You know how important it is to stay on top of your stock levels. Too much inventory can tie up your capital and lead to costly storage fees. Too little inventory can result in lost sales and upset customers.
In addition to that, the supply chain has experienced unparalleled levels of disruption due to COVID, inflation, and other global events. While you can’t control being shorted, you can have a way to respond to shortages more quickly.
That’s where advanced shipping notice (ASN) comes in. ASN is a new feature in Herlitz Inventory Management’s HIMPACT solution that can help you keep track of your incoming shipments and manage your inventory levels more effectively.
ASN in HIMPACT delivers advanced notice of SKUs that will be missing days before your POs arrive, or the day after the ASN is sent. This gives you the flexibility and time to make decisions that are best for you and your customers.
You Asked, We Listened!
Due to the current supply chain challenges many of our clients are facing, this has become a highly requested feature in HIMPACT. Part of our culture is to listen to customer feedback and, when possible, make changes to the system accordingly to fully support users. This is just one of the many ways our team has built new features and capabilities based on client needs.
Up until more recent months, this simply was not something our users found much value in. We strive to make HIMPACT a powerful tool that is packed with features. We are also selective in that we don’t add features that our customers won’t use. As mentioned above, the current climate of the global supply chain has created a more considerable demand for ASN capabilities.
How ASN Works in HIMPACT
This new feature will help our clients track inventory accurately and know if any inventory will be missing before it arrives at their locations.
When a buyer places a PO, it can be sent to their vendor via Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). EDI is an electronic exchange protocol that streamlines communication in distribution and logistics. Essentially, it eliminates the chances of human error in shipping and streamlines the sharing of inventory and order data between various systems and parties.
Once the vendor receives the PO from the buyer, they can confirm they got the order and have the necessary quantities on hand to fulfill it. The ASN feature delivers this information to the buyer. When the order ships, it also shows what inventory will actually be on the truck.
Buyers will be able to see in advance whether they will get their full order, or if some SKUs will be missing. This allows them to source missing items from different vendors if need be, or substitute for another product entirely. Regardless, buyers can be more proactive and have more time to make the decision that is best for their company.
Get Started with ASN
Ready to start using ASN for your business? If you are a current HIMPACT user, you should start seeing this feature available with your next update. If your team hasn’t yet realized the benefits and savings of HIMPACT, schedule a free discovery call with our team to learn more.
