Disabling Inventory Transactions: Overview
The Count Module in Dynamics 365 Business Central differs from the traditional Calculate Inventory function, which can take a snapshot of inventory levels for the purpose of counting. Instead, the Count Module continuously reflects live inventory levels. Any sales, purchases, or inventory adjustments made in Business Central will update inventory figures in real-time and thus affect count sheet data as counts are entered. This has implications for how you conduct the inventory count:
Scenario 1: Undesirable Situation
- Initial Count: You count 4 units of item ABC123 on the shelf.
- Count Sheet Entry: You record these 4 units into Business Central's count sheet.
- Subsequent Sale: After the count, but before the inventory adjustment is posted, you sell 1 unit of ABC123.
- Inventory Mismatch: Now, Business Central shows a difference—the system expects 3 units (after the sale), but the count sheet still shows 4 units.
- Incorrect Adjustment: If you post the inventory adjustments now, Business Central will incorrectly adjust the inventory to show 4 units, when, in fact, you only have 3 units on hand after the sale.
The takeaway here is that if inventory transactions continue during the count process, you need to make sure any such transactions are reflected in your count sheet entries to maintain accuracy.
Scenario 2: Desirable Situation
- Subsequent Sale: After generating count sheets, but before counting, you sell 1 unit of ABC123.
- Actual Count: When counting, you find 3 units on the shelf (because 1 was sold).
- Count Sheet Entry: You record these 3 units into Business Central's count sheet.
- Inventory Match: The counted inventory matches the system's expected inventory (after accounting for the sale), showing no difference.
- Accurate Adjustment: When you post inventory adjustments, no changes are made to the inventory levels because the counted quantity matches the system's quantity.
In this scenario, the inventory transactions are effectively incorporated into the count process, ensuring that posted counts accurately reflect the actual inventory.
Best Practice: Disabling Transactions During Count
To avoid the complications described above, it is often recommended to temporarily disable inventory transactions during the count. This means stopping any goods from being moved, sold, or received. By doing this, you can ensure that the physical count matches Business Central's inventory levels at the moment of counting, without the risk of intervening transactions creating discrepancies.
If disabling transactions isn't feasible, then it’s important to use the "As of Date" filter when entering counts. This allows you to enter counts as if the inventory was frozen at a specific point in time, ignoring any transactions that happen after that date. After the count is entered, it's crucial to ensure that any inventory transactions that occurred during the count are accounted for before posting adjustments to maintain inventory accuracy.
