For businesses handling products with limited shelf life or those requiring strict traceability—such as food, cosmetics, or pharmaceuticals—efficient inventory management is essential. ShipHero's Lots and Expiration Tracking features provide the tools to manage these product types. This system tracks specific batches from receipt to delivery, enabling seamless product recalls and preventing expired items from reaching your customers.
This article guides you through enabling and utilizing Lot and Expiration Tracking to maintain product quality and reduce waste.
To use Lots and Expirations in ShipHero, please contact support@shiphero.com to enable this feature for your account.
NOTE For 3PLs: Lots and Expirations must be enabled and configured at the child account level. Provide the support team with the client account ID found on the 3PL Customer page when requesting activation.
Understanding Lots and Expirations
- Lots (Lot Numbers): A lot number is a unique identifier assigned to a specific batch of products. This tracks products from manufacturing to the customer, enabling targeted recalls and quality control.
- Expirations (Expiration Dates): Linked to lot numbers, these specify when a product is no longer safe or effective. ShipHero uses these dates to implement picking strategies like FEFO to minimize waste.
Lots and Expiration Account Settings
To configure your tracking settings, navigate to My Account Settings Lot Tracking.
| Setting Name | Description/Action |
| Lot Tracking Priority | Choose FEFO (First Expired First Out) for perishables or FIFO (First In First Out) for non-perishables. |
| Picking Disabled Period | The number of days before expiration to stop warehouse picking. |
| Email Address | The destination for automated email reminders regarding expiring lots. |
| Verify Lot when picking | Optional: Forces the picker to scan/confirm the lot ID during fulfillment. |
| Exclude Expired Lots from Sales Channel | Optional: Prevents expired or "picking disabled" inventory from showing as available on your storefront. |
Enable Lot Tracking on Products
Lot tracking is not enabled by default for all products. You must manually enable the Needs Lot Tracking setting for each specific SKU.
Enable Needs Lot Tracking using the following methods:
- Single SKU: Use the pencil icon on the Product Details page.
- Bulk Edit: Use the Bulk Edit tool on the Inventory Product page.
Lot Tracking Limitations
- Do not enable lot tracking for Kit SKUs. Lots must be managed at the component level. Enabling this on a Kit SKU will prevent inventory from syncing to your sales channels.
- The Needs Lot Tracking setting cannot be updated via CSV Bulk Edit upload at this time.