Odoo 18 Enterprise Book: Inventory

4. Settings

Operations

Under the settings you have the option of operations, below which there are options, like Packages, Warning, Quality, Reception Report, Batch, Wave, & Cluster Transfer respectively.

The packages option Products will be partially saved from damage by putting them in packages. It is a basic responsibility of all businesses that they move goods in a damage-free condition. With Odoo 18, you can build delivery packages, multiple packs for one product, and single packs for multiple products. Explore these packaging types in the Inventory module.

Once you activate the Packaging options under the Settings menu, they will be available in the Inventory module. You need to activate the Packages option under the Operations page.

The next option is warning, as in the image below. The most advanced Odoo Inventory module will enable you to generate automatic warning messages in different working scenarios in the Inventory module. The warning messages will be activated only when you turn on the Warnings option from the Inventory Settings.

Odoo system also provides you with the ability to create informative or blocking warning messages on each product, vendor and customers. You can select any one of the alert types and also have the ability to create individual alerts for sales, purchase or products. The following are the types of warning available. The sub options on warning are available under the customers option of sales module.

No Message: It will not show any message, alert or warnings.

Warnings: This will display an alert message when we are performing the specific operation.

Blocking Message: The Blocking message will raise an exception with the message and block the work flaw.

The next option is, quality. Quality checks are hand inspections carried out by workers, and serve to verify the quality of goods. In Odoo, a quality check may be performed for one product, or several products within the same inventory operation or manufacturing order.

A Reception Report is the next option. The Reception Report functionality is a key to addressing some complexity. Once a receipt is validated, the system automatically creates a concise reception report, simplifying the allotment of items to corresponding orders and improving organizational efficacy.

The reception report on the receipt of purchase module will be, as in the image below.

Now, comes the next one, which is picking policy, as in the screenshot below.

Odoo provides two types of Picking Policies inside the Inventory Module platform, and this feature can be activated from the “Settings” submenu in the “Configuration” menu, as shown above. The picking policy can be set inside the sale order's other info tab, as in the image below.

Here, you can find two basic picking policies that are "Ship products as soon as available, with back orders" and "Ship all products at once" under the options box. Now, we can verify the operation of each picking policy in detail.

Ship products as soon as available, with backorders: Applying the "Ship Products as Soon as Possible, with Backorders" setting policy is useful when a customer orders a product in greater quantities than the available stock. If a customer places any products after this option has been activated and the supply of the inventory is less than the set amount, then the buyer can simply go ahead with the orders.

Ship all products at once: If a customer places an order for a product with more quantity than the stock of the inventory, then he cannot go ahead with that specific order if we have set the "Ship all products at once" option as our shipping policy for the inventory then the orders will be picked only after the inventory stock is replenished.

Barcode is the next. Under the barcode tab, you have the options, like barcode scanner, stock barcode database, show quantity to count, and count entire locations, respectively.

Barcode scanner Odoo offers barcode scanning to manage inventory operations of products in a more convenient way. You can utilize the barcode scanning approach to track and find products in your inventory. To utilize the functionality of the barcode scanner for your inventory management in Odoo, ensure you install the Barcode module from the Odoo AppStore. After you have finished the installation, you can proceed to the Inventory module's Settings menu.

You can enable this feature. In the Barcode Nomenclature field, you can choose an appropriate set of rules for generating the barcode. Once this feature is enabled, you can click the Configure Product Barcode option to set barcodes for products.

Odoo will take you to a new platform where you will receive the list of products already configured in your database. You can easily add Barcode to every product by clicking on the Barcode field of the product. Once you add a barcode to the product, you can click on the Save button. You can assign barcodes for every product by this method. With this barcode, you can find products during various inventory activities with the assistance of a barcode scanner.

The Odoo ERP system's Barcode Nomenclature function allows you to establish certain guidelines for barcode production. Developer mode must be enabled in order to configure the barcode nomenclature in the Odoo Inventory module.

The show quantity to count option helps you to see the expected quantity of a product to count in a location. When enabled, it displays the expected quantity (according to the system) during a physical count, making it easier to compare what you physically count with what's recorded in Odoo.

The stock barcode database option easily creates items by scanning barcodes with barcodelookup.com.

In order to expedite warehouse procedures, this function makes barcode scanning possible for stock operations such as receipts, deliveries, internal transfers, and inventory modifications.

The next option is to count entire locations, which when selecting a location in inventory adjustments, you will be allotted to count every product from the location.

Next tab is Shipping, under which you have the options, like delivery method, email configuration, dispatch management system signature, and sms configuration.

Enabling the Delivery Methods will assist you in calculating the shipping fees. In addition to this, you can enable available shipping connectors to utilize them as third party shippers for your delivery processes. You can locate here UPS Connector, FedEx Connector, bpost Connector, Sendcloud Connector, DHL Express Connector, USPS Connector, and Easypost Connector.

You can now set up a new shipping method for your delivery business by clicking on the Shipping Methods choice found under the Configuration menu. The list of previously set Shipping Methods will display details of the Delivery Method, Provider, Is Published, Website, and Company.

Clicking on the New button, you can configure a new shipping method.

You can enter the name of Shipping Method in this field. Refer to the Website id to allow this shipping in your eCommerce store. You can choose an appropriate shipping provider for your delivery from the Provider field. Or you can install additional providers via the respective option.

You can enable more providers using the option ‘Install more providers’ from the list.

After choosing Provider, you can enter Company and Delivery Product in the respective fields. Enable the Free if the order amount is more than field if you wish to offer free shipping on orders that have an amount of value more than or equal to the value you enter in the Amount field. The tab present within this window will be modified depending on the Provider selected. We choose the Fixed Price here.

In the Availability tab, you can define the destinations where this shipping method is available. Under destination, you can add the countries, states, and zip prefixes. And in the contents tab, you can add the max weight, max volume, must have tags, and excluded tags, respectively.

An automated confirmation email and SMS can be sent to the consumer once the delivery orders are completed. Under the Settings menu of the Odoo 18 Inventory module, you can enable the Email Confirmation and SMS Confirmation options. You will have a specific section where you can define the SMS Template, which is the default SMS template.

To confirm delivery, you can request the customer's signature. To provide the ability to sign on delivery confirmation, turn on the Signature option in the Shipping tab. There is a Sign option in the Validated Delivery Order when this feature is turned on. The customer is able to sign and confirm the delivery using this button.

Now, you have the dispatch management system, which organizes packs in your fleet, or carriers, as in the image below. Odoo Inventory's Dispatch Management System assists companies in managing order fulfillment, shipment processing, and stock movements effectively. It guarantees that products are dispatched correctly and within time, minimizing errors and enhancing customer satisfaction.

By guaranteeing precise and on-time delivery, Odoo's dispatch management system expedites order fulfillment, lowers manual labor, and raises customer happiness.

The next option is shipping connectors, as in the image below.

Odoo 18 can handle multiple delivery modes, such as external carriers. The transportation sector's tracking system can be connected to Odoo. You'll have control over the transportation agency, the true cost, and the ultimate destination.

From the settings, the shipping connectors can be configured for the system. Then, as before, choose the distribution method from the Configuration menu to configure it. The routes of delivery for the chosen shippers have been automatically generated already. The same service will normally provide two methods of delivery: one for home shipping and the other for overseas shipping.

There are different types of connectors, such as

UPS : Supports UPS services including Next Day, 2nd Day Air, Ground, etc., with automatic rate fetching.

FedEx : Connects with FedEx to handle express, ground, and freight shipping, including tracking.

Bpost: Integrates with Belgium's national postal service.

Sendcloud: European-focused shipping platform connecting multiple carriers for eCommerce businesses.

Starshipit: Compute shipping costs and ship with Starshipit

DHL: Integrates with DHL for international and domestic shipping with real-time rates and label printing.

USPS: U.S. Postal Service connector for domestic and international mail services.

Easypost: Aggregator service that provides access to multiple carriers (UPS, FedEx, USPS, DHL, etc.) via one integration.

Shiprocket: Compute shipping costs and ship with Shiprocket.

The next option in settings is, product, as in the screenshot below.

Under the products option, there are variants, units of measure, and product packaging, respectively. Offering customers a variety of product options is a smart strategy to boost sales. Odoo18 allows you to configure several product versions in the Inventory module, just like we did in the Sales and Purchase module. You can test the Product Variants feature from the Products menu of the Inventory module. The product variation is the same as the one we've just discussed in the above section.

The Variants list established in the Inventory module is illustrated in the window below. The window and the product window are similar. The only difference is that you can now see the Variant Values of the associated goods.

The list of pre configured attributes will be available on the settings itself. To create a new one, go for the configuration menu, which provides the option of attributes, as in the screenshot below.

The Attribute Name field lets you define the proper title of the attribute. Place similar attributes within the same section on the eCommerce comparison page by assigning a category in the Category field. A product configurator attribute's Display Type can be modified to Radio, Pills, Select, Colour, or Multi-checkbox (option). Odoo 18 introduced a new feature named multi-checkbox.

The next option is, Units of measure & Packaging, as in the above image. We can now classify units and facilitate unit conversions thanks to Odoo's Unit of Measure Category functionality. It sells and purchases products in different units of measure or packaging.

To obtain this Unit of Measure Category, select the Configuration tab. The configuration tab has a unit of measure category option.

When we select that option, we can view all the units and packaging that have been made. This shows all the respective units made under that category. Here, you will get the list of unit name and it shows the contains, and reference units, repectively. To make a new units, click on the New button.

We need to provide the name of the unit, and quantity while defining a new one. We can add all the units of measures contained in this category under the unit of measure tab, as in the image below. Choose Add a Line to add a new one. It is necessary to specify the Unit of Measure, Type, Ratio, active, and Rounding Precision when introducing a new unit of measurement.

There are three types of references. One is a Reference Unit of measure for the category, another Smaller than the reference Unit of measure than the reference unit, and the third is Larger than the reference Unit of measure. Choose the correct one from the drop-down list. In the ratio field, we have to enter the ratio of the specified unit of measure to the specified reference unit.

Units have been established as the reference unit, and we have placed a bigger Bunch than the reference unit. Click the Save button to save the changes after adding details.

The list of unit of measure categories includes the recently added unit of measure.

Traceability is the next option under the settings icon.

While managing their inventory, we allocate product lots and serial numbers. While setting up the products in the Inventory module, you can allocate lots and serial numbers to them so that you can maintain the traceability report of the concerned products later on easily. This traceability feature is backed by the inventory management features offered by Odoo 18 to facilitate effective tracking operations. You need to turn on the Lots & Serial Numbers option in the Settings menu to have full access to all traceability features in the Inventory module.

Lots and serial numbers option is the one in the tab, as shown in the above image, this capability will be available under the Traceability tab. After you enable this feature, the Lots/Serial Numbers option will appear under the Products menu.

Next one is the Expiration Dates, as in the image below.

Applying expiration dates on the consumable or storable products in your stock is a critical task. On each product, you should definitely mention the expiration date so that the consumer knows for how long the product is safe to use. Odoo18 manages product expiration dates through the features based on lots and serial numbers. From the Settings menu of the Inventory module, you can enable this functionality.

You can enable the Expiration Dates option in the Traceability menu. Furthermore, the expiration dates may also be displayed on the delivery slips by enabling the option to show them there. In the "DATES" section, you will see fields to enter various expiration dates, such as "Expiration Date," "Best Before Date," "Removal Date," and "Alert Date."

Expiration dates indicate the amount of time after an item is manufactured or purchased from a seller before it becomes harmful or unwanted.

Best Before Date: Even in cases where there isn't a significant risk, the term "Best Before Date" describes the window of time before a product's expiration date when it starts to deteriorate.

Removal Dates: This indicates how many days it will be before the products are taken out of stock.

Alert Date: Products in a given lot or serial number should get an alert a certain number of days prior to the expiration date.

Now, on activating the display lots and serial number on delivery slips, it will appear on the delivery slip as well.

The consignment option is the next one, as in the image below.

You can specify the owner of consigned products in your stock using the Consignment feature under the Settings menu. While the shop will be selling the product, the supplier will actually own the product until a customer buys it. This approach allows it to be easy to return unused goods to the suppliers. For consignment, the retailers do not have to keep an ongoing inventory.

You can activate the Consignment feature in the Traceability tab of the Settings module. You can utilize this function to assign an owner to each item you receive when you put it into your inventory. Let's create a receipt for the consigned stock and assign it a new owner.

You may put the consignee's name in the Assign Owner field during receipt creation. With the help of the Add a Line button on the Operations page, you may add the consignment stock and its units. In this case, Anita Oliver is set as the product's consignee. We delivered 35 units of the product to Anita Oliver. Pressing the Validate button is a choice. Customizable Desk in 35 units has been sent to Anita Oliver.

The Stock report under the Reporting option indicates that there are currently 78 quantities of the product available.

The History of Moves report and consignment data can be accessed in detail. We can conclude from this data that Anita Oliver is responsible for the handling of 35 units of the product. Odoo18 assigns owners to approved products in this way.

The next option is Valuation, as in the image below.

There is an option for landed cost and display lots and serial numbers on invoices. The additional cost of a product that the company must pay at the moment of purchase is known as the "Landed Costs." This covers shipping, handling fees, customs tariffs, and many other expenses. These extra expenses are added to the product's real price to determine the selling price. Different firms will use different methods to determine the landing cost depending on their corporate policy. You may determine the landing cost and divide it among each quantity of the goods in the Odoo18 Inventory module to update the selling price.

By enabling this feature, you can include personalized landing charges in your products. You can initially build a buy order for a couple of products belonging to the same product groups and validate the order so that you can have a better idea of how landed cost operates. For products where an AVCO or FIFO costing method is configured, you can configure landing costs. This is the mandatory precursor to the landed cost which you have to factor in when you are customizing it.

Display lots and serial numbers on invoice option helps you to display lots and serial numbers on the invoice.

Now the next tab is warehouse, as in the image below.

To create specific storage locations, enable the Storage Locations feature by going to Inventory app ‣ Configuration ‣ Settings. In the Warehouses section, tick the Storage Locations checkbox. Then, click Save. Then, you can have the location option from the configuration menu. There, provide : Location Name: recognizable name of the location. Parent Location: the location within which the new location exists. After the location is created, it is listed on the Locations page using a location hierarchy, to describe how a specific location fits within larger areas of the warehouse.

You can understand and trace every movement of a product using the paths that have been established for it. It is the path of operation or trail used to transport inventory. It is difficult to trace and control the movements of a company's inventory without having a good plan. You can define certain operating rules to indicate the product movements in inventory according to your firm's policies. With these rules, you can create numerous operation routes for the products with Odoo 18. This will ensure that your company is handling its inventory in the right way.

Users will be able to use different platforms to create suitable rules and routes for stock transfers within the Odoo 18 Inventory module. Prior to setting up routes for stock, ensure to set up storage locations and warehouses operations that routes in Odoo18 are corresponding to. You have to allow this option under the module Settings menu so you can create new routes in Odoo 18. The Multi-Step Routes can be set from the Warehouse tab, found where it's shown below.

Now, the next option is Advanced Scheduling, as in the image below.

Odoo 18's Advanced Scheduling section arranging function helps you save time by efficiently arranging the processes associated with sales and purchases. To utilize this feature, choose the enable the Settings option from the Configuration menu.

To schedule the delivery earlier, refer to the Security Lead Time for Sales. You can specify the number of days you would like the delivery date to be moved ahead. To schedule the purchase order date prior to the original date, make use of the "Security Lead Time for Purchase" feature. In the same option, you can specify the number of days this action will last. Include the number of days to allow confirmation of a purchase order in "Days to Purchase."

The last tab is logistics, as in the image below. Dropshipping is one of the easy shipping options that can be used by suppliers who are not looking to maintain an inventory. The method will enable you to ship products from vendor to customer. It will be more advantageous to the retailers since the deliveries are direct from the suppliers to the customer, no warehouses need to be maintained. Rather than maintaining an inventory, the dropshipping process will assist you in sending the products directly from the supplier or manufacturer to the customer.

The Dropshipping process in Odoo can be enabled from the Purchase module's Settings menu. As you can see from the image below, the option will be present under the Logistics tab.