How to Leverage Inventory Management Features in QBS Enterprise

For product-based businesses, having robust inventory management capabilities is essential. QuickBooks Enterprise delivers advanced inventory tracking tools to help you efficiently monitor stock levels, warehouse operations, and inventory transactions.

In this guide, we’ll explore the key inventory management features in Enterprise and how to configure them for your business. Whether you manufacture products or sell purchased inventory, these features provide the visibility and control you need to optimize your inventory processes.

Top Inventory Management Features

Here are some of the top ways QuickBooks Enterprise allows you to track and manage inventory:

• Assembly tracking – Build and cost bill of material assemblies
• Serial/lot tracking – Assign unique serial or lot numbers to inventory items
• Bin tracking – Organize inventory by warehouse bin location
• Barcode scanning – Speed up transaction entry and tracking using barcode readers
• Inventory centers – Manage multiple warehouses or locations from one QB company file
• Cycle counts – Continuously review and adjust inventory quantities
• Inventory alerts – Get notified when stock levels are low or orders come due
• Landed cost – Factor in additional costs like shipping/duties for accurate valuation
• Kitting – Bundle and unbundle inventory items into kits or packages

Getting Started: Enabling Inventory Features

Many inventory management features in Enterprise can be toggled on or off to suit your needs. Here are some high-level steps to enable key inventory functions:

1. Ensure inventory tracking is turned on for your QB company file.
2. Activate advanced inventory in Accountant & Taxes.
3. In Items & Inventory, select the stock status you want to use.
4. Enable features like Assembly Tracking, Serial/Lot Tracking, Bin Location Tracking, etc.
5. Set up inventory centers for each warehouse location you want to track.
6. Add custom fields on item records to capture specialized product data.

With just those basic steps, you’ll unlock Enterprise’s robust inventory management powers! Now let’s walk through configuring some of the top features…

Setting Up Assembly Tracking

If you manufacture or assemble products, you can use Enterprise’s assembly tracking to:

• Build bill of material assemblies
• Assign component costs
• Generate build instructions
• Adjust assemblies and component quantities

To set up assembly tracking:

1. Enable “Assembly Tracking” in Enterprise Preferences
2. Create each assembly item and enter components
3. Select a build point option like Build to Order or Build to Stock
4. Use the Build Assembly transaction to assemble, explode, or adjust assemblies

With assemblies set up, you’ll gain real-time visibility into manufactured inventory costs and components on-hand!

Leveraging Serial/Lot Tracking

For inventory that requires unique identification, Enterprise’s serial and lot tracking allows you to:

• Assign serial or lot numbers upon receipt
• Track items down to the unit level
• Report on item specifications like lot expiration dates
• Prevent allocation issues by reserving serialized inventory

To enable serial/lot tracking:

1. Turn on Serialized Inventory or Lot Tracking in Enterprise Preferences
2. Check “Serialized Item” or “Lot Numbered Item” when creating inventory items
3. Assign serial/lot details during purchase orders and inventory receipts
4. Select from available serial/lot numbers during sales transactions

With unique identifiers assigned to inventory units, you gain pinpoint tracking and prevent misallocations.

Customizing with Bin Locations

Enterprise’s bin location feature allows you to:

• Model your warehouse layout and storage plan
• Assign inventory items to specific bin locations
• Pick and restock inventory by scanning bin locations

To implement bin locations:

1. Enable “Bin Location Tracking” in Enterprise Preferences
2. Set up bin locations tied to your warehouse inventory centers
3. Assign bins to inventory items or enter during transactions
4. Run bin location reports to optimize your warehouse layout

With bin tracking activated, you can streamline picking processes and spot dead inventory accumulating in a bin.

Level Up Your Inventory Management

QuickBooks Enterprise provides a feature-rich toolkit to take your inventory tracking to the next level. As you grow and scale, you can continue enabling inventory capabilities like:

• Barcode scanning for rapid inventory issuance and receipts
• Landed cost tracking to factor in freight, duties, and other costs
• Cycle counting for continuous inventory auditing
• Kitting to bundle components into kits or packages
• Inventory alerts to notify staff when inventory action is needed

The bottom line—QuickBooks Enterprise has all the inventory features and customization options you need to optimize inventory visibility and transactions as you grow. Leverage its powers to tighten up your inventory management!