Allocate stock across the warehouse network — by rule, by cost, by proximity.
A configurable allocation engine that decides which warehouse fulfils each order line, against rules the operations team owns: customer preference, proximity, cost, expiry, capacity. Backorders, split shipments and inter-warehouse transfers handled atomically with the order.
Configurable allocation rules
Proximity, cost, expiry-first, customer-preferred warehouse, capacity-aware — composed by the operations team, not hard-coded.
Backorders
When stock is short, backorders raised against the order with promised dates that flow back to the customer-side promise.
Split shipments
One order line can ship from multiple warehouses. The customer gets one invoice; the operations team works against the per-warehouse picks.
Inter-warehouse transfer
Allocation engine can trigger a transfer when consolidation is cheaper than direct ship. Transfer cost reflected in the margin.
What the allocation engine covers
Rule library
Operations team composes rules: customer-preferred warehouse, proximity to ship-to, lowest landed cost, expiry-first, capacity-aware. Rules versioned with audit.
Hard vs soft allocation
Hard allocation reserves stock against the order; soft allocation indicates intent without locking. Configurable per customer segment and order type.
Backorder management
Shortfalls raise backorders with promised dates from forecast and inbound POs. Customer-facing promise dates updated as the backorder ages.
Transfer optimisation
When transferring is cheaper than direct shipping, the engine triggers the transfer; when not, it ships from the optimal warehouse for that order.
Allocation analytics
Per-warehouse fulfilment rate, average miles to customer, average split-shipment frequency — visible to the operations team for rule refinement.
Reserved-stock controls
Customer-specific reservations, project-bound reservations, regulated-product reservations — preserved through the allocation cycle.
Why allocation is a margin decision, not a logistics decision
Allocation is sometimes treated as a purely logistical decision — pick the closest warehouse, ship the order. But the closest warehouse may carry a product the customer cannot accept (expiry, lot variation, country-specific labelling); the cheapest warehouse may be the one farther away if shipping is rate-banded; the right warehouse may be the one that consolidates a multi-line order to ship once instead of twice.
The Axional allocation engine is configured by the operations team to reflect these trade-offs explicitly. It is a margin tool that runs at the order line, not a back-office routine that fires after the order is captured.