Automatic central distribution center processing

This enhancement expands upon the existing Sales Warehouse feature in Distribution SX.e to automate central distribution center order fulfillment for all warehouses, including TWL-managed warehouses.

The Sales Warehouse feature credits the sale of an order to the originating warehouse when the order is created for a different warehouse, such as a central distribution center (CDC). You can use this feature when stock is unavailable in the originating or branch warehouse, but you want to update the originating warehouse’s sales totals for the transaction.

When you implement a CDC, sales orders are processed in the CDC and shipped to the customer’s home warehouse for delivery or pickup. This home warehouse is designated as the sales warehouse.

To support the shipment of goods from the CDC to sales warehouses, new stages are recorded on sales orders that originate in a sales warehouse. This ensures the order is not invoiced until it is shipped to the customer or picked up in the branch. It also adds visibility to the status of orders that are processed for a CDC warehouse.

These new stages are automatically assigned to orders shipped from a CDC warehouse when the Sales Warehouse and Central Distribution Center features are enabled:

  • Transfer Route

    Order is shipped from the CDC to the ordering branch. This status is updated during Sales Entry Shipping Feedback. It is also assigned to a TWL shipping carton or pallet that is shipped for a CDC order.

  • Received In Sales Warehouse

    Order is received in the sales warehouse and staged for delivery to the customer. This status is updated by the receiving warehouse in the new Sales Central Distribution Center Inquiry.

  • Shipped To Customer

    Order is shipped to the customer or picked up by the customer in the sales warehouse. This status is updated by the receiving warehouse in the new Sales Central Distribution Center Inquiry or TWL RF Distribution-CDC Handling functions. A CDC order is not invoiced until it is in Shipped to Customer stage.

These new stages also represent the status of a CDC order. If a sales order is a CDC order, the order is shipped to customer or picked up by customer in the branch warehouse. This status is updated by the receiving warehouse in the new CDC Status field, and reflects the stage. When a CDC order is created in Sales Order Entry, the CDC Status is Assigned. If the order is not a CDC order, or the CSR overrides the Assigned status, the order is in shipped to status upon entry, and the CDC Status is Not Set.

All CDC sales are credited to the branch warehouse. Usage for the product is updated for the ordering or CDC warehouse. The CDC manages demand and replenishment of most inventory.

With this new feature, orders or order lines can be canceled after the order is shipped to or received in the branch warehouse. You must unship the order, update the order, and then cancel or reship the order. You must then manually record inventory adjustments in both the CDC and branch warehouses. Because invoicing does not occur until after the order is shipped to the customer, you are not required to process any Return Merchandise transactions for the canceled order.

Feature activation

To use Central Distribution Center processing, you must also be using the existing Sales Warehouse feature in Distribution SX.e. These options are selected in SA Administrator Options-Documents-Sales Order-Entry Settings to activate both features:

  • Use Sales Warehouse
  • Allow Central Distribution Center (CDC)

When both options are selected, the order status of CDC-managed orders is visible throughout the application.

In addition, these setup functions must be updated:

  • Product Warehouse Description Setup

    Each sales warehouse must be updated with the CDC location defined in the Central Distribution Center Warehouse field.

  • Customer Setup and Customer Ship To Setup

    Identify each customer and ship to’s home (sales) warehouse in the Warehouse field, and select the Use Central Distribution Center (CDC) option. The CDC warehouse defined on the sales warehouse Product Warehouse Description Setup record is used as the sourcing warehouse on any orders for the customer/ship to.

  • SA Operator Setup

    Access to the new Sales Central Distribution Center Inquiry must be enabled for the appropriate users on the Function Security view.

    The Allow Entry of Sales Warehouse option on the Entry Options view should be selected. This is used by the Sales Warehouse functionality.