you can also work with unit of measure, so you can set up bins per unit of measure code.
How put-away suggestions work without a fixed bin
Take an item that has 1000 boxes on bin 107 and some boxes on the receive bin. These are the only two bins, and neither is marked as fixed.
When you post a purchase receipt and create a put-away from the put-away worksheet, the system suggests bin 107 as the best location. The reason is simple: there is no fixed bin, so the system places the item where the same item number already sits.
To see this in practice, you get the warehouse document in the put-away worksheet. The system suggests a line, and you create and open the put-away. With no fixed bin defined, the put-away points to bin 107.
How a fixed bin changes the suggested put-away bin
Now add a default bin on the item and set the checkmark in the Fixed field on the unit of measure code line. You can have more than one fixed bin per unit of measure code, so this is the fixed bin for the item’s box unit of measure.
With the fixed bin in place, delete the existing put-away and create it again from the put-away worksheet using the same warehouse document. This time the system suggests bin code 11.06, because that is the only fixed bin set up for the box unit of measure.
Without the checkmark, the system would have continued to suggest bin 107, where the item already exists. The fixed bin overrides that behaviour and directs the put-away to the bin you have chosen.
Bin content records with zero quantity
When a bin is marked as fixed, the bin content line can hold a quantity of zero and still remain. If you empty the quantity on a non-fixed bin such as bin 107, the bin content record for that bin disappears. A fixed bin stays in the bin content table even when there is nothing on it, so the system always knows where to put the item next time.
How to control put-away placement for an item
By marking specific bins as fixed in the bin content table, you decide exactly which bins should be used for an item. The setting lives on the Bin Content table, tied to the item and the unit of measure code. This gives you predictable put-away suggestions instead of relying on wherever the item happens to be at the moment.
Q&A
What does the Fixed field on the Bin Content table do?
It tells Business Central which bin to suggest when you create a put-away for an item. When a bin is marked as fixed, the system suggests that bin instead of a bin where the item already exists.
Which bin does Business Central suggest if no fixed bin is set up?
It suggests a bin where the same item number already sits. For example, if you have 1000 boxes on bin 107 and no fixed bin, the put-away suggests bin 107.
Can you have more than one fixed bin for an item?
Yes. You can set up a fixed bin per unit of measure code, and you can have more than one fixed bin per unit of measure code.
What happens to a fixed bin when it is empty?
A fixed bin content line stays in the bin content table even with a quantity of zero. A non-fixed bin content record disappears when you empty the quantity.
Where do you set up a fixed bin?
You set it in the Bin Content table, accessible from the item card. You add a default bin on a unit of measure code line and set the checkmark in the Fixed field.