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Version: 8.0

Allotment & reservation

How it works​

In AOS, there are two concepts for assigning stock to a customer order based on stock availability:

  • Allocation is used when stock is available. It allows you to assign part of the available stock to a movement, which reduces the available quantity by the amount allocated. Allocation therefore applies to physical stock and is actually carried out on movements that allow you to define a location, a quantity and an origin (an order or production). This also means that no allocation is possible if no movement is generated.

  • Reservation is used when there is insufficient stock. It allows you to trigger a future allocation request once stock becomes available. Reservation can therefore be made even if there is insufficient stock available, but it also requires a movement to be taken into account in the ERP. In concrete terms, when a movement is generated, a reservation request can lead to an allocation if there is stock for the product. The allocation in question may be complete or partial if there is insufficient stock available.

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Stock allocation is done on a movement and blocks the allocated stock quantity on the source location of the movement.

This allocation for an order prevents any other movement not related to this order on this stock, which would result in not having enough quantity on the location in question to fulfil this order.

Supplychain app configurations​

Access: Application Config → Apps management → Supplychain, configure → enable the ‘Manage stock reservation’ option in the ‘Stock’ section.

Enabling this option displays additional features in the Supplychain settings for each company (‘Automatically allocate stock on receipt’ and ‘Automatically allocate stock on other stock moves’).

Click on the company file to access the configurations for that company.

Supplychain configurations by company​

Access: Application Config → Apps management → Supplychain, configure → click on the Company tab to access it.

Several features are available when activated:

  1. Automatically allocate stock on receipt: allows you to complete the allocation quantity of a movement in order to reach the reservation quantity upon receipt of the product. If there are several reservations for this product, the ERP will allocate priority to the reservation with the oldest customer order date. Define the date of the customer order used for stock reservations in the dedicated field.

  2. Automatically allocate stock to other movements: works in the same way as automatic allocation on receipt, but this option applies to internal movements. This option is particularly useful if receipts are made at a different location from shipments. In other words, this feature is useful if allocations use a shipping location defined in the configuration in one place, while the receiving location is located elsewhere. Once an internal movement has been made from receiving to shipping, this option allows you to automatically allocate parts to the delivery note, taking into account the priority of the reservation dates.

  3. Automatically allocate during an availability request: if you have enabled the Separate the shipment operations stock configuration (Application Config → Apps management → Stock, configure → enable ‘Separate the shipment operations’), it is then possible to request automatic allocation when a release request is made. If this is the case, a warning message will appear asking if you want to allocate the goods. If you refuse, a reservation request will be made. This reservation will then be processed as an allocation. This configuration is incompatible with the option Auto request reserved quantity that can be found on the Company supplychain configuration page. Avoid activating them at the same time.

  4. Sale order date used for stock reservation. In this field, select between:

  • Confirmation date

  • Estimated shipping date

  1. Auto request reserved quantity: the reservation request is made automatically on customer orders if this option is enabled. This prevents manual oversights if the company reserves and allocates all orders.

  2. Automatically request quantity for manufactury orders: when this option is enabled, the reservation will be made automatically for components when planning manufacturing orders.

  3. Save and refresh the changes.

Create a customer order reservation​

Access: Sales → Sale quotations → +

  1. In the ‘Content’ tab, add a new line to the ‘Detail lines’ table.

  2. The ‘Sales order line’ window will open.

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Starting with the version 8, you can fill in the lines directly in the boxes without opening the configuration window. Enable the feature here: Application Config → Apps management → Sales, configure → enable the ‘Enable editable list on sale quotation/sales order lines’ option.

  1. Select the product and quantity. For example, select a rack case (quantity: 10).

  2. Click on the ‘Request Reservation’ button.

The Request Reservation button allows you to make a reservation request that will be taken into account when a delivery note is generated. If the delivery movement already exists, this will create the reservation. If the stock is available, this will also create an allocation.

If automatic reservation is enabled, this action is performed automatically and the fields are filled in automatically.

  1. After clicking on the ‘Reservation request’ button, the reservation has been made but has not yet been taken into account as the movement has not yet been generated.

  2. On the sale quotation form, click on the ‘Finalise’ button.

  3. Next, click on the ‘Confirm order’ button.

  4. Then click on the ‘Generate customer delivery’ button. This will open the ‘Stock move’ form.

  5. From this point onwards, you will see that the ‘Requested quantity’ and ‘Allocated quantity’ fields are now filled in. This information will also be filled in the ‘Stock details by item’ menu (access: Stock management → Stock details by product → enter the product and check the requested and allocated quantities on its form).

  6. Reopen the detail line on the sale quotation form. In the ‘Sales Order Line’ window, you will see that it is possible to ‘Change the allocated quantity’. This button is displayed when an allocation has been made so that the quantity of this allocation can be changed.

  7. You can also cancel the reservation by clicking on the ‘Cancel reservation’ button. This button is displayed if a reservation request has been made and allows you to cancel this request.

  8. In the Detail lines table, next to the ‘Allocated quantity’ field, you can click on the + button to allocate a quantity directly to an existing move. This can be done when the customer order has the status 'confirmed' and there is an associated delivery movement. The + button is greyed out if the order is not confirmed or if the total quantity has been allocated. Click on the - button to deallocate the quantity. It is greyed out if no allocation has been made.

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When you make a move, you can always check the source (the main location). For example, the allocation was made from the ‘main warehouse’ source.

On the ‘Stock move’ form, click on ‘Source stock location’. There, you will find the quantities that have been allocated or reserved.

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How to find your current movements?

Access: Stock management → Deliveries → click on the Customer Delivery form

On the ‘Customer delivery’ form, you can modify the delivery note lines by allocating or deallocating quantities.

You can also cancel the reservation (click on the product line in the delivery note lines and then click on the ‘Cancel reservation’ button).

Current limitations of the feature​

  1. Requires a move: allocation or reservation is done with a move and is only possible if a move is planned.

  2. Not available on tracking numbers: allocation or reservation is made on a global quantity in stock and not on specific batches or serial numbers. It is not possible to make an allocation or reservation on a tracking number.

  3. Blocking the move of allocated stock: allocation makes the quantity unavailable and blocks any other move from that location if the resulting available quantity is insufficient. It is therefore not possible to make another internal movement, such as rearrangement, to move the allocated quantity without deallocating the requested quantity. Physically, you allocate a quantity in stock that can be moved for the purposes of the allocation, not a quantity on a movement.

  4. Limited to one stock location per move: the allocation or reservation is made on the source stock location of the movements. However, the quantity may not be completely available in this location but may have the remainder in one of its sub-locations or in another location. In addition, you may want to reserve in a tree structure or a set of locations in order to define in which locations you want to reserve when there are several possibilities.