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P2Lab Stockly

Switching on the box loading assistant

The box loading assistant determines the position of every item inside its carton and the order in which the items are to be placed. The calculated layout is then displayed on the packing table at the packing bench. On a new installation the function is disabled by default. To produce a valid layout it requires measured articles and a defined catalogue of cartons.

Before you start

Section titled “Before you start”

Three prerequisites have to be in place before the assistant can produce a layout.

The catalogue has to contain a carton with inner dimensions. The catalogue supplies the boxes, and the inner dimensions define the space into which the goods are fitted. A material without these dimensions is not taken into account. → Packaging materials

The articles have to carry measurements: length, width and height on the product, or substitute dimensions on a packing profile. An article that has neither is listed by name instead of being placed in the carton. → Packing profiles

Parcels have to be managed while packing. The assistant arranges boxes, so the bench has to create them in the first place. → Packing settings

1. Switch the assistant on

Section titled “1. Switch the assistant on”

Stockly → Settings → Order Packing → tab Packing assistant → card Box loading assistant → tick Enable the box loading assistant. Leave Show the packing table enabled; this option controls whether the table is available at all, not whether it is currently open.

This setting makes the button visible. It does not yet produce a layout. The button remains available so that the panel can be opened and the missing prerequisites read from it.

2. Turn on parcel management

Section titled “2. Turn on parcel management”

Same screen, tab Order Picking → Manage parcels while packing. Without this setting the bench does not create boxes, so the assistant has nothing to arrange.

3. Give the catalogue a box with inner dimensions

Section titled “3. Give the catalogue a box with inner dimensions”

Stockly → Operations → Shipping → Packaging materials → open or create a carton → fill in Inner length (mm), Inner width (mm) and Inner height (mm). All three values are required. If any of them is empty, the material is skipped even when the goods would have fitted into it.

4. Let the rule choose a real box

Section titled “4. Let the rule choose a real box”

Stockly → Operations → Shipping → Packaging rules → the rule for your shipping method → Split strategy → Fit into a real box. New rules use this strategy from the start. The remaining four strategies determine only the number of parcels; the carton is assigned afterwards, and the table then displays an empty box. → Cartonization

5. Open the packing table

Section titled “5. Open the packing table”

Pack an order in the usual way. The Packing table button now appears in the header of the packing screen. Pressing it opens the table and the label changes to Hide table.

Checking it works

Section titled “Checking it works”

The order displays a carton with the goods drawn inside it, in the order in which they are to be packed. Recalculate layout repeats the calculation after the parcel split has been changed. Items that could not be placed are listed by name below the image; those articles are missing measurements or a packing profile.

When the picture stays empty

Section titled “When the picture stays empty”

The panel displays No arrangement for this order and names three conditions:

  • the packing rule has to choose a real box — step 4 above;
  • the catalogue needs a carton with inner dimensions that the goods fit into — step 3;
  • the articles need measurements, or a packing profile with substitute dimensions.

Weight is not among these conditions. An article without a weight is still drawn; the weight only determines which band it is assigned to and how early it is placed in the box. → Packing data coverage

Where to go next

Section titled “Where to go next”