Inventory

XBuddy Inventory gives you real-time visibility across all your warehouses. Track stock levels, movements, lot numbers, and expiry dates — with automated replenishment to prevent stockouts.

Managing inventory across multiple locations is hard without the right tools. XBuddy centralizes everything: every stock movement — whether a goods receipt, internal transfer, sale, or write-off — is recorded and traceable. Lot and serial number tracking means you can trace any item back to its origin in seconds, which is critical for quality recalls and compliance.

The automated replenishment engine watches your stock levels continuously. When a product falls below its reorder point, XBuddy can automatically generate a draft purchase order — so your purchasing team just reviews and confirms, rather than hunting for what needs ordering.

Key Features

• Multi-warehouse management with zone and bin location support
• Stock movements: receipts, transfers, adjustments, and write-offs
• Lot and serial number tracking with full traceability
• Expiry date management with FEFO (First Expired, First Out) picking
• Reorder rules and automated purchase order generation
• Stock valuation methods: FIFO, Average Cost, and Standard Cost
• Barcode scanning via camera or handheld scanner
• Physical inventory counting and reconciliation workflows
• Supplier lead time tracking for accurate reorder timing
• Integration with Manufacturing (material reservation) and Sales (order fulfillment)

Getting Started

1. Create your warehouses and define locations within each
2. Import or create your product catalog with units of measure
3. Record your opening stock quantities via an inventory adjustment
4. Set up reorder rules for key products to automate replenishment
5. Process your first goods receipt from a supplier to see the full flow

Common Use Cases

• Multi-location retail: A retail chain managing stock across five branch locations transfers inventory between stores and sees real-time quantities at every location from one dashboard.
• Manufacturing traceability: A manufacturer assigns lot numbers to every raw material batch and tracks them through production, enabling instant traceability during a quality recall.
• Distributor optimization: A distributor analyzes reorder points and supplier lead times to reduce excess carrying cost while maintaining service levels.

Inventory Aging Report

The Aging tab on /inventory/reports helps you identify slow-moving and dead stock before it becomes a write-off liability.

Age Buckets

Items are classified into four buckets based on the number of days since their last stock movement (receipt, transfer, adjustment, or sale):

Bucket Summary Cards

At the top of the Aging tab, four summary cards show — for each bucket — the item count and total stock value (calculated using the item’s current valuation method: FIFO, average cost, or standard cost). This gives purchasing and finance teams an instant view of capital tied up in aging stock.

Detail Table

Below the summary cards, a paginated table lists every item with its:

• Current quantity on hand
• Total stock value
• Age bucket (displayed as a color-coded badge: green / yellow / orange / red)
• Last movement date

The table is sortable by age (oldest first by default) and filterable by warehouse and product category.

Note: “Last movement” counts any stock transaction — including internal transfers. Items that have been transferred between warehouses recently will reset their age clock even if no sales have occurred. Filter by warehouse to see aging within a specific location.

Workflows & Processes

Stock Replenishment Workflow

1. Monitor reorder points — System continuously tracks stock levels against configured reorder points
2. Trigger auto-PO — When stock falls below reorder point, system auto-generates draft PO with suggested supplier
3. Procurement review — Procurement reviews and confirms PO; sends to vendor
4. Goods receipt — Warehouse receives goods; scans barcodes and records receipt in Inventory
5. Stock available — Received stock immediately available for sales and manufacturing orders
6. Cycle optimization — Analytics show reorder frequency and cost; procurement adjusts reorder points based on data

Physical Count & Reconciliation

1. Initiate count — Inventory manager starts physical count process for specific warehouse/zone
2. Count teams — Floor staff scan items and record counts via handheld or mobile app
3. Discrepancy flagging — System compares counted quantities to system stock; flags variances >2%
4. Investigation — Identify root cause (shrink, data entry error, unrecorded movement, theft)
5. Adjust stock — Post adjustment journal entry to correct system stock to actual
6. Lock period — Mark count as “Complete”; period frozen from further manual adjustments

Integration Points

• Sales Module — Confirmed orders reserve stock; inventory deducts upon shipment
• Manufacturing Module — Material consumption from production orders deducts stock; finished goods received
• Finance Module — Stock movements post journal entries (COGS, inventory valuation); period-end adjustments
• Procurement Module — Reorder rules trigger auto-PO generation; goods receipt matches to PO
• Analytics Module — Inventory turnover, aging, and obsolescence dashboards
• Barcode scanner — Handheld and mobile devices scan items for fast, error-free receipt and counting

FAQ

Q: How do I handle lot-expired items still in stock?
A: Lots are tracked with expiry dates. Expired stock can be flagged and written off (journal entry posts COGS impact). FEFO (First Expired, First Out) picking prevents expired items from being shipped.

Q: Can I track stock by serial number (for high-value items)?
A: Yes. Assign serial numbers during receipt; each unit tracked individually. Serial numbers must match on shipment for traceability.

Q: What happens if I discover a data entry error in a past stock movement?
A: Locked periods prevent edits. Create a correcting adjustment entry dated after the period close. Maintain audit trail of all corrections.

Q: How does the system calculate stock valuation (FIFO vs average cost)?
A: Select valuation method per product. System tracks cost per batch. FIFO consumes oldest cost; Average uses weighted average of all batches in stock.