Please contact support@shiphero.com to enable this feature for your account. For 3PL customers, activation is required at the child account level.
For businesses handling products with limited shelf life or those requiring strict traceability—such as food, cosmetics, or pharmaceuticals—efficient inventory management is key. ShipHero's Lots and Expiration Tracking features provide the tools to manage these types of products. This system helps you track specific batches from receipt to delivery, enabling seamless product recalls and preventing expired items from reaching your customers.
This article will guide you through enabling and effectively utilizing ShipHero's Lot and Expiration Tracking, helping you maintain product quality and reduce waste.
Understanding Lots and Expirations
Understanding Lots and Expirations
- Lots (or Lot Numbers): A lot number is a unique identifier assigned to a specific batch of products. This is incredibly useful for tracking products from manufacturing to the customer, enabling targeted recalls, quality control, and better inventory management. Think of it as a batch ID for your inventory.
- Expirations (or Expiration Dates): Directly linked to lot numbers, expiration dates specify when a product is no longer safe or effective to use. ShipHero allows you to track these dates and implement "First Expired, First Out" (FEFO) and other picking strategies, to minimize waste and ensure product freshness.
Lots and Expiration Account Settings
To configure your lot tracking settings go to the My Account > Settings > Lot Tracking page.
For 3PLs: The account Lots and Expiration settings are enabled per client account.
Mandatory Settings:
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Lot Tracking Priority
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- FEFO (First Expired First Out): Prioritizes inventory with the earliest expiration date, ideal for perishables.
- FIFO (First In First Out): Prioritizes inventory based on its receipt date, suitable for items like electronics.
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- Picking Disabled Period- the number of days before a product's expiration date to disable the ability to pick in the warehouse. This prevents expired products from being shipped.
- Email address- to send automated email reminders for expiring lots
Optional settings:
- Verify Lot when picking- Require the picker to confirm the lot during the picking flows
- Exclude expired lots from the quantity sent to the sles channel- with this enabled the available quantity pushed to your store will exclude expired lots or those within the picking disabled timeframe. Only non-expired, sellable products will be considered available.
Enable Lot Tracking on Products
To be able to create lots for an SKU the setting Needs Lot Tracking needs to be enabled on the product. You can enable this setting mutliple ways:
- For a single SKU enable it using the pencil icon on Product Details page.
- For multiple SKUs use the Bulk Edit option in the Inventory > Product page.
- The Needs Lot Tracking setting is not available via CSV Bulk Edit upload.
NOTE: If you forgot to enable the Needs Lot Tracking setting before processing a purchase order, selecting the Activate Lot link will open the product details page.