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Creating an Item

Maintaining Items​

Table of Contents​

Maintaining Items 2

Processing Summary 2

Processing Dialog 2

Maintaining Items​

Processing Summary​

  • Work With Items
  • Maintain An Item

Processing Dialog​

  • From most of the WDLS menus, take the option to "Work With Items." Alternatively, you can Jump to: “ITEMS”.
  • Once on the "Work With Items" panel, key the storer and item code to determine if the item is already there.
  • If not, press the “Create” button on the left-hand side or press the <F6> key to create a new item. A series of panels will be displayed to enter the various information for the new item. The following depicts the first panel in the series.
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Item Master Maintenance

  • Key the following information to add the new item:
    • Key the - Storer Number - and - Suffix - for the account.
    • Key the - Item Code - that WDLS will use to identify the item.  If these were keyed on the "Work With Items" panel, they will be filled in when the <F6> key is pressed. - NOTE - : Use of special characters in the Item Code is - not - recommended, i.e., @ etc.
    • Key up to two lines of - Descriptive - text for the item. Typically, only the first line appears on screens and reports.  The additional line appears on bills of lading and warehouse receipt documents and a limited number of reports and screens.
    • Key the - UPC Code - and - Tail Code - .  These codes are often used in electronic data interchange and for product labeling.  Some processes will use the UPC as a cross reference to the item code, although this may not be reliable since sometimes the UPC and item code do not have a one-to-one relationship.
    • Key the - Product Code. - Product code descriptions have gained popularity to track different classifications of items.  In the future we see the ability to classify items by product code and assign different inventory models to different groups.  Use the <F4> to list valid selections.
    • The - Lotted Item - flag indicates if this item is to be carried as lotted stock.  If so, each time the product is received, committed, moved, and shipped, the lot code must be identified.  Once set, this flag cannot be maintained through this panel.  A special process must be executed to change an item from lotted too non-lotted and vice versa.
    • The - Lot Unit Weight - flag indicates if the weight varies by lot and must therefore be recorded and tracked whenever a new lot is introduced to the system.
    • The - Sort Mask - allows you to construct a sorting sequence from the characters contained in the lot code.  Up to three lot codes can be used for an item.  The first lot code supports up to 20 characters, the second and third allow up to 10 characters.
    • The - Apply to Lot - field indicates which of the three lots the mask should be applied to.  Most lot codes have a date that is associated with the lot (typically the date of manufacture, assembly, or expiration).
  • Using the sort mask you can select the century, year, month, and day to create a sort sequence for the lot that ensures that the oldest product is shipped first.  For example, if an item has a lot code of 'DAN01151998' where 'DAN' is the site of manufacture, 01 is the month, 15 is the day, and 1998 is the year.  A sort mask of '08 09 10 11 04 05 06 07' would construct a sort sequence of '19980115'.
    • The - Place After - entry allows you to identify where the item is to be placed when listed on reports.  An item sequencing scheme can be used to set the order of many of the listings.  By naming an item or keying *FIRST to indicate this is to be the first item, you can explicitly place the item within the sort sequence.  When no entry is made, the item sequence is assumed to be alpha-numeric by item code and the item is inserted as appropriate.
  • Once this panel is complete, press the <Enter> key to continue to the next panel. Any invalid or mandatory values will be highlighted, and you will not be allowed to continue until they are corrected.

The next panel dealing with weights and measures appears as follows.

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Item Weights and Measures

  • Key the following as is appropriate for the item weights and measures:
    • The - Unit Gross Weight - is used to calculate the weight of shipments, the weight of inventory on hand, and is sometimes used as a basis for charging.
    • The - Unit of Measure - is printed next to the weight on most documents.  The weight is critical to proper functioning of the system.
  • The cases per tier and tiers per pallet entries are used by the system to compute pallet configurations.  Pallet configurations are essential for many advanced shipment notifications and for label production.  In addition, these figures can be used to determine location capacities.  On many panels these entries can be used to enter the quantity.  Where supported, entering a quantity of 2P for this item is the same as entering 200, since 5 layers of 20 cases per layer are on a pallet.
    • The - Unit Square Feet - , - Height - , - Width - , and - depth - are not heavily used in the system.  They are occasionally listed on reports and panels, and sometimes used in determining capacities if other means are not available.  The - unit cubic feet - is used to estimate cubic feet required for inventory and for shipments.  It may also be used as a basis for pricing services.
    • Up to four - units of measure - can be recorded for an item.  The units must be defined in the unit of measure master file.  The units must be listed from smallest to largest unit.  The system can calculate layers and pallets from other entries, so they do not have to be re-entered here.
    • You must identify which unit is the - inventory unit - and which is the - shipping unit - .  The inventory unit is used on all incoming receipts, inventory adjustments, and all panels and reports depicting inventory quantities.  The shipping unit is used to convert quantities on outgoing shipping documents.
  • Once the entries are complete, press the <Enter> key to continue to the next panel. The following panel dealing with warehouse operations information displays.
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Maintain Item Warehousing Information

  • Key the following information as is appropriate for the item being added:
    • Freight classifications - are used to categorize the freight on shipping documents.  They are essential for proper paperwork.  These classifications are also used to rate the freight and determine the freight invoicing charges.  A bill's ship type is used to determine if it is domestic or international, and if it is surface or air freight.  The appropriate classification is used.  After you enter a code and press <Enter> the associated description will appear to the right.
    • Material handling codes - are used to print specific messages on shipping documents.  Material handling codes are set up in a separate file.  Up to three codes can be associated with an item.  The associated text is shown to the right.
    • The - ABC tag - is used to identify different classes of items.  'A' items are generally fast-moving items.  The 80/20 rule applies to managing warehouse space.  80% of the space can be managed by concentrating on 20% of the items.  Currently the ABC tag is not heavily used in the system but is provided to accommodate future enhancements planned for space management.
    • The - BMT code - stands for bottom, middle, or top.  It is generally assigned based upon the weight or packaging of the item.  It is currently not used in the system except for some inquiries and reports.  An enhancement is planned to involve the use of this code in pallet configuration.
    • The - Pallets High - and - Deep - entries are used to set the preferred storage configuration for the product.  These entries are informational only.  The map location entries are used to determine storage capacities.
  • A preferred location can be identified for an item.  Enter the location by keying the floor, aisle, and slot separated by a space, slash, or comma (floor is optional).  The preferred location is used primarily on non-QBL (quantity by location) accounts as the default pick location for the product.
    • The - Low Stock Point - is used to record a quantity to monitor for a low stock condition.  This is currently unused, but a planned enhancement will calculate this quantity from activity and the number of reserve days, and it will provide a report on low stock conditions.
    • If a - Pick Line Location - has been designated for this item, it will appear at the bottom of the panel for informational purposes.
  • Once these entries are complete, press the <Enter> key to continue to the next panel. The following panel dealing with pricing appears.
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Maintain Item Rates

  • The top portion of the panel shows the - Storer Level Settings - for each of the charges.  If the storer settings are appropriate for this item, leave the entries blank.  The storer settings will then be applied by all the charging processes.  This also makes it easy to implement changes to contract rates, since they only must be done at the storer level.
  • Enter the - Receiving Storage Rate - , - Basis - , and - Minimum - when this item deviates from the storer settings.  This is the pricing structure that will be charged each time the item is received into the warehouse.  Rates can have up to 4 decimal positions.  The basis may be QY-quantity in inventory units, CW-hundred weight, CF-cubic feet, PL-pallet, or any of the item’s units of measure.  The minimum is the amount that will be charged if at least 1 unit of the item is received.
  • Enter the - recurring storage rate - , - basis - , and - minimum - when this item deviates from the storer settings.  This is the pricing structure that will be charged at the close of each period based upon the quantity of the item that is in the warehouse at that time.  Rates can have up to 4 decimal positions.  The valid bases are the same as for receiving storage.  The minimum is the amount that will be charged if at least 1 unit of the item is in the warehouse.
  • Three handling rates are supported and are specified at the time the warehouse receipt invoice is produced.  Regular, alternate, and distribution handling rates are used to apply different pricing strategies for various types of product receipt, such as regular shipments with an advanced notification, unannounced shipments, customer returns, or cross-dock shipments.
    • Enter a - handling rate - , - basis - , and - minimum - when this item deviates from the storer settings.  Rates can have up to 4 decimal positions.  The valid bases are the same as for receiving storage.  The minimum is the amount that will be charged if at least 1 unit of the item is received.
    • The - insurance liability amount - is currently not used.  It is provided to support a planned report that will estimate the amount of the insurance coverage required for an account or building.
  • After you press the <Enter> key, the values are recorded, and you will return to the "Work With Items" panel. Press <F6> to create additional items.

NOTE: Once an item has been added, it can be maintained using the same panels. Use the "Change" option to execute the panels in the same order used when you added the item. You can also access each panel directly. Take the options to "Maint Item", "Maint Weights", "Maint Whse Ops" or "Maint Rates" to go straight to the panel you need.