Calculate each order’s remaining input requirement after confirmed issues. Deduct usable stock available to those orders and incoming quantities due in time. Keep existing reservations separate from free stock. Record the basis before rounding a shortage to a supplier’s minimum or pack multiple.
Start with the material your orders still need
The godown total does not tell you what to buy. Some rolls belong to other orders. Others await inspection.
Choose one material specification, input unit and required date. Use the approved consumption basis to translate finished orders into input requirements.
This guide uses fictional grey-fabric quantities. It explains planning, not a statutory stock valuation or an automatic purchase instruction.
Use remaining requirements, not the original order total
Two accepted orders need the same grey fabric by 15 September. Their original input requirement totals 1,100 metres.
| Order | Original input need | Confirmed issues | Remaining input need |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 600 m | 200 m | 400 m |
| B | 500 m | 0 m | 500 m |
| Total | 1,100 m | 200 m | 900 m |
Remaining requirement = approved input requirement − confirmed issues already satisfying that requirement.
The 200 issued metres have left raw stock and entered processing. Order A still needs 400 raw metres.
Do not also add the expected finished output to free grey fabric. These quantities represent different stages of the same material.
This example assumes the issues remain valid and require no replacement. A rejection or return needs a reviewed requirement change.
Separate free stock from reservations for these orders
The warehouse now holds 900 metres, after the 200-metre issue. The following buckets do not overlap.
| Bucket | Metres | Treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Held for inspection | 100 | Exclude until released |
| Reserved for other orders | 250 | Exclude from A and B |
| Reserved specifically for A | 150 | Available to A, not free stock |
| Free usable stock | 400 | Available for an approved allocation |
| Total physical stock | 900 | 100 + 250 + 150 + 400 |
Stock available to A and B totals 150 + 400 = 550 metres.
Deducting every reservation would wrongly remove A’s own 150 metres from this plan. Counting it as free would create another allocation risk.
Count receipts against the date you need them
A supplier confirms 300 suitable metres arriving before production needs them on 15 September. Another 200 will arrive on 18 September.
Neither purchase is reserved for another order. The 300-metre receipt qualifies; the later 200 does not.
Shortage = max(0, remaining requirement − eligible stock − timely incoming supply).
Here, max(0, 900 − 550 − 300) = 50 metres.
Keep negative results as surplus separately; they do not create a negative purchase. Reconfirm specification, quantity and arrival timing before relying on receipts.
ERPNext’s projected-quantity documentation distinguishes actual stock, incoming supply and reservations. This example adds an explicit order group, date and allocation basis.
Choose which order receives scarce supply
A combined 50-metre shortage does not identify which customer promise needs attention. Allocate the same supply once.
Suppose the owner prioritises A’s earlier processing slot. This is an agreed choice, not a universal priority rule.
| Order | Remaining need | Allocated supply | Shortage |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 400 m | 150 reserved + 250 free = 400 m | 0 m |
| B | 500 m | 150 free + 300 incoming = 450 m | 50 m |
Record the decision, responsible person and time. If customer commitments conflict, resolve that choice before promising both orders the same roll.
If only 200 incoming metres receive confirmation, B’s shortage rises to 150. Keep the uncertain 100 visible outside committed supply.
Release cancelled reservations with an approval trail
Consider a separate cancellation scenario from the original 50-metre shortage. B’s approved requirement falls from 500 to 400 metres.
Combined remaining need becomes 800. Eligible supply remains 850, leaving 50 metres of potential surplus.
Reduce B’s allocation from 450 to 400 and release the spare 50 explicitly. Preserve the cancellation agreement and old allocation.
Do not assume the supplier cancelled any purchase. The released quantity may remain incoming stock until a separate supplier agreement changes it.
If cancellation affects material already issued, check processing status and return feasibility. Do not turn work in progress into available raw stock.
Show the extra stock created by a minimum order
Return to the original scenario: B needs 50 metres. A supplier requires at least 100, in 25-metre multiples.
The smallest qualifying purchase is 100 metres, leaving 50 metres beyond the identified shortage.
For a positive shortage: round the larger of shortage or minimum up to a whole order multiple. Buy zero when no shortage remains.
For example, a 110-metre shortage with that minimum and multiple requires 125 metres. That creates 15 metres of excess.
Check the excess cost, storage and likely use before approving it. A lower minimum elsewhere may change the decision.
Keep “proposed,” “supplier-confirmed” and “received” separate. A purchase proposal does not fill the shortage until timing and acceptance support it.
Keep a plan someone else can check
| Field | Recorded basis |
|---|---|
| Material and time | Approved grey specification; metres; cut-off and required-by time |
| Remaining requirements | A: 400; B: 500; linked issue references |
| Stock buckets | Held 100; other reservations 250; A reservation 150; free 400 |
| Incoming | 300 timely and unallocated; 200 late, excluded |
| Decision | A covered; B short 50; owner to approve purchase or another resolution |
| Next check | Named person, supplier confirmation deadline and next update |
Check material already with job workers before treating issues as complete evidence.
Use the delivery-risk guide to assess the customer impact of unresolved supply.
Ask about your existing material records
Bring your material-planning question. Tell us your software and which order, issue and stock records you maintain.
Empire is the current connector. We must check support for your specific question. This guide does not establish automatic procurement capability.
Questions you might ask
How do I calculate material still needed for accepted orders?
Start with approved input requirements, subtract confirmed issues already satisfying them, then deduct eligible stock and timely incoming quantities. Keep the same specification, input unit and cut-off. Avoid subtracting an issue again if your requirement is already a remaining balance.
Should I subtract all reserved stock from availability?
Separate reservations for the orders you are planning from reservations for other orders. Include the former once in eligible supply; exclude the latter. Do not also treat reserved quantities as free stock.
What if the supplier minimum exceeds my shortage?
For a positive shortage, round the larger of the shortage or minimum to an allowed order multiple. Show the excess quantity and cost for approval. A zero shortage does not justify a minimum purchase.
Does cancelling an order make its issued material available again?
No. Check processing and return status. Release only the relevant unissued reservation after approval, and separately confirm any supplier cancellation.