Product Allocation Preference
Use the Product Allocation preference to restrict the amount of an item or item group that a customer or customer group can purchase. For example, use this preference if the demand for a product exceeds the supply or if government regulations restrict limits for certain products.
You can set quantity limits to define the quantity that a customer or customer group is allowed to purchase or the quantity of each item or item group that is allowed to be sold. The system checks for allocation limits before it checks availability. Product allocation indicates how product is distributed among customers. Product availability indicates how much of any product is at any branch/plant location.
Product allocations can be set up as either:
A fixed number of item units.
A percentage of the available product.
If the order quantity exceeds allocated quantity, a warning message appears when you enter a sales order. At that time, you can put the order on hold or reduce order quantity to the allowable or available quantity.
Each time you place an order for an allocated product, the quantity ordered during the effective date range accumulates toward the allocation limit. The system updates the Quantity Sold field each time you enter an order. This field displays the quantity that was ordered at the time the allocation went into effect. When you change or cancel an order, the system subtracts the quantity from the running total. The system applies the product allocation preference before checking availability.