Packaging & parcels

A parcel is a box a product is stored and shipped in. The warehouse scans parcels, the carrier weighs and measures them, and product labels are printed for them. You describe the parcels once, on the product.

Where to find it: Catalog → Products → Product list, open a simple product, click Edit, then the Logistics step, section Product parcels. On a new product (Catalog → Products → New product / set) it is the same step.

When you'll use it

• You set up a product that travels in one box, or in several separate boxes.
• You correct a weight or a dimension before a carrier charges you for the difference.
• You change how a product is split into boxes, and the change is blocked.
• You want to know how many labels the warehouse has to scan for one item.

Key concepts

• Only simple products have parcels. A Product set has none of its own. See How sets ship.
• Parcels are optional. A product with no parcels counts as one parcel.
• A parcel you add must be complete. Once you add a parcel, its length, width, height and weight are all required.
• Why it matters. Size and weight go into the shipment by themselves, so the carrier charges the right price. The warehouse knows how many labels to scan for one item, also when packing and releasing goods.
• One label per parcel. At goods receipt, one item is counted only after a label from each of its parcels has been scanned. See Identifiers & labels.
• Parcel layout — how many parcels a product has and in what order. If the product is already in the warehouse, changing its layout is restricted, because labels and stock were created for the old layout. Changing a parcel's name, size or weight is always allowed.
• Products in a recipe stay in one parcel. A product that is used in another product's recipe cannot get a second parcel. See A product in a recipe.

The screen

Product parcels has a list of parcels on the left and the selected parcel's fields on the right. A question mark next to the section title explains what parcels are for.

Field	What it does
Parcel name	Your name for the box, for example "Box 1". Optional. Without it the parcel is shown with its number.
Length (cm)	Required.
Width (cm)	Required.
Height (cm)	Required.
Weight (kg)	Required.

Each parcel shows its Volume, worked out from the three dimensions. Each parcel also has buttons to duplicate and remove it. Add parcel is under the list.

Under the parcels, a summary line shows:

Figure	How it is worked out
Parcels	The number of parcels.
Total weight	The sum of the parcel weights.
Total volume	The sum of the parcel volumes.
Size W × H × D	The largest width, height and length among the parcels.

A note says that the product's dimensions and weight are worked out from the parcels when you save. The last line tells you how many labels the warehouse must scan for one item.

When you edit an existing product, a status line above the parcels says whether the layout can be changed: You can change the package layout. or Package layout changes are blocked. Settle the items below.

📷 Screenshot to add: the Product parcels section with three parcels, the summary line and the layout status line.

Common tasks

Add parcels to a product

1. Open the product, click Edit and go to Logistics.
2. Under Product parcels, click Add parcel.
3. Fill in Length (cm), Width (cm), Height (cm) and Weight (kg). Add a Parcel name if you want one.
4. Repeat for every box the product ships in. The duplicate button copies the selected parcel.
5. Click Save in the bar at the bottom.

Change a parcel's size or weight

1. On Logistics, click the parcel in the list.
2. Correct the fields and click Save.

This is always possible, even when the layout is blocked.

Change the parcel layout

Adding or removing parcels changes the layout.

1. Open the product, click Edit and go to Logistics.
2. Read the status line above the parcels.
   • You can change the package layout. Add or remove parcels and save.
   • Package layout changes are blocked. The list underneath names what is in the way, each with a count and a link. Settle those items first, then click Check again. The list can include:
     • Stock
     • Packages and packing
     • Reservations
     • Production in progress
     • Open receipts
     • Inventory count: a stocktaking session that is still open
     • Unsettled transport
     • a system update that temporarily blocks all layout changes
3. After a layout change, replace any labels you printed before it. Old labels are refused when scanned.

If the product is used in another product's recipe, adding a second parcel is refused. The notice lists the recipes. Remove the product from those recipes first.

Withdraw stock for inspection — a last resort

The status line offers Withdraw stock for inspection when both of these are true:

• the only items in the way are Stock and Packages and packing;
• you have the Warehouse: Stock movements permission.

Use it only when the parcels were defined wrongly. All stock of the product leaves inventory and waits for an inspection, so orders cannot use it. You must type a reason. Complaia then asks you to confirm and shows how many units will leave stock and how many packages will be inspected.

Afterwards, correct the layout and use Open route returns to finish the inspection. The goods return to stock in the quantity counted there. See Route returns.

Remove a parcel

1. On Logistics, select the parcel and click the remove button.
2. Confirm. The parcel is removed from the list together with its dimensions and weight.
3. Click Save.

How sets ship

A set has no parcels of its own: the parcels of the products inside it are shipped. Each product brings its own parcels and its own labels. On a set, the Logistics step has no parcel list. It says that parcels are available only for a simple product.

You cannot change a set's contents while its products are in use for an open document: reserved, packed in boxes, on the way, or in production. Saving the change is refused, and the message lists the documents. Finish or clear them first.

Products without parcels

A product with no parcels counts as one parcel and gets one label per item.

Such a product may already have a weight and dimensions, for example from a file import or from a connected shop. It keeps them, and the section says that they will be used for shipping. As soon as you add parcels, the product's weight and dimensions are worked out from the parcels instead.

When it doesn't work

What you see	Why	What to do
A note that a parcel is missing some values, for example its width and weight	A parcel was added but not completed.	Fill in the named fields, or remove the parcel.
Add parcel and the duplicate and remove buttons are unavailable.	The layout is blocked for this product.	Read the list above the parcels and settle each item, then click Check again.
Package layout changes are blocked. Settle the items below.	The product has stock, packed goods, reservations, production in progress, open receipts or unsettled transport, or a stocktaking session is open.	Finish or clear those first.
The product is in recipes of other products	You added a second parcel to a product that another product's recipe uses.	Remove the product from those recipes, or turn those products into sets.
The composition of the set is in use	You changed the contents of a set whose products are in use for open documents.	Open the listed documents and finish or clear them.
The layout changed during this operation. Reload the product and try again.	Someone else changed the parcels while you were editing.	Reload the page and repeat your change.
This label belongs to an old or unknown package layout. Inspect and relabel the goods, or receive the return for inspection.	A label printed before a layout change was scanned.	Print current labels from the product card and relabel the goods.
There is no parcel list. The section says parcels are available only for a simple product.	The product is a Product set.	Set the parcels on the products inside the set.

Permissions

To do this	You need
See a product's parcels	Products: View
Add parcels on a new product	Products: Create
Change parcels on an existing product	Products: Edit
Withdraw stock for inspection	Warehouse: Stock movements as well

Related

• Identifiers & labels — the labels printed for each parcel
• Product types & structure — simple products and sets
• The product record — the rest of the Logistics step
• Goods receipt · Route returns · Shipments
• Glossary — parcel, parcel layout