How to Split Shipments Automatically [Guide]

This guide explains how to automatically split shipments so that an order can be fulfilled by multiple locations.

By following the steps below, you can define the maximum number of shipment splits and set the criteria for splitting, increasing customer satisfaction and improving control over operational costs. 

This is achieved by setting up a sales order rule and combining the Split Shipment Action with other actions to implement different business logics.

This guide is structured as follows: 

• Getting started
• Use Cases
• Final Considerations

GETTING STARTED

Before you begin, please ensure you are familiar with the following procedure, its settings and limitations:

• How to Create Sales/Purchase Order Rules [Step-by-step guide].
• Rules Conditions and Actions Guide [Information]. Use this guide throughout all steps for a detailed description of each action's available options.

To get started:

1. Create a new sales order rule and select the desired Trigger.

This ensures that your shipment splitting workflow will be activated each time the trigger condition is met.

2. Edit the newly created rule.

Continue configuring the rule by adding additional actions and conditions that best suit your use case.

USE CASES

The following sub-sections illustrate common shipment splitting scenarios and how to implement them using the available actions.

Scenario A: Consider warehouses with enough stock only

You can split shipments considering only those warehouses that have sufficient stock:

1. Add a Calculate Enough Stock Action.

This action generates a prioritized list of warehouses based on available stock for the entire order.

2. Add a Split Shipment Action.

This action will use the list from the previous step to split the order across warehouses that meet the configured criteria.

Scenario B: Consider prioritized warehouses with enough stock

If you want not only to filter for warehouses with enough stock but also to prioritize them (by criteria such as warehouse priority or lowest shipping cost), follow these steps:

1. Add a Calculate Enough Stock Action.

This action evaluates stock availability and creates an ordered list of warehouses. 

2. Add a Select Warehouse Action.

From the previously calculated list, this action selects the optimal warehouse using filters such as only warehouses with sufficient stock, ignoring estimated delivery times if needed, etc.

3. Add a Split Shipment Action.

The order is split according to the defined criteria, with the larger portion allocated to the previously selected warehouse. 

NOTE: Due to the recurrent nature of the shipment splitting process, techOMS continues selecting the optimal warehouse based on your criteria. This means that if there is a remainder, it will reevaluate and allocate remaining quantities using the same workflow procedure.

Scenario C: Consider time and transit when no split is needed; fallback to prioritized warehouses otherwise

You can define a hybrid workflow that adapts warehouse selection based on whether the order must be split:

• If the order can be fulfilled from a single location, time and transit is considered (via techSHIP) to select the best warehouse. 
• If the order cannot be fulfilled from a single location, time and transit is ignored, and the order is split using a prioritized list of warehouses.

To implement this workflow, follow these steps:

1. Add a Calculate Enough Stock Action.

This action generates a prioritized list of warehouses based on stock availability.

2. Add a Calculate Time & Transit Action.

This action reorders the list from step 1 based on transit time provided by techSHIP.

NOTE: This action only applies when the entire order can be fulfilled by a single location. If not, it is automatically skipped.

3. Add a Select Warehouse Action.

This action selects the optimal warehouse from the updated list, using filters such as stock sufficiency, estimated delivery times, etc.

4. Add a Split Shipment Action.

If the selected warehouse cannot fulfill the full order, this action splits it across multiple warehouses based on the defined criteria, with the larger portion allocated to the previously selected warehouse. 

NOTE: Why this works:

• When the order can be fulfilled from a single location, steps 1 to 3 apply, and step 4 is skipped.
  
• When the order cannot be fulfilled from a single location, step 2 is skipped, and the order is split in step 4 using the prioritized list.

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

To finish:

1. Check Enabled, if you would like to try it.

2. Set the desired priority.

3. Press Save.

At the end of the order processing, you can review the results of your shipment splitting workflow through the order's log. This log provides detailed analysis on the splitting decision-making process. For more information, see: How to review the Sales Orders Log [Step-by-Step Guide].

If during the splitting process some order lines cannot be allocated (for instance, if a warehouse cannot cover the minimum required quantity), these lines will be backordered. For details on managing backorders, refer to Understanding Backorders in techOMS [Information].