From Basics to Advanced: Warehouse Optimization with Business Central

Join Ryan and Emma as they unpack warehouse management with Dynamics 365 Business Central, featuring insights from an Insight Works white paper. Discover how to choose between basic and advanced setups, master tools like directed put-away and bin management, and tackle common challenges like manual processes and data silos. Learn how Insight Works apps like Warehouse Insight and Dynamic Ship can revolutionize operations. Packed with practical tips and real-world examples, this episode is your blueprint for building a smarter, more efficient warehouse. Don’t miss it!

White Paper: Mastering Warehouse Management with Business Central and Insight Works Apps​

Episode Transcript

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You're listening to Inside Insight, the podcast

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that dives into the latest innovations and

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strategies in manufacturing, Distribution and

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Dynamics 365 Business Central. Brought to you

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by Insight Works. This show features our hosts,

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Ryan and Emma, as they bring you expert conversations,

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industry insights, and practical advice to

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help you stay ahead in this constantly evolving world.

Ryan (06:13:15):
Welcome back, everyone ready to dive

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into another deep dive with us? Today, we're

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tackling warehouse management using Microsoft

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Dynamics 365 Business Central.

Emma (08:53:28):
A very important area for a lot of businesses.

Ryan (09:38:56):
Yeah, it is. And we've got a great resource

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to guide us. It's a white paper from insightworks

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that really gets into the practical side of

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optimizing warehouse operations.

Emma (12:11:28):
It's a good one. They really cut through the

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noise and focus on what matters.

Ryan (13:23:44):
Absolutely. So one of the first things they

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jump into is the two main approaches Business

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Central offers for warehouse management. Basic

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and advanced.

Emma (15:50:02):
Right. And it's not about which one is better,

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really. It's about choosing the right fit for

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your specific needs.

Ryan (17:37:22):
I like how they put it in the white paper.

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It's like assessing your toolkit for a job.

Emma (18:34:42):
Exactly. You wouldn't use a hammer for every

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task, right?

Ryan (19:16:50):
Definitely not.

Emma (19:33:54):
So for simpler inventory needs, the basic setup

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in Business Central might be perfect. Think

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you know, straightforward receiving, picking,

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and shipping.

Ryan (22:03:30):
Makes sense. So when does it make sense to

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step up to those advanced features?

Emma (23:16:26):
Well, when your operation demands more precision

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and control. Like imagine multiple warehouses,

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complex picking strategies, or very specific

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storage requirements. That's where those advanced

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features like directed, put away, and pick

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come into play.

Ryan (27:32:34):
Okay, I'm already intrigued. Let's break down

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directed, put away and pick. What does it actually

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mean in practice?

Emma (29:00:26):
Well, think of it this way. It's all about

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taking the guesswork out of where things go

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in your warehouse. With directed put away,

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the system tells your team exactly where to

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store incoming goods based on predefined rules.

Ryan (32:43:04):
Okay.

Emma (32:52:56):
And then when it's time to pick those items

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for an order, directed pick guides them to

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the right location using the most efficient

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route.

Ryan (34:43:20):
So instead of relying on memory or intuition.

Emma (35:24:56):
Right.

Ryan (35:32:48):
The system is actually optimizing every step

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of the process.

Emma (36:20:00):
Exactly. And the white paper goes beyond just

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explaining these features. It digs into the

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strategic thinking behind setting them up.

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And one example that stood out was the emphasis

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on defining locations effectively.

Ryan (39:24:40):
Now I can see how that would be crucial. What

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kind of strategic decisions do you have to

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make around locations?

Emma (40:55:52):
Well, it starts with understanding what a location

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actually represents. In Business Central, it's

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not just your physical warehouse. It could

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Be a specific zone within that warehouse, a

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separate storage area, or even like a virtual

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location for tracking goods in transit.

Ryan (45:19:44):
Oh, crap.

Emma (45:27:34):
So thinking through these locations strategically

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with clear naming conventions is essential

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for a smooth setup.

Ryan (47:23:50):
Makes sense. And then within those locations,

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you have bins. Right. Those are the individual

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spots where items are stored. And the white

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paper stresses bin management too.

Emma (49:17:50):
Oh, absolutely. Bins are the building blocks

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of your warehouse layout within Business Central.

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So whether you make bins mandatory or optional

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depends on how granular you need your tracking

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to be.

Ryan (52:35:18):
Right.

Emma (52:43:32):
So if you need to know exactly where each item

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is at all times, then mandatory bins are the

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way to go.

Ryan (54:24:52):
Makes sense. But the white paper also cautions

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against overcomplicating things.

Emma (55:30:44):
Right.

Ryan (55:40:20):
So it's about finding the right balance for

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your operation.

Emma (56:28:44):
Right? Exactly. If your setup's relatively

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simple and you don't need that level of detail,

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then optional bins might be enough. The white

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paper gives a great example. If you have dedicated

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areas for things like quality control or staging,

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you, you can set up special purpose bins to

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reflect those zones within the system.

Ryan (61:38:28):
So you're essentially mirroring your physical

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workflow in Business Central.

Emma (62:51:16):
Yeah, exactly.

Ryan (63:09:48):
Now, before we move on, there's one concept

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I want to clarify for our listeners. The difference

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between inventory and warehouse documents.

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The white paper touches on this, but I think

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it would be helpful to unpack it a bit further.

Emma (66:28:52):
It's a great point, and it's a fundamental

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concept that can trip people up. So think of

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inventory documents as the tools for handling

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like single stage processes. You're moving

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items within the warehouse, but it's all happening

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in one step.

Ryan (70:07:08):
Okay, so like receiving goods and putting them

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away immediately.

Emma (70:59:16):
Exactly. Warehouse documents, on the other

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hand, support those multi stage processes where

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you might have a delay between steps.

Ryan (72:41:56):
Got it.

Emma (72:51:08):
So think picking items for an order and then

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packing and shipping them later.

Ryan (73:58:36):
Okay, so you're adding a layer of control and

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traceability.

Emma (74:50:04):
Exactly.

Ryan (75:06:58):
So choosing the right document type really

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depends on how complex your workflows are.

Emma (76:18:18):
It's all about matching the tool to the task.

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And mapping out your warehouse processes in

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advance can help you make that choice. Do you

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need to consolidate orders? Split task between

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teams? Having that clarity upfront makes a

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big difference in setting up Business Central

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effectively.

Ryan (81:03:30):
Now, the white paper doesn't shy away from

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the realities of using Business Central. It

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acknowledges that while powerful, there are

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some limitations and potential challenges to

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be aware of.

Emma (83:50:12):
Right. It's very upfront about where Business

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Central's built in features might fall short,

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especially for more complex warehousing needs.

Ryan (85:48:20):
And one of the first things they point out

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is the potential complexity of setting up those

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advanced features we talked about. It's not

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always just plug and play.

Emma (87:45:24):
Yeah, you hit the nail on the head. Features

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like directed, put away, and pick, while incredibly

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powerful, require a deep understanding of how

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they interact with locations, bins, and all

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those settings we talked about earlier. Earlier.

Ryan (91:12:16):
It sounds like misconfiguration could lead

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to some serious headaches in the warehouse.

Emma (92:18:48):
It absolutely can. The white paper doesn't

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sugarcoat it. If you get those settings wrong,

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you could end up with inefficiencies, errors,

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and a lot of frustration for your team.

Ryan (94:59:44):
So proper training and understanding of the

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system are crucial. Now. Another potential

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challenge the whitepaper highlights is the

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reliance on manual processes for certain tasks

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in Business Central. What are some of the key

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areas where businesses might encounter this? 167 99:27:02,000 --> 100:13:10,705 Emma