How does the carton catalog work, and how do I use it to track box/packaging inventory?

What the carton catalog is

The Carton Catalog is your list of shipping boxes, envelopes and mailers. Luminous's cartonization engine picks from this list when it chooses a box for a fulfillment order. For each carton you record:

• Name and Type: Box, Envelope / mailer, or Custom (packer-entered)
• Inner dimensions (length × width × height)
• Empty weight and Max weight
• Cost (optional)
• Active: only active cartons are available to the cartonization engine

You can enter dimensions and weights in your account's measurement system, and Luminous converts them automatically.

The catalog is on Operations › Operations Admin › Carton Catalog. It appears only when Cartonization is enabled for your account. For the basic setup steps, see How do I set up my carton catalog for cartonization?.

Tracking box inventory with a carton

Each carton can optionally be linked to one inventory item, usually the SKU for that box. Luminous then deducts that item from stock whenever a carton of that type ships.

Turn on tracking

1. Open the Carton Catalog and click Add carton, or edit an existing carton.
2. Tick Track inventory — deduct an item each time this carton ships.
3. Under Inventory item, search for the SKU or product that represents this box.
4. Set Qty per carton. This must be a whole number of at least 1.
5. Click Add carton or Save changes.

To stop tracking, edit the carton, untick the box and save. This removes the link.

What you'll see in the catalog

• Tracks inventory shows the linked SKU. If more than one is deducted per carton, it shows the quantity (for example, BOX-SM × 2). It shows a dash when the carton isn't tracked.
• On hand shows the current on-hand quantity of that linked item.

How deductions work

• The deduction happens when the order ships. It isn't taken when the box is chosen or packed.
• The deduction is made once for each package that uses the carton, using the quantity you set.
• Tracking never blocks a label or shipment. Stock can go negative if you ship more boxes than you have on hand, so keep an eye on the On hand column.
• Tracking isn't retroactive. Cartons already packed before you linked the item aren't deducted. Cartons packed but not yet shipped when you link or change the item are deducted using the current link.
• If the shipment is voided, Luminous reverses the deduction.
• A carton with tracking on takes the place of any ShipStation box mapping for that shipment, so the packaging isn't deducted twice. If you use the ShipStation approach instead, see How do I set up automatic packaging inventory deduction from ShipStation shipments?.

Tips

• The box must already exist as a SKU in Luminous. Create it first, and receive it into stock through your normal purchasing/receiving flow so On hand is accurate.
• If you want to stop using a box without losing its history, set the carton to inactive rather than deleting it.
• If you edit the linked item or quantity, the change applies to cartons that haven't shipped yet.