The PO Shipments tab lets you log transit, freight, and closure details for each shipment on a Purchase Order — giving your team end-to-end visibility into how goods are moving from your supplier to your warehouse, without relying on spreadsheets or manual status updates.
Overview
When you add a shipment to a Purchase Order, Luminous now supports additional fields for tracking carrier details, freight specs, and shipment status. These fields let you capture everything from the tracking number and transport mode to carton dimensions and a closed flag — all within the PO record itself.
How It Works (Step-by-Step)
Accessing the Shipments Tab on a PO
- In Luminous, navigate to Inventory → Purchase Orders.
- Locate the PO you want to update and click the PO number hyperlink (blue text in the "Created Date/Time" column) to open the PO detail view.
- Select the Shipments tab.
- To create a new shipment, click Actions → Create Shipment at the top of the PO; to edit an existing shipment, click into it on the Shipments tab.
Filling in Shipment Details
- To create a shipment, navigate to Purchase Orders > Shipments. In the shipment form, complete the relevant fields:
- Reference Number — your internal or supplier-provided shipment reference.
- Shipping Cost — freight charges are tracked through the shipment's Extra Costs section, not as a single direct field. Add one or more extra cost line items to record freight, duties, or other charges; these roll up into the shipment's total cost.
- Tracking Number — the carrier-issued tracking number for this shipment.
- Shipped By — select whether the shipment is being arranged by Freight (a freight forwarder or carrier) or directly by the Supplier.
- Shipment Type — select the mode of transport: Air, Sea, Road, Rail, or Express.
- Estimated Arrival — the expected delivery date to your warehouse.
- Notes — any free-text notes relevant to this shipment leg.
- If your shipment involves cartonized freight, fill in the freight planning columns for each line in the shipment's Items table:
- Carton Qty — the number of cartons for that line (the dialog header totals them under Cartons).
- Carton Dimensions — the dimensions of each carton (for volume and freight planning purposes).
- CBM — the cubic meters for that line (the dialog header totals them under Total volume; used for freight volume calculations).
- Once the shipment is complete and no further changes are expected, toggle Closed to mark the shipment as done.
- Click Save to confirm. You can now view this shipment in the associated PO.
Key Fields & Options
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Tracking Number | Carrier-issued tracking number for the shipment. |
| Shipped By | Who is arranging the shipment — Freight forwarder or Supplier. |
| Shipment Type | Mode of transport: Air, Sea, Road, Rail, or Express. |
| Estimated Arrival | The expected arrival date at your receiving warehouse. |
| Notes | Free-text field for any shipment-level notes or instructions. |
| Carton Quantity | Number of cartons included in the shipment. |
| Carton Dimensions | Physical dimensions of each carton (for freight planning). |
| CBM | Total cubic meters of the shipment volume. |
| Closed | Boolean flag indicating the shipment is finalized and no further updates are expected. |
Tips & Best Practices
- Fill in Estimated Arrival early. Even an approximate date gives your receiving team a heads-up so they can prepare bin space and labor. You can update the date as the shipment progresses.
- Use Notes for exception tracking. If a shipment is delayed, partially held at customs, or split mid-transit, use the Notes field to log the detail rather than relying on external messages.
- Carton Dimensions vs. CBM. Carton Dimensions are the per-carton specs (used as a reference field). CBM is the total shipment volume. Enter both when working with sea freight to support volume-based landed cost allocation.
- Understand what "Is Closed" means. Marking a shipment as closed signals that it is operationally complete — it does not automatically receive inventory or affect cost layers. Receiving inventory is still done through a separate Receiving Report. See How Purchasing Affects Cost Layers in Luminous.
- Closed ≠ Received. A shipment can be marked closed before all items are received (e.g., if you're stopping partial receives). Always confirm inventory levels after receiving.
FAQs & Troubleshooting
Can I add multiple shipments to one PO?
Yes. Each shipment represents a separate leg or split of the PO. Use Actions → Create Shipment to create additional shipments with their own tracking, arrival dates, and freight details. See How to Split a Purchase Order.
Does marking a shipment as "Is Closed" close the PO?
No. The Is Closed flag applies only to that individual shipment record. The PO itself remains open until all items are received and the PO status is updated separately.
Does Estimated Arrival affect inventory or cost layers?
No. Estimated Arrival is a visibility field only — it does not trigger any automated actions in inventory or accounting.
What is CBM and how is it used?
CBM stands for Cubic Meters and represents the total volume of your shipment. It is used for freight cost planning and, where configured, can inform volume-based landed cost allocation. See Understanding Landed Cost Allocation by Weight and Volume.