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Locate Item for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
When a worker needs to know where an item is, how much is available, or which lot numbers are on hand, the answer should not require a walk back to a desktop. Warehouse Insight’s Item Inquiry feature lets anyone on the warehouse floor scan a barcode and see the complete picture for that item in Business Central: every bin location, quantity available to take, lot and serial breakdown, and a history of recent transactions. Scan any barcode and get an answer. Vendor barcode, internal item barcode, lot number barcode — Warehouse Insight resolves it to the correct item automatically.
At a Glance
- Scan any barcode type to identify an item and see all bin locations, quantities, and lot or serial detail in real time
- Available-to-take quantity shown per bin, accounting for quantities already on open pick or put-away documents
- Recent transaction history accessible from the device without opening Business Central on a desktop
- Callable mid-pick via F-key shortcut, without exiting the active pick application
Key Capabilities
Scan any barcode, get an answer. Item Inquiry accepts any barcode the device can read: internal item barcodes, vendor barcodes, and lot or serial number barcodes. Warehouse Insight’s barcode rules automatically resolve the scan to the correct Business Central item. If the barcode contains a lot number, the inquiry filters immediately to that specific lot.
All bin locations shown at once. After scanning, the device displays each bin that holds the item, along with the quantity on hand, quantity currently on pick documents, quantity on put-away documents, and quantity available to take. Workers see the full picture on one screen, without navigating multiple BC pages.
Lot and serial number selection. Workers can select a specific lot or serial number from the on-device list to filter the bin contents view to that level of tracking. This is particularly useful when a specific lot needs to be located or when reprinting a label for a specific lot or serial.
Recent transaction history on the device. The Recent Transactions menu option shows a summary of the most recent inventory activity for the item, pulled directly from Business Central. Workers can review what has moved, when, and in what quantity without returning to a desktop.
Item picture on demand. If an item picture is configured in Business Central, workers can display it from the Item Inquiry screen. Pictures can also be set to appear automatically each time an item is scanned anywhere in the system.
Print item labels from the inquiry. Workers can print a barcode label for the item directly from the inquiry screen to any BC-configured printer. If a specific lot or serial has been selected, the label includes that tracking information.
Callable mid-pick without exiting the task. Item Inquiry is accessible via F-key shortcut from within the pick application. A picker who reaches an empty bin can check alternate locations for the item without closing the pick document, resolving the problem on the floor and continuing the pick immediately.
Switch items without returning to the list. Workers can scan a different item barcode directly from the inquiry screen to load that item’s details, without navigating back to the lookup list. This makes rapid multi-item lookups practical during receiving, put-away, or floor walks.
How Locate Item Works in Warehouse Insight
Item Inquiry is accessible from the main menu of the Warehouse Insight application, and also as a shortcut from within active pick, put-away, receiving, movement, and count documents. From the main menu, the worker opens the application and is presented with an item lookup list. Scanning a barcode immediately resolves to the matching item and opens the detail view. From within another application, pressing the F-key shortcut opens Item Inquiry pre-filtered to the item on the currently selected line, then returns the worker to their task when closed.
The detail view shows the item’s general information at the top and a list of bin contents below. Each row in the bin contents list shows the bin code, total quantity on hand, quantity currently allocated to open pick documents, quantity on put-away documents, and quantity available to take. For lot-tracked items, workers can select a specific lot or serial number from the Choose LN/SN menu to filter the view to that lot’s locations. From the same screen, workers can pull up recent transactions, display the item picture, or print a barcode label.
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Why Warehouse Insight Locate Item Stands Out
Item Inquiry in Warehouse Insight is a floor-level decision support tool, not a read-only lookup screen. The available-to-take quantity per bin is a live figure that accounts for what is already committed on open pick-and-put-away documents, so a worker who uses it to resolve a short pick gets an accurate answer about what can actually be moved, not just what the bin physically holds. That distinction matters in a busy warehouse where the same inventory is being allocated and moved simultaneously across multiple workflows.
The mid-pick F-key access is the most practically valuable aspect of the feature for picking operations. A picker who reaches a bin and finds it empty or short does not need to stop the pick, walk back to a terminal, check inventory, and return. They press the F-key, see the alternate bin locations with available quantities, note the bin, close the inquiry, and continue. The pick document stays open. The supervisor does not need to intervene. That is a workflow resolution that most WMS solutions for Business Central handle at the supervisor level or not at all.
Who Uses Locate Item
Pickers use Item Inquiry via the F-key mid-pick to resolve empty bins and find alternate locations without involving the supervisor. Receiving clerks use it to verify where an item is currently stored before deciding which bin to receive it into. Warehouse supervisors and floor leads use it during cycle counts and spot checks to verify bin contents against what Business Central shows. Shipping staff use it to confirm item availability and bin location before pulling stock for a rush order. Any worker on the floor with a handheld device can scan a barcode and get a complete inventory picture in under five seconds.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Item Inquiry accepts any barcode that Warehouse Insight’s barcode rules can resolve, including internal item barcodes, vendor-assigned barcodes, and lot or serial number barcodes. When a lot or serial number barcode is scanned, the item detail view opens automatically, filtered to that specific tracking number. If a vendor barcode has not yet been mapped to a Business Central item, the unknown barcode handling prompt allows the worker to create the cross-reference on the spot.
Both are visible. The bin contents view shows total quantity on hand per bin, plus the quantity currently committed to open pick documents, the quantity on active put-away documents, and the resulting quantity available to take. This gives workers an accurate, real-time picture of what can actually be moved, not just what the bin physically contains, as reflected in static inventory records.
Yes. Item Inquiry is accessible via F-key shortcut from within the pick application. Pressing the shortcut opens the inquiry pre-filtered to the item on the currently selected pick line. When the worker closes Item Inquiry, they return directly to the pick document at the same line. The pick document remains open throughout.
Yes. Workers can select a specific lot or serial number from the Choose LN/SN menu within Item Inquiry. Selecting a lot or serial filters the bin contents view to show only the locations and quantities for that specific tracking record. This is useful for locating a specific lot for quality holds, expiry checks, or pick accuracy verification.
Yes. In locations that do not use bin tracking in Business Central, the bin contents section of Item Inquiry shows location-level inventory rather than bin-level details. The rest of the feature, including recent transactions, item pictures, label printing, and lot or serial selection, functions the same regardless of whether bins are enabled at the location.
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.