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NetSuite 2022.1 Wholesale Distribution Updates Offer Custom Solutions for Inventory Management and Vendor Transactions

NetSuite 2022.1 Wholesale Distribution aims to enhance productivity for distributors worldwide and improve their employee performance through retention strategies in their distribution module. Distributors have been impacted by material and labor shortages, as well as challenges meeting consumer demand, and the changing conditions from the manufacturing and retailing environment. The aim is to then address:
  • Optimize inventory management
  • Minimize the impact of fast-rising costs
  • Maximize marketing wholesale business online

The custom software tools from NetSuite 2022.1 focus on improved functionality for supply chain processes and customer sales experience across multiple channels. See more updates in the release document below:

DOWNLOAD THE NETSUITE 2022.1 RELEASE NOTES HERE

Simpler Picker Movement and Packing Instructions

NetSuite 2022.1 Pack Station app comes with new mobile enhancements that help warehouse workers process with faster times and more accuracy. There is a built-in converter for weighing packages that seamlessly switches between pounds and kilograms based on user preference. For accuracy and speed, workers can now check the packing instructions for items for each order packaging in the app before getting started. For speed again, the release comes with a bulk activation feature that helps to accelerate the pack and unpack “Ship As Is” products, rather than doing it individually.

For Warehouse managers, NetSuite 2022.1 helps to make the picking, scanning, releasing, and filtering much easier. The feature highlights customizations in the NetSuite Warehouse Management System (WMS) app that improve picker movement and wave filtering through automation.

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Zone Packing

For businesses that have multiple methods of picking in the warehouse, zone picking helps to reduce the time spent picking items before packing. Instead, NetSuite Warehouse Management System (WMS) app updates in NetSuite 2022.1 Wholesale Distribution allows workers to group by certain zones in which they are assigned ahead packing. This increases the efficiency of business operations since it will essentially map and reduce stages for order picking and the duplication of pick paths.

On-Screen Wave Filtering

The release offers comprehensive, real-time data visibility of all orders and waves in the process to be picked. The list of orders and waves helps workers better prioritize tasks to start working on and prevent any picks that may be repeated.

Tally Scanning

The new NetSuite WMS now has a count and scan tool for putting in item quantities when conducting cycle counting, product put-away, and inventory transfers. This lessens both time and any possible errors that would come from workers manually counting and entering in the quantity. Tally scanning will also help to map and reduce stages for item scanning.

Mobile Enhancement for Picking

It is now faster and easier to search for an item label, have it printed, and released with the WMS app. Warehouse managers can simply select multiple pick waves and release them all in one go.
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Complete Supply Chain Processes

The updates to Supply Planning Workbench support custom demand planning for warehouse managers and real time visibility for workers.

App Updates for Supply Planning Workbench

For managers in supply chain businesses, they can experience optimized production planning through NetSuite 2022.1 custom demand planning tools. The interface has been upgraded to give more display to data that helps production quality to be more easily maintained.

App Updates for Supply Planning Workbench

Based on the roles they are responsible for, supply chain managers can create a custom view of the orders for supply or demand on one single page to help with monitoring and regulation. The custom page views can also be saved for any future need to refer to any trends in supply or demand that may affect the business processes.

Filters to Keep an Eye on Inventory

NetSuite 2022.1 comes with filters in the Supply Planning Workbench that managers can apply to item search. Now they will be able to see more information on orders, from the item description, status of stock levels, and information related to the vendors all on a single page.

Both updates make it easier for wholesale distribution business processes. Since the ideal order amounts are seen to avoid over or undersupply of stock with the comprehensive real-time visibility feature.

App Updates for NetSuite Mobile Manufacturing

Simpler On-Screen Instructions

The mobile app now displays production quantities that help to validate the amount for production runs. To prevent any cases of over-production, the app includes a button to “Enable/ Disable” the production.

App Updates for Supply Chain Management

Customize Data Tables

Standard data tables in NetSuite SCM App can now be customized. Managers can now remove or add fields depending on the relevant roles they manage for better visibility and decision-making.

Inventory Allocation Fulfilment Functionality

A faster way to make informed decisions on inventory is here. Purchasing managers can get more details about allocated demand since the app shows what channel or which customer each item is reserved for.

Better Purchasing Decisions for Demand Planning

With the recent shift to increase in digital services demand, the wholesale industry feels pressure at every stage of the business process. A common reason for not meeting demands is the lack of consistency in supply. NetSuite 2022.1 release wants to fix this using custom demand planning and help to best meet customer expectations.

Vendor Confidence Rating

Purchasing decisions now come with a ‘Confidence score’ that provides vendor performance scores based on the timing of their delivery. This data is compiled from the historical performance of vendors, which shows how on time, early, or late their deliveries have been. NetSuite 2022.1 analyzes each into a rating from 1 to 100 to help ease supply planning.

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Customer Confidence

To help with consistent business growth, NetSuite wants to provide data that help businesses to best meet consumer demand. Vendor ratings help wholesalers give their customers reasonable and achievable delivery dates since they can optimally utilize inventory in stock.

Better Deals with Vendors

Since the application provides the historical data on each vendor, managers can know what to expect and have an advantage in negotiating deals.

Reducing Inventory Waste and Extra Supplies

To ensure wholesalers maintain high quality on their products, Netsuite 2022.1 is providing more ways to ensure this happens. The new updates focus on creating more opportunities to inspect at any stage of the production journey before it gets to the customer. This helps to reduce the chance of a subpar product being made, inventory wastage, and obtaining optimal quality.

If an item has been detected to have subpar quality in inspection, a trigger will be sent from the NetSuite Quality Management app to have it reinspected.

To ensure efficient warehouse operations, managers can also schedule inspections at selected stages for quality assurance, or done on an ad-hoc basis.

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Steer Clear of Outdated Inventory

Distributors usually face the rising costs of materials and must plan to avoid any potential waste in inventory, while maintaining the budget for materials. To mitigate against wastage, supply chain managers can now assign and fulfill orders using the ‘First Expired, First Out (FEFO) method. This preserves product value by selling the oldest items first. With each item being assigned a number for a production date, it is easier with the new release to fulfill orders in the correct sequence.

Comprehensive Reporting for Tracked Lots – New Filters

Distribution operators can now access an integrated report displaying forward and backward tracing for the lots. To sort through data in this report, there are new filters to quickly refine search results for relevant roles.

More Cash Flow Visibility for Financial Projections

Distributors can avoid potential shortages by keeping a keen eye on any changes in their cash flow. NetSuite 2022.1 created a custom tool called Cash 360 to help with financial management for all sectors of the business. The Cash 360 dashboard displays current cash accounts and future predictions for a 6-month projection. Managers can also add events to Cash 360 that greatly impact the company’s finances, such as: adding a loan, an investment, or some large purchase.

Intercompany Transactions Tagging in Cash 360

Intercompany transactions are now available for distributors that do not have a complete purchase-to-sale order process. In Cash 360, invoices related to credit memos or bill credits can easily be found and paired by tagging them.

Custom Tools for Easier Employee Management

Company commitment comes from understanding and achieving goals together. The new release aims to increase employee engagement using the newest updates on the SuitePeople app.

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Setting Clear Goals

Both managers and employees can access SuitePeople for strategic goal setting. Managers can set clear goals for employees and oversee each progress in SuitePeople. For employees, they can increase efficiency in performance by eliminating any unapproved or unnecessary goals, and also checking progress updates on existing goals.

Mass Scheduling Performance Reviews

SuitePeople makes it easier to schedule review sessions for managers with all employees. Simply adding all employees to the dataset allows managers to automatically set up review requests to be sent. This bulk scheduling works for new employee check-ins on an annual, monthly, quarterly, or 60-day basis.

Smarter Analytics Offering More Business Insights

Warehouse managers have access to more insights with NetSuite Analytics Warehouse updates. This includes:
  • Transaction Types: 18 new transactions built for banking and employees
  • Dashboards: 6 new dashboards for customer relationship management, sales, procurement, order & inventory management, and financial (including cash position)
  • Prebuilt historical dataset for: Work orders, Inventory & Expense reporting
  • Historical Performance Datasets: 3 new datasets prebuilt for inventory items, work orders, vendor performance scores, reports for expense accounts that are faster and help with point-in-time analysis
The data model in the app now offers customizations for each item. Using custom fields helps with data-driven decisions for better planning for future demands.

SuiteAnalytics Linking Multiple Datasets

ts easier to analyze business performance with the newly designed SuiteAnalytics interface. The user interface allows for multiple datasets to be linked into a single workbook by simply dragging and dropping relevant links. No longer is code needed in order to perform business analysis, which decreases time and resources spent on accessing datasets. The new user interface also offers robust analytics when measuring actual data to budgeted, forecasted, and planned data.

Easily Integrate External Systems to NetSuite

NetSuite 2022.1 allows a seamless flow between external systems and NetSuite using a new connector tab. For wholesale distributors partnering with other businesses for online or in-person‹ retailing, they can use NetSuite Connector to unify both experiences for better monitoring of information.

There are more ways NetSuite can help your business

These points highlight how NetSuite 2022.1 Release can optimize the way wholesale distributors do business. Get a comprehensive view of all the updates and new custom features NetSuite 2022.1 Release has to offer in the ERP Buddies Release Notes Summary.