A reordering rule sits on a product and says one thing:<\/p>\n
Keep at least this much in stock. When it falls below, bring it back up to this level.<\/strong><\/p>\n Two numbers \u2014 a minimum and a maximum. When stock drops under the minimum, Odoo creates a purchase order or a manufacturing order to restore it to the maximum.<\/p>\n That is the whole mechanism. The difficulty is not understanding it. It is choosing the two numbers.<\/p>\n Minimum quantity.<\/strong> The trigger. Stock below this and Odoo acts.<\/p>\n Maximum quantity.<\/strong> The target. How much you go back up to.<\/p>\n Multiple quantity.<\/strong> Optional. If your supplier sells in boxes of 24, set this to 24 and Odoo rounds up.<\/p>\n Odoo also needs to know what to do<\/strong> \u2014 that comes from the product’s route. Buy creates a purchase order. Manufacture creates a manufacturing order.<\/p>\n A rule with no route does nothing.<\/strong> If your rules are not firing, check the route before anything else.<\/p>\n FIGURE 1: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN STOCK DROPS<\/p>\n Stock falls below minimum<\/p>\n Route consulted<\/p>\n Document created<\/p>\n Stock restored<\/p>\n The minimum must cover demand during your lead time<\/strong>, plus a buffer.<\/p>\n That sentence contains the whole calculation.<\/p>\n Work it out:<\/strong><\/p>\n Take your average usage per week. Multiply by the lead time in weeks. Add a buffer for the weeks that are busier than average and for the times your supplier is late.<\/p>\n If you use 50 a week and your supplier takes 3 weeks, you consume 150 during the lead time. A minimum of 50 guarantees you run out. A minimum of 200 gives you 150 for the lead time and 50 of buffer.<\/p>\n The most common error is setting a minimum that ignores lead time entirely.<\/strong> It looks reasonable \u2014 “keep 50 in stock” \u2014 and it produces a stockout every time.<\/p>\n Two things justify a larger buffer:<\/strong><\/p>\n An unreliable supplier. One who is sometimes ten days late needs more cover than one who is always on time.<\/p>\n Variable demand. If some weeks are three times others, the average is not enough.<\/p>\n The maximum decides how often you order and how much cash sits on the shelf.<\/p>\n Set it high:<\/strong> fewer orders, less admin, possibly better prices \u2014 and more money tied up, more space used, more risk if the product stops selling.<\/p>\n Set it low:<\/strong> less cash committed \u2014 and constant reordering, more admin, more exposure to a supplier being late.<\/p>\n A practical starting point:<\/strong> enough for four to eight weeks of usage above the minimum. Then adjust based on what actually happens.<\/p>\n Consider your supplier’s terms.<\/strong> If there is a meaningful discount at a quantity, and you will genuinely use it, that may justify a higher maximum. If it will sit for a year, it will not.<\/p>\n FIGURE 2: THE TWO WAYS TO GET THIS WRONG<\/p>\n Minimum too low<\/p>\n Maximum too high<\/p>\n Fast-moving, predictable products.<\/strong> Regular usage and a stable pattern. This is where rules work best and where the admin saving is real.<\/p>\n Components you always need.<\/strong> Anything that stops production if it runs out.<\/p>\n Standard stock lines.<\/strong> Products customers expect immediately.<\/p>\n Made-to-order products.<\/strong> Use Replenish on Order instead. A reordering rule and Replenish on Order fight each other \u2014 one says keep stock, the other says wait for demand.<\/p>\n Slow movers.<\/strong> A product selling three a year does not need automation. Order when you need it.<\/p>\n Anything unpredictable.<\/strong> If usage is driven by a few large irregular orders, a rule based on averages will be wrong in both directions.<\/p>\n New products.<\/strong> No usage history means no basis for the numbers. Set them manually and revisit after a few months.<\/p>\n Here is the practical point that matters more than the arithmetic.<\/p>\n Rules get set once, during implementation, and are never looked at again.<\/strong><\/p>\n Demand changes. Suppliers change. Lead times change. Products get discontinued. The rule keeps running with numbers that made sense two years ago.<\/p>\n Review them at least twice a year.<\/strong> Look at:<\/p>\n This review is often worth more than any forecasting feature.<\/strong> It takes an afternoon and it corrects rules that have been quietly wrong all year.<\/p>\n FIGURE 3: FOUR CHECKS WORTH DOING TWICE A YEAR<\/p>\n Products that stocked out<\/p>\n Products with excess stock<\/p>\n Discontinued products<\/p>\n Lead times that changed<\/p>\n If you have more than one warehouse, rules are set per location.<\/p>\n Decide deliberately<\/strong> whether each warehouse replenishes independently from the supplier, or whether one central location holds stock and the others draw from it.<\/p>\n Both work. Setting rules without deciding produces warehouses that order independently when you meant them to share.<\/p>\n Rules not firing.<\/strong> Almost always the route. A rule with no Buy or Manufacture route does nothing.<\/p>\n Ordering too often.<\/strong> Minimum and maximum too close together. Widen the gap.<\/p>\n Constant stockouts despite a rule.<\/strong> The minimum does not cover lead-time demand. Recalculate.<\/p>\n Excess stock.<\/strong> Maximum set for demand that no longer exists.<\/p>\n Duplicate orders.<\/strong> Usually a rule on a product that also has Replenish on Order. Remove one.<\/p>\n Do not assume. Test.<\/p>\n Pick one product. Note its current stock. Manually reduce it below the minimum with an inventory adjustment. Run the scheduler.<\/p>\n Did the order appear? For the right quantity? To the right supplier?<\/strong><\/p>\n Configuration that looks correct and does not fire is common. Finding that on a test is much better than finding it when production stops.<\/p>\n A reordering rule is two numbers. The minimum must cover demand during the lead time plus a buffer<\/strong> \u2014 that is the calculation people skip.<\/p>\n The maximum trades ordering frequency against cash tied up in stock.<\/p>\n Review your rules twice a year.<\/strong> They are set once and forgotten more often than anything else in Odoo, and correcting stale rules is usually worth more than any new feature.<\/p>\n Running out of some things while holding too much of others?<\/p>\n Get in touch. We will review your reordering rules against actual usage and lead times \u2014 it is usually an afternoon and it pays for itself quickly.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What a reordering rule does A reordering rule sits on a product and says one thing: Keep at least this much in stock. When it falls below, bring it back up to this level. Two numbers \u2014 a minimum and a maximum. When stock drops under the minimum, Odoo creates a purchase order or a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":9033,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-odoo"],"yoast_head":"\nThe three fields<\/h2>\n
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Choosing the minimum<\/h2>\n
Choosing the maximum<\/h2>\n
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Where to use them<\/h2>\n
Where not to<\/h2>\n
The review nobody does<\/h2>\n
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Multiple locations<\/h2>\n
Common problems<\/h2>\n
Checking they work<\/h2>\n
The short version<\/h2>\n