Home » Apps » Warehouse Insight » License Plating
License Plating for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
A license plate is a barcode label that represents a group of items: a pallet, a box, a container, or any physical unit you want to track and move as a single entity. Warehouse Insight brings license plating to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, so a single scan of that barcode confirms the entire contents at receiving, put-away, picking, or shipping. The result is fewer scans per transaction, faster throughput at every stage, and inventory records in Business Central that reflect exactly what is physically in your warehouse.
At a Glance
- Build license plates during receiving, picking, or shipping by scanning items onto the plate as you work
- Scan one LP barcode to put away an entire pallet, move it between bins, or confirm it at shipping
- Multi-level license plates support boxes nested inside pallets, with full contents tracked at each level in Business Central
- Dynamic Ship integration generates carrier labels, packing slips, and bills of lading from the handheld once the LP is confirmed at shipping
Key Capabilities
Build license plates during any workflow. Workers start a license plate from within the receiving, picking, or shipping application on their device. They scan items onto the plate as they handle the document. When the plate is complete, they stop the process and print the LP label directly from the device. No separate application or step is required.
Single-scan put-away for inbound pallets. If a pallet is built as a license plate during receiving, the worker scans the LP barcode once during put-away to assign the entire pallet to the destination bin. Business Central updates all inventory lines simultaneously. No line-by-line confirmation required.
Single-scan moves for internal transfers. The ad-hoc move and directed movement applications both support license plate scanning. Scan the LP barcode to move an entire pallet from one bin to another in a single transaction.
Outbound license plating during picking. Workers build license plates as they execute pick documents, assigning items to boxes or pallets in real time. When the pick is complete and the pallet is dropped at the shipping area, the contents are already confirmed in Business Central. A second worker at shipping scans the LP barcode once to verify and post.
Carrier label generation via Dynamic Ship. Once an LP is confirmed for shipping, Dynamic Ship generates the carrier label (FedEx, UPS, or other carrier), along with the packing slip and bill of lading. This can be triggered from the handheld device or from Business Central, without switching to a separate system.
Multi-level license plates. Boxes can be nested inside pallets, creating a hierarchical structure where each level carries its own barcode. Warehouse Insight tracks the full contents at every level in Business Central. Scanning the pallet LP at shipping confirms everything inside it, including all nested box contents.
Partial LP handling. When only part of a license plate’s contents is needed, workers choose how to handle the remainder: move unused items to a new plate, remove the excess from the plate, or unbuild the plate entirely. The correct handling option for each workflow can be set as a default in Business Central’s device configuration.
LP label printing from the device. Workers print LP barcode labels from any BC-configured printer directly from the handheld. Labels are printed when the plate is completed, so the physical pallet and the Business Central record stay in sync from the start.
How License Plating Works in Warehouse Insight
License plates in Warehouse Insight are created and consumed as part of the normal warehouse workflow, not as a separate application layer. During receiving, a worker starts a license plate from the receiving application menu, scans each item onto the plate as they process the receipt, and stops the plate when the pallet is complete. The LP label prints immediately. When that same pallet moves to put-away, the worker scans the LP barcode, and the entire pallet is assigned to the destination bin in one step.
On the outbound side, a picker building a pallet during a pick run starts a license plate from the pick application, adds items to it as they pick, and stops it when the pallet is full. The pallet moves to the shipping area with a known, Business Central-tracked barcode attached. When the shipping worker opens the shipment document and scans the LP barcode, all lines associated with that plate are confirmed instantly. From there, Dynamic Ship generates the carrier label and packing documentation from the same device.
For internal moves, any of the three movement applications accept an LP barcode scan. The entire pallet is moved to the new bin in a single transaction. Multi-level plates, where boxes are nested inside a pallet LP, are tracked at every level, so a scan of the outer pallet confirms all contents below it.
Image placeholderWorkflow / device screenshot
Replace before launch
Image placeholderMobile device with
vendor barcode link prompt
Replace before launch
Why Warehouse Insight License Plating Stands Out
License plating is most commonly discussed as an inbound tool: build a plate at the dock, scan it to put it away, and save time on receiving. That is a real benefit. But inbound is where the efficiency gains are smallest relative to the full picture.
The highest ROI from license plating comes on the outbound side, where the combination of LP-based picking, LP verification at shipping, and carrier label generation from the handheld compresses what would otherwise be three separate confirmation steps into one scan. A worker who builds a pallet as a license plate during picking does not need to re-verify contents at shipping. The shipping worker scans the LP, the contents are confirmed, and Dynamic Ship produces the carrier label. The pallet moves from the pick aisle to the carrier pickup with a single scan, serving as the handoff between each stage.
For operations shipping significant pallet volume, that difference is measurable in labor time per outbound order across every shift.
Who Uses License Plating
Receiving clerks build license plates at the inbound dock as pallets arrive, then scan them during put-away to assign entire pallets to storage bins without line-by-line confirmation. Pickers build outbound pallets as license plates during their pick run, so the pallet contents are confirmed in Business Central before the pallet leaves the pick aisle.
Shipping staff scan LP barcodes to verify entire pallets at the shipping dock in a single step, then trigger carrier label generation via Dynamic Ship from the same device. Warehouse supervisors and forklift operators use LP scanning for bulk bin-to-bin moves, relocating full pallets without generating a line item for each SKU on the plate.
Image placeholderMobile device with
dock worker view
Replace before launch
Frequently Asked Questions
A license plate in Business Central is a tracked identifier assigned to a physical grouping of items, typically a pallet, box, or container. Warehouse Insight extends Business Central’s standard license plate functionality with barcode-driven building, scanning, and posting across all warehouse workflows. Each license plate carries a printed barcode label. Scanning that barcode in any Warehouse Insight application performs the associated action: put-away, move, pick confirmation, or shipping verification, for all items on the plate simultaneously.
Yes. Workers can start a license plate from within the pick application, assign items to the plate as they pick, and stop the plate when it is full. The plate is printed and physically attached to the pallet before it leaves the pick aisle. At shipping, one scan of the LP barcode confirms the full pallet contents. This eliminates re-verification at the shipping dock for pallets built during the picking process.
When an outbound license plate is confirmed at shipping, Dynamic Ship, Insight Works’ shipping integration for Business Central, generates the carrier label for the shipment. FedEx, UPS, and other supported carriers are available. The label, along with the packing slip and bill of lading, can be triggered from the handheld device or from Business Central, without leaving the Warehouse Insight workflow or switching to an external shipping application.
Multi-level license plates allow boxes to be nested inside a pallet, with each level carrying its own barcode. Warehouse Insight tracks the full contents at every level in Business Central. Scanning the outer pallet LP at any stage, whether during a move, shipping verification, or inquiry, gives visibility into the contents of every box inside it. This is particularly useful for operations shipping mixed-SKU pallets where packing accuracy at the box level needs to be traceable.
Yes. The ad-hoc move application and the directed movement application both support license plate scanning. A worker scans the LP barcode to move the entire pallet from one bin to another in a single transaction. This is commonly used by forklift operators moving bulk storage pallets to replenishment bins, where scanning individual items on a full pallet would be impractical.
Watch the on-demand demo at dmsiworks.com/apps/warehouse-insight#demo, or reach out to your Microsoft Partner to see how Warehouse Insight fits your operation.