Overview
Luminous uses two distinct concepts — Inbound Shipments and Shipments — because they track inventory movement in opposite directions. Understanding which one to use depends on whether inventory is coming into your warehouse or going out to a customer.
Shipments — Outbound to Customers
Shipments represent inventory leaving your warehouse to fulfill a customer order. You'll find them under the Shipments page (accessible from the main navigation), as well as on the Shipments tab within individual Sales Orders and Fulfillment Orders.
Key characteristics
- Direction: Outbound — from your warehouse to your customer.
- Linked to: Sales Orders and/or Fulfillment Orders.
- Source: Either generated automatically by your OMS integration (e.g. ShipStation), or created manually by your team.
- What you track: Carrier, tracking number, SSCC (for EDI/GS1 label matching), ship date, cost, package weight & dimensions, and line-item quantities shipped.
- Statuses:
PENDINGorSHIPPED. - Editing rules: OMS-generated shipments are read-only to protect integration data. Only manually created shipments can be edited or deleted (and only while still in
PENDINGstatus).
When to use
Use the Shipments page to see which customer orders have shipped, verify tracking details, manually record a shipment that wasn't captured by your OMS, or audit carrier and cost information.
Inbound Shipments — Incoming Inventory
Inbound Shipments represent inventory arriving at one of your warehouses — typically from a supplier or from an external fulfillment center (such as Amazon FBA or a 3PL). You'll find them on the dedicated Inbound Shipments page.
Key characteristics
- Direction: Inbound — from a supplier or external warehouse into your Luminous inventory.
- Source: Pulled automatically from externally managed warehouse systems (e.g. TrackStar, Amazon FBA) on a scheduled basis, or triggered manually via the Pull Inbound Shipments button.
- What you track: External shipment ID, expected vs. received quantities, supplier name, arrival dates, tracking numbers, and receipt details.
- Statuses:
Pending(not yet matched to a Luminous document) orReconciled(matched and inventory accounted for). - Reconciliation required: An Inbound Shipment on its own does not update your inventory. You must reconcile it to one of the following before stock moves from "Incoming" to "On Hand":
- An existing Purchase Order
- A new Purchase Order (created at reconciliation time)
- A Transfer Order (when moving stock between your own locations)
When to use
Use the Inbound Shipments page to see what inventory is in transit from suppliers or external warehouses, match those shipments to your Purchase Orders or Transfer Orders, and confirm receipt so your on-hand quantities are updated correctly.
Side-by-Side Summary
| Shipments | Inbound Shipments | |
|---|---|---|
| Direction | Outbound (to customers) | Inbound (from suppliers / external warehouses) |
| Linked to | Sales Orders, Fulfillment Orders | Purchase Orders, Transfer Orders |
| How data arrives | OMS integration or manually created | Pulled from external WMS (e.g. TrackStar, FBA) |
| Affects inventory | Records what was shipped out | Updates on-hand stock once reconciled |
| Key action | Create / view / confirm shipment | Reconcile to a PO or Transfer Order |
| Statuses | Pending, Shipped | Pending (unreconciled), Reconciled |
Common Questions
Why does an Inbound Shipment show "Pending" even though the goods arrived? The shipment has been pulled from your external warehouse but has not yet been reconciled to a Purchase Order or Transfer Order in Luminous. Complete the reconciliation step so inventory moves to On Hand.
Can I manually create an Inbound Shipment? Inbound Shipments are pulled from externally managed warehouse systems. You initiate the pull via the Pull Inbound Shipments button; they are not created from scratch in the same way that manual outbound Shipments are.
Where do I go to see what a supplier sent me? Go to Inbound Shipments. For the shipment leg that is attached to a Purchase Order in Luminous, you can also see it on the PO Shipments tab of the relevant Purchase Order.
If you need further help, please reach out to the Luminous Support team.