Inventory Operations
Chapter 2 — Advanced Operations

Performing physical inventory counts

Complete & Continue Next Lesson Learn More

LESSON INFO

Audience

  • Facility supervisors and auditors.
  • Inventory operators who scan and record counted items on the floor.

Prerequisites

  • Inventory Locations are configured for the facility you’re counting.
  • You know the scope of the count (Facility, Customer, and Product Type) to be performed.

Skills you’ll build

  • Plan and run a controlled physical count without corrupting operational inventory.
  • Record counts on the Scanner App using consistent rules.
  • Generate and interpret count results for audit and operational follow-up.

LESSON OUTLINE

Concept

  • A Physical Inventory Count is a time-bounded process for validating what is physically present versus what the system believes is present.
  • Treat counts as change-controlled operations:
    • Define scope (Facility, Customer, and Product Type).
    • Minimize concurrent operational moves inside the scope while counting.
    • Record exceptions explicitly instead of “fixing by memory”.
  • The goal is an audit-friendly outcome:
    • Clear start/end, clear ownership, clear variances, and a reproducible report.

Start a Physical Inventory session in the Web App

  1. Open the Physical Inventory menu in the Web App.
  2. Select New.
  3. Define the scope:
    • Facility.
    • Customer.
    • Product Type.
  4. Select Save & Close to start the count.
    • Once started, treat the scope as “count-controlled” (avoid untracked moves).

Log items in your facility using the Scanner App

  1. Open the Scanner App main menu/drawer and select Physical Inventory.
    • Note: Access is role-gated.
  2. In the Physical Inventory screen, select the Customer and Product Type for the count you are performing.
  3. Select Start Physical Inventory.
    • If a count is already active for the selected Customer + Product Type, this step is also how you continue that count.
    • Start remains disabled until required fields are set.
  4. In the Add Items tab, record each item in-scope:
    1. Capture the Location.
    2. Capture the Item ID (scan or type).
    3. Add the item.
  5. In the Summary tab:
    • Confirm the total items scanned.
    • Spot-check the last 5 items scanned to catch obvious mistakes early.
  6. When the scoped area is complete, select End Physical Inventory from Summary to close the session and confirm completion.

Verification

  • Create a small test count on a single location and count 3–5 known items.
  • Verify that:
    • The Web App shows the count as created/active.
    • Scanner entries appear in the Web App for that same count.

COMMON ISSUES

    • Likely cause

      • Your role lacks permission for the Physical Inventory feature.

    • Checks

      • Confirm your role includes Physical Inventory permissions.

    • Fix

      • Ask an admin to enable the feature and/or grant the required permission set.

    • Likely cause

      • You are in the wrong facility context or the Physical Inventory Count has not been started.

    • Checks

      • Confirm the Physical Inventory Count is started for the current facility.

    • Fix

      • Switch facility context (if applicable) or ask the count admin to start the Physical Inventory Count.