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The Smart Reordering feature in DEAR allows forecasting of future product sales and generating email alerts to reorder products from merchants. You can track inventory levels for each of your locations and configure the Inventory Velocity Report to run at scheduled intervals so that you can be kept informed when there is a need to reorder a product. This feature is also available for assemblies/finished goods.


The Lead and Safety values, as well as the Reorder quantity for a product from each of your suppliers, the Inventory Velocity Report which is set up via either the Inventory Velocity Report page or via the DEAR Reporting Module, and the Reorder Suggestion page all play important roles in the Smart Reordering feature. When DEAR detects that there is a need to reorder products from your suppliers, the Reorder Suggestion email which the system will send to the specified mailing lists will show this. You can then click the link to the Reorder Suggestion page in the email, from where you can select the supplier (in case there is more than one supplier in DEAR) or specify a warehouse from which to order the product.


NOTE: For a location to appear in the Reorder Suggestion page, the location's Allow to Reorder Stock Level option must be checked in Reference Books → Locations & Bins.


Prerequisites


Table of Contents



Setting Lead, Safety, and Reorder Quantity

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  • Lead refers to the number of days expected for the product to be delivered from the time a PO is opened and submitted to the supplier.
  • Safety refers to the preferred minimum number of days of inventory (safety stock).
  • Reorder Quantity refers to the number of items to be reordered.


Lead, safety, and reorder quantity are set up per supplier on the Products page. By default, for suppliers with multiple locations, the different locations will inherit the values of the lead, safety, and reorder quantity of the supplier. However, these values can be changed per location, if needed.


To illustrate, for a supplier with Locations A and B and whose lead, safety, and reorder quantity are set up at 5, 5, and 10, respectively, both location A and location B will have their lead days, safety quantity, and reorder quantity configured at 5, 5, and 10 as well. However, the values for the lead, safety, and reorder quantity for either location A and B can be changed to any number, say 3, 3, and 10 for location A, and 4, 4, and 5 for location B, if desired.


You can also choose to set up the values for lead, safety, and reorder quantity by location instead. In this case, just leave the lead, safety, and reorder quantity of the supplier blank and enter your preferred values for lead, safety, and reorder quantity per location.


To set up the lead, safety, and reorder quantity for a product:

  1. Go to Inventory → Products, click or search for the product you want to set up with lead and safety values, then click the product to go to its Details page.
  2. Scroll down to the bottom of the Product Details page, and click the Suppliers tab.
  3. On the Suppliers section, on the grid at the bottom, you can find the Lead, Safety, and Reorder Quantity columns. Click the appropriate columns to enter your preferred Lead and Safety days, and the reorder quantity. If the supplier has multiple locations and you want to set different Lead and Safety days and reorder quantity for a location or all locations, proceed to Step 4. If the supplier does not have multiple locations, skip to Step 5.
  4. Each of the supplier's locations will show the Lead, Safety, and Reorder Quantity you entered in Step 3. You may change these to your preferred values, as shown below.
  5. Click Save.

IMPORTANT! The Inventory Velocity Report may reflect incorrect data if you leave the Lead and Safety days as well as the Reorder Quantity for a supplier blank. To ensure that the report reflects complete and correct data, you may need to provide values for Lead, Safety, and Reorder Quantity per supplier or supplier location.


Edit Lead, Safety, and Reorder Quantity in bulk

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Aside from the ability to add lead, safety, and reorder values individually, smart reordering values can be exported as a CSV file and edited in bulk. 


Navigate to Inventory → Products, then select Export → Smart Reordering Configuration. Save and open the CSV template, edit the details that need to be updated, without changing any of the column headings to prevent any errors during the upload.


Save the CSV Template and upload the edited template using Import → Smart Reordering Configuration.


Inventory Velocity Report

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The Inventory Velocity Report is a scheduled report type that can be manually set up for scheduling from either the Report Scheduling module or run manually from the Inventory Velocity Report page.


The Inventory Velocity Report shows information about each SKU, including its sales velocity, the number of available items in stock, the forecast sale period for each item, and an option if the item needs to be reordered once again.


Every time the report is generated, the data for the previously generated one is written over. Only users with active Reporting permissions can generate the report.


If you have an active Report Scheduling module, the Inventory Velocity Report can be scheduled to run using the module.


If you do not have an active Report Scheduling module, the Inventory Velocity Report can be generated manually by clicking the Upload Report button on the Inventory Velocity Report page.


The different columns of the Inventory Velocity Report are detailed in the table below.


COLUMN NAMEDESCRIPTION
LocationName of the location
Product NameName of the product
Product SKUSKU number of the product
ActiveIndicates if the product is active
On B2B portalIf the product is listed in the B2B portal = True.
If the product is not listed in the B2B portal = False.
On Sales ChannelsIf the product is listed in Sales Channels = True.
If the product is not listed in Sales Channels = False.
ComponentIf the item is a component in BOM = True.
If the product is not a component in BOM = False.
Finished GoodIf there is a BOM for the product = True.
If there is no BOM for the product = False.
On HandQuantity of units on hand
AvailableThe number of available units.
If the number of available units + awaiting units < 0 and reorder quantity is specified for a product, then the recommended action for the product = reorder, even if velocity=0.
Last SaleDate of last sale
Date AddedDate of 1st movement in DEAR
Days Since AddedNumber of days since the product was added to DEAR
Units SoldThe number of products sold in the last 7/14/30/60/90 days
Shipped Per DayProducts shipped per day
VelocityUnits sold per day based on movement from the last 7/14/30/60/90 days.
Computed as {Quantity of items sold for the reporting time}/{reporting time}.
Quantity of items sold for the reporting time is the sum of sold items in Sale, Assembly, Disassembly, and Write-off tasks.
Even if velocity = 0, if the number of available units + awaiting units < 0 and reorder quantity is specified for a product, DEAR will recommend reordering the product.
Days to ZeroExpected number of days until the inventory of the product becomes zero. Computed as {available units + on order} / {inventory velocity}.
Available units value is taken from the Available column.
On OrderExpected number of days open POs will add to supply.
Computed as {awaiting units} / {sales velocity}.
Awaiting units refer to the quantity of items not yet received from all authorised POs.
Lead StockExpected number of days between opening and submitting the PO to the supplier and receiving the stock.
Safety DefinedPreferred minimum number of days of inventory (safety stock)
Recommended ActionRecommended action on product.
If the number of available units + awaiting units < 0 and reorder quantity is specified for a product, then the recommended action for the product = reorder.
If the reorder date has come for an item, a link to the Reorder Suggestion page is displayed. Otherwise, the column indicates that there is enough inventory of the item.
SupplierName of the supplier


NOTE: The Inventory Velocity Report is not available for DEAR business accounts that have been cancelled or are in arrears. In these cases, the Inventory Velocity Report page will show the last generated report, if any.


Run the Report via the Inventory Velocity Report Page

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To run the Inventory Velocity Report via its own report page:

  1. Go to Reports → Sales Reports, then click Inventory Velocity Report.
  2. Select whether to Calculate Reorder quantity using Safety Stock.
    • Enabled: Reorder Quantity = Sales Velocity x (Safety + Lead Time) - Available - On Order
    • Disabled: Reorder Quantity = Product Reorder Quantity + Minimum Before Reorder - Available - On Order
  3. On the header section of the Inventory Velocity Report page, the report interval is set to 7 days by default. You may change this to 14, 30, 60, or 90 days, depending on your requirements.
  4. On the Layout section of the Inventory Velocity Report page, select the report layout. It is recommended that you leave the default selection as is, though you may also create your own report layout.
  5. The Recommended Action column is filled after the report is calculated. If the product's reorder date is due, or the number of available units + awaiting units < 0 and reorder quantity is specified for a product, this is set to Reorder Product, even if Velocity=0. You can then click the link to go to the Reorder Suggestion page (see Reordering from the Reorder Suggestion Page below). If the product's reorder date is not due yet, the column displays Inventory is OK. 
  6. Click the Mailing List button, select either All locations or a specific location, select the mailing lists for the Reorder Suggestion email, then click Save to save the mailing lists.
  7. Click the Upload Report button at the top to run and display the report on the page. This also sends the Reorder Suggestion email to the mailing lists that you set up in Step 5.

NOTE: You must set up your mailing lists before you can specify the recipients for the Reorder Suggestion email.


Run the Report via the Scheduling Module

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If you have an active Report Scheduling module, you can run the Inventory Velocity Report from the module.

  1. Go to Reports → Sales Reports, then click Inventory Velocity Report.
  2. On the header section of the Inventory Velocity Report page, click the Scheduling icon.
  3. Enter, then select the report name from the list, then click Next.
  4. On the next page, choose the layout for the report, select the desired report interval (7, 14, 30, 60, and 90 days) from the list, then click Next.
  5. Select a start date, frequency, mailing list, and report format from the lists.
  6. Click Save. The report will then be run depending on the start date you specified in Step 5.

NOTE: You must set up your mailing lists before you can specify the recipients for the Reorder Suggestion email.


Rerun the Report based on Real-Time Data

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After generating the Inventory Velocity Report, you can rerun the report from the Inventory Velocity Report page at any time by clicking the Upload Report button.


Export the Report to Another Format

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Just like any other DEAR report, the Inventory Velocity Report can be exported as a Microsoft Excel file with or without totals, as a PDF file, or a Rich Text Format file.


To export the report, click the Export button, then select the appropriate format from the list.


Reorder Suggestion Email

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The Reorder Suggestion email is sent to the designated mailing lists every time the Inventory Velocity Report is generated.


If there are items that need to be reordered, the email will contain a link to the Reorder Suggestion page. It will also give the number of items that need to be reordered, but not the details. The link will be active for 24 hours.


If there are no items that need to be reordered, the email will not contain a link to the Reorder Suggestion page.


Reordering from the Reorder Suggestion Page

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The Reorder Suggestion page lists all products that need to be reordered, allowing you to create a PO or stock transfer for these products in DEAR.


This page is similar to any regular reorder page in DEAR, except that it can be accessed by the link from the Reorder Suggestion email that is sent to your designated mailing lists every time the Inventory Velocity Report is generated.


To reorder from the Reorder Suggestion page:

  1. From the Locations list, select either All locations or a specific organisation location where products require reorder.
  2. The Reorder from drop-down field has three options:
    • Purchase (default option) – reorder replenishment product quantity from a supplier.
    • Transfer – reorder stock from another location in your organisation.
    • Production – reorder the Production BOM finished goods by creating a Production Order for their production.
  3. Follow these steps depending on the selected option:
    • Supplier (Purchase)
      Check the box next to an SKU to reorder it. Create one or more new purchase orders for the items. If ordering from a single supplier, you will be able to add items to any existing POs with that supplier.
    • Transfer
      Check the box next to an SKU to reorder it. Create one or more new transfer orders for the items. If ordering from a single location, you will be able to add items to any existing transfer orders for that location.
    • Production
      Check the box next to an SKU to reorder it. Clicking Reorder will create Production Orders for that SKU at the specified Shopfloor location. If the item contains semi-finished components, Production/Assembly Orders will also be created for these.
  4. Edit the reorder quantities for the selected SKUs in Step 4, if desired.
  5. Click Reorder. A summary of the reordered products is then displayed at the bottom.

NOTE: Other products from the specified supplier location in Step 2 that are within 7 days of their reorder date will also be listed on the Reorder Suggestion page.


Things to Know about Smart Reordering

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When computing for the Product Reorder Quantity, DEAR considers the following (when Calculate Reorder quantity using Safety Stock is enabled)

  • Reorder Quantity = Sales Velocity x (Safety + Lead Time) - Available - On Order
  • The Safety and Lead Time is specified under the Suppliers tab on a product's details page. 
  • Safety and lead time must be set at least for the Supplier as a whole. If safety and lead time is specified for a Supplier + Location combination, that value will take priority.


When computing for the Product Reorder Quantity, DEAR considers the following (when Calculate Reorder quantity using Safety Stock is disabled)

  • The Reorder Quantity value under the Suppliers tab on a product's page (Inventory → Products → [select product] → Suppliers tab).
    • If the Reorder Quantity is not specified for the Supplier+Location combination under the Suppliers tab, the system gets the Reorder Quantity for a specified location from the Reorder Levels tab instead.
    • If the Reorder Quantity is not specified for the location under the Reorder Levels tab, the system gets the Reorder Quantity from the values in the product's General tab.
  • When computing for the Minimum Before Reorder Quantity, DEAR considers the following: 
    • The Minimum Before Reorder quantity under the Reorder Levels tab on a product's page.
    • If the Minimum Before Reorder quantity is not specified for the product, the system gets the Minimum before Reorder quantity from the from the values in the product's General tab.
    • The Minimum Before Reorder quantity that is set up under General Settings → Purchase Process Customisation is not considered in the computation.
  • The Minimum Before Reorder quantity on a product's page and the Minimum To Order quantity under the Suppliers tab are different from each other.
    • Minimum Before Reorder is part of the final Reorder Quantity formula, i.e. Reorder Quantity = Product Reorder Quantity + Minimum Before Reorder - Available - On Order.
    • Minimum To Order prevents you from ordering anything less than the stated quantity from a particular Supplier.
  • If the number of available units + awaiting units < 0 and the Reorder Quantity is specified for a product, then the recommended action = reorder, even if product velocity = 0.

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