Create draft purchase orders from work order BOM shortages, with MOQ, unit conversion, cost rules, and optional auto-allocation of incoming stock.
Collection: Work Orders: Getting Started
Priority: P0
Who this is for
Purchasing staff creating POs to fill raw material gaps after allocating from existing incoming stock.
Before you begin
- Shortages remain after Allocate from Incoming (or no incoming POs exist)
- Supplier defaults, supplier SKUs, and cost rules configured (Admin setup)
Steps
1. Open Generate Purchase Orders
From a production run detail page, go to Shared Components and click Generate Purchase Orders.
From a work order detail page, open the Bill of Materials tab and click Generate Purchase Orders.
To create a PO for one vendor only, open the Create PO dropdown and choose that vendor.
2. Review the preview dialog
The Confirm Purchase Order Generation dialog groups lines by vendor (co-manufacturer vs raw material suppliers).
For each line, review:
| Field | Notes |
|---|---|
| Quantity | Order qty after purchase-unit conversion and MOQ enforcement |
| Unit cost | From supplier SKU pricing or cost rules |
| Vendor | Pre-filled from supplier defaults |
3. Understand quantity adjustments
Hover tooltips on quantity fields explain adjustments:
- Purchase unit conversion — When you must buy in cartons, kilograms, or other units different from your stockkeeping unit.
- MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity) — When the order qty exceeds the shortage because the supplier requires a minimum purchase.
See also: Why is my PO quantity higher than the shortage?
4. Preview cost rules (extra PO costs)
If cost rules apply (tariffs, freight, etc.), a badge shows the count of rules that will fire. Click Preview cost-rule extra costs to see extra line items that will be added to the PO.
These appear as separate fee lines on the purchase order and flow to your accounting integration.
See Set up cost rules and What are cost rules on a generated PO?
5. Auto Allocate Incoming Stock (optional)
Leave Auto Allocate Incoming Stock checked (default) to automatically reserve incoming quantity from the POs you are creating against the work order BOM.
Uncheck if you prefer to allocate manually later.
6. Confirm
Click Generate Purchase Orders. Purchase orders are created with the Status selected for each vendor in the dialog (Active by default, or Draft — Draft does not count toward incoming) and linked to the work order(s).
7. Verify
- POs appear in the work order or production run sidebar under Purchase Orders
- Return to Shared Components — shortages should decrease for covered materials
- Proceed to Bulk Receive when materials arrive
What happens next
- Purchase orders are created per vendor group.
- Work order PO links are created automatically.
- If Auto Allocate Incoming Stock was checked, incoming allocation is applied immediately.
- Move work orders to Planned after purchasing is finalized (Status workflow).
Co-manufacturer workflow callout
Generate POs only for materials not covered by blanket POs or prior allocations. Review the preview carefully — MOQ and purchase-unit conversion can significantly increase order quantities above the raw shortage.
Related articles
- Allocate from Incoming
- Receive raw materials (Bulk Receive)
- Configure supplier SKUs, MOQs, and purchase units
Still stuck?
Contact support with the material SKU and vendor if unit costs or quantities look wrong in the preview.