The stock movement report
Stock levels tell you what's there now. The stock movement report tells you why.
When a van count comes up two filters short, this is where you find out whether they went onto a job nobody invoiced, back to the vendor, or simply vanished. Every change to stock is on it, whoever or whatever made the change, and each row links to the job, invoice or purchase order behind it.
When you'd use this
- Daily check-in. What came in and what went out today. This is what the report shows when you open it.
- Reconciling a count. The shelf says 4, the system says 6. Filter to that item and warehouse since your last count and read down the list.
- Checking a job. Were the parts for job #1042 actually taken from stock, and from which warehouse?
- Following a delivery. Which warehouse did PO-00012 go into, and did the part reach the job?
- Month end. Stock in and out per warehouse, with a rough value.
If you only want to know how many of something you have right now, use the Stock tab, and click the item for its own history with the balance after each movement. This report is about changes across everything, not balances.
What counts as a movement
Anything that changes a warehouse's stock writes a movement. Each movement gets a plain-language type:
| Movement | What happened |
|---|---|
| Used on a job | A part on an invoice took stock from a warehouse. |
| Set aside for a job | A part on an estimate took stock for a job that isn't invoiced yet. It no longer counts as available, even if it's still physically on your shelf. Once the job is invoiced, the same row shows as Used on a job; the stock isn't taken again. |
| Received | A delivery on a purchase order went into stock. |
| Received for a job | A delivery went straight to, or was set aside for, a specific job. You'll usually see a matching Set aside or Used row in the same minute. |
| Returned to vendor | A part left stock on a return against its purchase order. |
| Restocked | Stock came back: a line was taken off a job, an invoice was cancelled, or a credit note was issued. |
| Transfer | Stock moved between warehouses (shows twice: out of one, into the other). |
| Write-off | Stock taken off as damaged, lost, used in the shop or expired. |
| Count | The difference a posted count found between the shelf and the record. |
| Adjustment | Found stock, a correction, an undone record, or an adjustment made before the Adjustments tab existed. |
| Import | Stock loaded from a spreadsheet import. |
"Set aside" is the one that confuses people most. When a job's estimate holds a part, your system count drops before anything is installed. That's intentional: it stops someone selling the part that's promised to the job. But it's also why your shelf can look fuller than the system says.
Reading the page
Dates. The report opens on Today. Quick ranges cover Yesterday, This week, Last 7 days, Last 30 days and This month. Pick your own dates for anything else.
Filters.
- Warehouses: one, several, or all.
- Category: a category includes everything filed under it.
- Item: type a name or part number and pick it.
- Job: a job number or customer name.
- Movement types: each chip shows how many movements of that type are in your date range.
The four numbers across the top:
- Stock in and Stock out, each with a value at today's price-list cost.
- Net change.
- Movements, the count of rows.
Warehouse boxes. When more than one warehouse is involved, a box per warehouse shows in, out and net. Click a box to look at just that warehouse; click it again to see them all.
The list. Each row shows:
- when it happened, the item and the warehouse;
- the movement, with a sentence explaining it (for example Received on PO-00012 for job #1042);
- the quantity, green for in and red for out;
- links to the job, the invoice or estimate, the purchase order or the adjustment;
- who did it.
The list loads 200 rows at a time; Show more loads the next batch.
Export CSV downloads what your filters show, up to 10,000 movements. Narrow the date range for more.
Bookmark a view. Your filters are saved in the page address, so a "Van 3, last 7 days" view can be bookmarked or sent to a colleague.
Worked example: a part received straight to a job
A windshield for job #1042 arrives on PO-00012, and you receive it straight to the job through the Main shop. The report shows two rows in the same minute:
| Movement | Warehouse | Qty | Linked to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Received for a job | Main shop | +1 | Job #1042, PO-00012 |
| Set aside for a job | Main shop | -1 | Job #1042, Estimate #E-500 |
The Main shop nets to zero, which is right: the glass never sat on your shelf. The two rows are the audit trail showing where it came from and where it went. Nothing is counted twice.
A monthly count routine that works
- Count one warehouse, or one van, physically.
- For any item that doesn't match, filter the report to that item and warehouse, from the day of your last count to today.
- Read down the rows. The usual culprits are:
- a Used on a job for a job that was later cancelled without the part coming back;
- a delivery received into the wrong warehouse;
- an Adjustment nobody can explain.
- Fix the cause (move the stock, correct the job), then record an adjustment for whatever is still unexplained, with a reason.
Doing this monthly keeps the gaps small enough to explain. Leave it for a year and nobody will remember.
Common mistakes
- Treating the value figures as your books. They use each item's current price-list cost, not what you paid at the time. They're for a sense of scale. For accounting, use cost of goods on your invoices.
- Reading a direct-to-job delivery as double counting. The +1 Received for a job and the -1 Set aside (or Used) cancel out by design; see the example above. If a part really does come out of stock twice for one job, the job has two lines for it, so check the job.
- Concluding nothing happened because the report opened on today. Widen the date range before you worry.
- Using the report to find what's on hand. It shows changes, not balances. Use the Stock tab.
- Exporting a whole year and wondering why it stops at 10,000 rows. Export a month at a time, or filter to one warehouse.
Who can see it
Anyone with Manage Inventory or Manage Purchase Orders. It's the Movements tab under Inventory in the left menu.