This step waits for the floor twice. It raises a Local Shipment, which is collected and then dispatched - and only the dispatch finishes the step.
It appears in the Add Step list as Local Shipment (new).
| Automatic? | No - the floor collects it, then dispatches it |
| Who does it | Whoever picks and whoever dispatches (Shipping & Receiving) |
| Needs first | What to send, and which inventory category it comes from. Carrier, address and parcel are optional |
| Produces | The Local Shipment (LS-...) and the units actually dispatched |
| Where you work it | Shipping & Receiving > Local Shipments, on a phone |
What it does
Use it to send goods out where there is no sale: a customer's own repaired unit going home, something going to a branch, a warranty replacement.
You can tell it what to send in two ways. Units, where each item has an identity to track - normally published by an earlier step, such as the units a repair finished with. Or products and quantities, for goods with no unit identity. Most runs use one or the other.
The inventory category it ships from is required, because a repaired customer unit and ordinary stock are not the same thing and must not be picked interchangeably.
Carrier, delivery address and parcel size are all optional. Leave the address blank and the customer's own is used.
Completing it
- Collect is the first phase and does not complete the step. Dispatch does.
- A signature is required before an outbound dispatch can be completed. That gate lives on the shipment screen, not here.
When not to use it
- You are selling the goods. Use Sell and Ship, which raises the sales order and the shipment together.
- The stock is only moving inside the business - that is a Move Order.
- You only need a courier booked for a shipment that already exists - that is Courier Booking.