Control of minimum and maximum balances during the distribution of goods between warehouses

Control of minimum and maximum stock levels during product distribution: validation rules and restriction settings

When managing a retail chain, entrepreneurs regularly need to distribute products accurately between a central warehouse and retail stores. Optimal distribution means that each location has enough stock to meet demand without creating excess inventory that ties up working capital.

This raises questions such as: «How can I technically prevent a merchandiser from sending more products to a store than the established limit?», «Why does the software allow a product transfer if the remaining stock falls below the minimum?», «Why does the warning about exceeding the maximum limit not appear during distribution?» and «How can I configure the software so that it automatically controls the limits for both the sender and the recipient?».

This article explains in detail how the limit control system works during internal product distribution.

Basic concepts and the current state of the issue

For the control system to work correctly, it is necessary to understand the key terms used by the software:

• Minimum stock level — the specified quantity of a product below which the stock at a particular accounting center should not fall. This is a safety stock intended to support uninterrupted sales.

• Maximum stock level — the upper limit of the product quantity at an accounting center, exceeding which is considered excess stock (overstocking).

• Sender — the accounting center (usually the central warehouse) from which products are written off during distribution.

• Recipient — the accounting center (retail store) to which products are transferred.

• Distribution conditions — system settings that determine how the software responds to limit violations: by displaying an informational warning or completely blocking the creation of a transfer invoice.

Currently, Torgsoft allows multi-factor stock control for both the sender and the recipient. However, this control is strictly linked to the data visibility settings on the working form, which is a key feature of the validation algorithm.

Required conditions for maximum limits to work

While minimum stock control is a basic function, two strict conditions must be met to control the maximum stock level during distribution. Without them, checks for exceeding the limit will not work:

1. The additional option «Minimum and maximum stock levels by warehouse» must be activated in the software.

2. In the warehouse parameter settings (Settings – Parameters – Warehouse), the rule «Keep records of the minimum stock level for each accounting center» must be enabled. Only then can the system process the dynamic maximum stock level characteristic separately for specific stores.

Main rule: checks depend on column visibility

The most common reason entrepreneurs encounter when limits do not work is that the distribution conditions, available filter values, and background status highlighting directly depend on whether the corresponding columns are visible in the distribution table.

This is a fundamental principle of the distribution algorithm in Torgsoft:

• If the «Minimum stock level at the current accounting center» column is hidden (via «Settings – Column visibility»), the software will not check whether the sender has insufficient stock and will not display a warning.

• If the dynamic characteristic «Maximum product stock level» is not added to the table for the sender or recipient, the software will not be able to warn about excess stock or block a transfer above the established limit.

• Accordingly, if the column is not visible, the relevant selection options will disappear from the general product filter (for example, the «Excess stock (qty > max. stock level)» filter will disappear).

Configuring the system response: warning or blocking

In the «Distribution conditions» menu on the product distribution form, the entrepreneur can configure the strictness of the control. The software separates checks for the sender and the recipient.

• Warn about shortage / Prohibit creating a transfer with a shortage: triggered if, after sending the products, the stock at the central warehouse would fall below its own minimum limit.

• Warn about excess / Prohibit creating a transfer with excess: triggered if the sender’s current stock already exceeds its maximum limit.

• Warn about insufficient quantity / Prohibit creating a transfer with insufficient quantity: triggered if, even after receiving the distributed products, the store’s stock would still not reach the minimum level.

• Warn about excess / Prohibit creating a transfer with excess: triggered when the quantity being sent to the store would cause its maximum stock limit to be exceeded (overstocking).

Difference between a warning and a prohibition:

If «Warn» is selected, before creating internal transfer invoices the system will display a list of problematic items but will allow the user to ignore them and click «Continue». If «Prohibit» is selected, creation of the transfer will be blocked until the user adjusts the quantity in the distribution table so that it complies with the limits.

Validation algorithm and visual indication (Colors)

When the merchandiser clicks the distribution button, the software performs checks in a defined sequence. Maximum and minimum quantity checks are always performed first. Only after all limit-related errors have been corrected will the system check whether the product quantity is a multiple of the package quantity (if this setting is enabled).

For quick visual identification of problematic items, background highlighting is used for rows in the distribution table:

1. Purple background: the product quantity is below the specified minimum stock level.

2. Orange background: the product quantity is above the specified maximum stock level (excess stock).

3. Red background: the quantity being transferred is not a multiple of the quantity in a package (for example, an attempt is made to transfer 3 units when the package contains 5 units).

Answers to frequently asked questions from entrepreneurs

?Why have I configured maximum stock levels in the product cards, but the software does not respond to them during distribution?

Make sure that three conditions are met: the corresponding paid option is activated, minimum stock accounting in the warehouse parameters is set to «For each warehouse», and the maximum stock level columns for the sender and/or recipient are displayed on the distribution form through the column visibility settings (dynamic characteristics section). If the columns are not visible, the check is not performed.

?Can I allow the central warehouse to fall below its minimum stock level but strictly prohibit sending more products to a store than its maximum limit?

Yes, the software treats these events separately. In «Distribution conditions», you can set the rule «Warn about product shortage at the sender» (so it can be ignored) and at the same time enable «Prohibit creating a transfer with excess stock at the recipient». The system will then block only those transfers that would result in store overstocking.

?The «Excess stock (qty > max. stock level)» filter has disappeared. How can I restore it?

The availability of this filter directly depends on the visibility of the maximum stock level column. Open the column visibility settings, enable the maximum stock level display, and after refreshing the form the filter will appear in the list again.