In short: a distributor of electrical and photovoltaic equipment had expensive products, each with a serial number and a warranty, and a warehouse that couldn’t answer on the spot which serial a customer had received. With DataFlows Depo, serial numbers are recorded at receipt by scanning or from a photo of the label, allocated to orders and shown in a warranty report, and stock is reserved automatically after the advance payment.
The context
Inverters, panels, charging stations, switchboards: high-value products sold through sales reps, installers and end customers. Every piece has a serial number, and the warranty is granted per serial. The warehouse received goods through several channels, had separate receiving zones and distinct sub-stocks for sellable, damaged or reserved goods.
The problem
- Serial numbers were written down at delivery, by hand or in spreadsheets, and got lost along the way. When a customer called about a warranty, the answer took hours.
- Stock reservations after advance payment were kept “in someone’s head” or in e-mails. Reserved goods sometimes left for another customer.
- Quotes in foreign currency were redone by hand at every exchange rate change.
- Transfers between zones left no trace: the stock in the system and the stock on the shelf drifted apart after every busy week.
What we built
- Serial numbers at receipt. The warehouse worker scans serials in quick succession, with duplicate checking. For hard-to-scan labels, the serial is read from a photo of the label.
- Allocation to orders and a warranty report. On every order you know exactly which serials went to the customer. The report of delivered serials is generated from the order, with no retyping.
- Stock reservation after advance payment. A confirmed order with an advance reserves stock, with an owner and a PDF document. Reserved stock leaves the stock available for sale.
- Quotes in foreign currency. The day’s exchange rate is fetched automatically and taxes are calculated on the spot.
- Zones and sub-stocks. Separate receiving zones, distinct sub-stocks for sellable, damaged or reserved goods and transfers between zones with the transfer basket, all scanned from the phone.
- Connection to the invoicing software. The item list, partners and orders come from the existing software; receipts, deliveries and serial numbers go back.
How the implementation went
- The workflow conversation, in the warehouse: how goods come in through each channel and where the serial numbers were getting lost.
- Coding the zones, racks and positions and printing the labels.
- Importing the item list, partners and stock, then connecting to the invoicing software, in test mode first.
- Training warehouse staff on their own phones, with their own goods.
- Go-live and the adjustments of the first weeks: reservation rules, label format, reports for sales.
Results
- On a warranty request, the serial and the order are found on the spot, starting either from the serial or from the customer.
- Reserved goods no longer leave for another customer: the reservation is visible in everyone’s available stock.
- Every transfer between zones leaves a trace: who, what, when, from where and to where.
- Sales and the warehouse look at the same delivery screen, with clear statuses on every order.
What we learned
For serialised products, the moment that matters is receiving. If the serial enters the system correctly on arrival, the rest of the flow (allocation, delivery, warranty, return) follows naturally. And one more thing: the stock reservation module started exactly from this client’s request and stayed in the product for everyone else.
Do you work with serialised products or stock reserved after advance payment? See what DataFlows Depo does or request a demo on your own scenario.
