Scenario
A company sources the same product from multiple countries due to changing tariffs and supply chain requirements. Although the items are functionally identical, slight differences such as color or finish may exist between suppliers.
The business wants to ensure that when a customer orders multiple quantities of the same item, all units shipped come from the same country of origin or batch.
Solution
NetSuite offers two practical approaches to manage this requirement depending on the level of inventory control needed.
Option 1: Lot Tracking (Recommended)
Lot Tracking is generally the best native solution for this scenario. Each shipment or sourcing origin can be assigned a unique lot number.
Example:
Country | Lot Number |
|---|
China | CN-101 |
Vietnam | VN-102 |
During fulfillment, warehouse users can:
- manually select the lot
- use Auto-Calculate allocation
- ensure all quantities on a sales order line come from the same lot
This prevents inventory from different origins from being mixed together and also provides traceability for quality or sourcing investigations.
Option 2: Bin Management
If Lot Tracking is not desired, Bin Management can be used to separate inventory physically and logically.
Example bins:
Country | Bin |
|---|
China | BIN-CHINA-01 |
Vietnam | BIN-VIET-01 |
Warehouse teams can then fulfill orders from a single origin-specific bin to maintain consistency.
This approach:
- keeps item records simpler
- avoids numbered inventory requirements
- relies more heavily on warehouse process discipline
Notes
- Lot Tracking provides stronger traceability and automation than Bin Management.
- Bin Management may be easier to implement for businesses not currently using numbered inventory.
- If product consistency is critical, test fulfillment allocation rules in a sandbox before deployment.
When sourcing identical products from multiple countries, Lot Tracking is typically the most reliable way to ensure customer orders are fulfilled from a single origin batch. For organizations wanting a lighter-weight approach, Bin Management can also help separate inventory by sourcing location while maintaining operational flexibility.
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