--- title: "Identify Overstock (pre-28.4)" slug: "identify-overstock-pre-28-4" updated: 2026-09-02T10:48:45Z published: 2026-09-02T10:48:54Z canonical: "docs.abakion.com/identify-overstock-pre-28-4" --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.abakion.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Identify Overstock (pre-28.4) ## Feature Overview Identify Overstock is Reverse Planning's tool for finding items with excess inventory. While Simple MRP identifies shortage — items that need more stock — Identify Overstock identifies the opposite: items where the projected inventory is higher than justified by the configured rules, exposing working capital tied up in slow-moving or overstocked items. The feature uses **Overstock Templates** to define what counts as overstock. Each template can combine rules based on multiples of safety stock, reorder quantity, or other inventory levels, with value thresholds and quantity thresholds. Items that meet the defined criteria are shown in a list with their inventory value, highest inventory level, end inventory, average inventory level, and key reorder parameters. From the list, planners can drill into each item and take action — for example, by cancelling or reducing purchase orders, or by using the Graphical Inventory Profile to visualise the inventory pattern over time. | | | | --- | --- | | **Primary page** | Reverse Planning – Identify Overstock | | **Configured via** | Overstock Templates | | **Rules** | Multiples of safety stock/reorder qty, value thresholds, quantity thresholds, expiry date items | | **Result** | List of items with overstock, with inventory value, highest inventory, end inventory, and reorder parameters | --- ## Getting Started 1. Open **Reverse Planning – Identify Overstock** from the BC search menu, the Reverse Planning cockpit, or the Planning Worksheet (shortcut `Shift+Ctrl+O`). 2. On the page, select or create an **Overstock Template** in the **Overstock Template** field. 3. Configure the template rules (see US-01 and US-02 below for details). 4. Click **Identify items with overstock** (shortcut `Shift+Ctrl+O`). The calculation runs and the **Items with overstock** subform populates with items matching the criteria. 5. Review the list. Each row shows item number, description, location, highest inventory value, end inventory value, inventory, sales orders, purchase orders, average inventory level, safety stock, reorder point, vendor, and lead time. 6. For items that should be actioned, open the related documents (purchase orders, etc.) and reduce or cancel them as appropriate. --- ## Related Features **Graphical Inventory Profile** (if installed) is accessible per item in the Identify Overstock result list — use it to visualise the inventory pattern over time and confirm whether the overstock is temporary or structural. **Overstock Templates** can be reused across planning cycles; managing multiple templates allows different overstock criteria for different item segments (e.g. one template for high-value items, another for fast-moving items). --- ## User Stories ****US-01: Configure an Overstock Template with rules based on inventory multiples**** **As a** Inventory Manager or Purchasing Planner **I want to** define rules that identify items whose inventory is a multiple of their normal replenishment quantity — for example, items with more than three times the reorder quantity in stock **So that** I can systematically find items that are overstocked relative to their normal demand pattern **Setup:** 1. Open **Identify Overstock** and click **Identify Overstock Templates** to manage templates. 2. Create a new template with a unique **Overstock Template** code and **Description**. 3. In the **Filters on multiple of Quantities** section, add rules via the subform. Each rule can specify a multiple condition against quantities such as Safety Stock, Reorder Point, Reorder Quantity, or other item parameters. 4. Set **Both Criteria** to require that an item must meet both the quantity rules and the value rules (if any) to appear in the results. When disabled, an item meeting either criterion is included. 5. Save the template and return to the Identify Overstock page to select and run it. ****US-02: Filter overstock results by inventory value, quantity, and locked assignments**** **As a** Inventory Manager **I want to** filter the overstock list to focus on items where the value or quantity exceeds specific thresholds — and optionally include items with locked Assign Quantity assignments **So that** I can prioritise the highest-impact overstock situations rather than reviewing every item with any excess **Setup:** 1. On the Overstock Template, in the **Filters on Values** section: - Set **Show if Highest Value Higher** to a minimum inventory value — only items whose highest projected inventory value exceeds this amount are shown. - Set **Show if Value Higher** to filter on current inventory value. - Set **Show if Average Value Higher** to filter on the average inventory value over the period. - Set **Show if Highest Qty Higher** to filter on the highest projected inventory quantity. - Set **Show if Qty Higher** to filter on current inventory quantity. - Enable **Show if Locked Lines** to include items that have locked assignments in the Assign Quantity app. 2. Run the calculation. Only items meeting the configured thresholds appear in the result list. ****US-03: Identify overstocked items that are approaching expiry**** **As a** Inventory Manager **I want to** specifically identify items with an expiration date where the inventory may not be sold before it expires **So that** I can take action — discounting, redistribution, or disposal — before inventory becomes worthless **Setup:** 1. On the Overstock Template, in the **Item with Expiration date** section: - Enable **Show Expire Item** to include items with expiration date tracking in the results. - Set **Remaining Shelf Life** as a percentage — for example, 25% means items where less than 25% of the total shelf life remains are flagged. - Enable **Respect Rules per Expire Items** if the standard quantity/value rules should also apply to expire items (when disabled, all expire items meeting the shelf life threshold are shown regardless of quantity or value rules). 2. Run the calculation. Items with expiring lots that meet the criteria appear in the result list alongside other overstocked items. ****US-04: Review the overstock results and take action on specific items**** **As a** Purchasing Planner **I want to** review the list of overstocked items and quickly navigate to the underlying purchase orders or use the Graphical Inventory Profile to understand the inventory pattern before deciding what to do **So that** I can take targeted action on the most relevant items rather than reviewing each item card separately **Setup:** 1. After running the overstock calculation, review the **Items with overstock** subform. Each row shows: - Item No., Location Code, Variant Code, Description - Highest Inventory, Highest Inventory After Forecast, Highest Inventory After Planning - Highest Inventory Value, End Inventory Value, Average Inventory Level, Average Inventory Value - Inventory, Qty. on Purchase Order, Qty. on Sales Order, End Inventory - Safety Stock, Reorder Point, Reorder Quantity, Replenishment System, Vendor No., Lead Time Calculation 2. For items with open purchase orders contributing to the overstock, navigate to the purchase order from BC and reduce or cancel lines as appropriate. 3. Click the item and use **Graphical Inventory Profile** (if installed) to see the projected inventory curve and understand whether the overstock is a temporary peak or a persistent problem. ****US-05: Include demand forecast in the overstock calculation**** **As a** Inventory Manager **I want to** include a demand forecast when calculating overstock — so that future planned demand reduces the projected inventory peak before an item is flagged as overstocked **So that** items that appear overstocked today but have confirmed future demand are not incorrectly flagged, and I avoid unnecessary cancellations **Setup:** 1. On the Identify Overstock page, click **Identify items with overstock** to open the calculation report. 2. Enable **Include forecast** on the request page. 3. The **Production Forecast** field is filled in automatically from the current demand forecast in Inventory Setup. Override it if you want to use a different forecast. 4. Optionally set **Ignore Forecast before** to exclude forecast entries before a specific date — for example, to ignore very near-term forecast entries that are unlikely to materialise before the overstock becomes a problem. 5. Run the calculation. The **Highest Inv. After Forecast** column in the result list shows the highest projected inventory level when forecast demand is subtracted from supply. Items where this figure is lower than the standard threshold may not appear as overstock. ****US-06: Include existing planning lines as expected supply in the overstock calculation**** **As a** Inventory Manager **I want to** include requisition lines from the Planning Worksheet as planned supply when calculating overstock — so that items with pending supply orders that are not yet firmed are evaluated more accurately **So that** I can see the full projected inventory picture including supply that is planned but not yet converted to purchase or production orders **Setup:** 1. On the Identify Overstock calculation report, enable **Include Planning Lines**. 2. Optionally set **Planning Worksheet Template Name** and **Planning Journal Batch Name** to restrict which planning lines are included — leave blank to include all batches. 3. Run the calculation. The **Highest Inv. After Planning** column in the result list shows the highest projected inventory level when planning line quantities are added to the supply side. Items where the overstock is caused solely by open planning lines — and those lines may still be cancelled — can be identified by comparing this column against the standard Highest Inventory column. ****US-07: Configure the calculation period, lead time factor, and history inclusion**** **As a** Inventory Manager or Planning Administrator **I want to** control exactly what time horizon the overstock calculation covers, and whether lead time or historical data is factored in **So that** the overstock analysis is meaningful for our planning cycle rather than showing a snapshot that is too short or too long **Setup:** 1. On the Identify Overstock calculation report, set **From date** and **To date** to define the analysis window. The calculation projects inventory movements from the start date through the end date and identifies the highest level reached during that period. 2. Set **Calculation Type** to control the horizon mode: - *End Date*: uses the fixed From/To dates. - *Lead Time*: uses the item's lead time to determine the relevant horizon per item. Set **Lead Time Factor** (e.g. 1.2 for a 20% buffer) and **Lead Time Buffer (days)** to extend the horizon beyond the raw lead time. 3. Enable **Include History** to include historical item ledger entry movements in the calculation — useful for seeing whether current overstock is a recurring pattern rather than a one-time accumulation. 4. The From date and To date settings are saved to the Item Availability Setup for the Overstock feature and are pre-filled on subsequent runs. --- ## Field Reference | Field | Where to find it | What it does | Default | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Overstock Template | Overstock page header | The template defining the overstock criteria for this run | — | | Description | Overstock Template | Description of the template | — | | Both Criteria | Overstock Template | When enabled, items must meet both quantity rules and value rules; when disabled, either criterion is sufficient | Off | | Show if Highest Value Higher | Overstock Template | Minimum value threshold for the highest projected inventory value | Blank (no threshold) | | Show if Value Higher | Overstock Template | Minimum value threshold for current inventory value | Blank | | Show if Average Value Higher | Overstock Template | Minimum value threshold for average inventory value over the period | Blank | | Show if Highest Qty Higher | Overstock Template | Minimum quantity threshold for the highest projected inventory | Blank | | Show if Qty Higher | Overstock Template | Minimum quantity threshold for current inventory | Blank | | Show if Locked Lines | Overstock Template | Include items that have locked Assign Quantity assignments | Off | | Show Expire Item | Overstock Template | Include items with expiration date tracking in the results | Off | | Remaining Shelf Life | Overstock Template | Percentage of shelf life remaining below which items are flagged (e.g. 25%) | Blank | | Respect Rules per Expire Items | Overstock Template | Apply the quantity/value rules to expire items as well | Off | | Calculation Type | Overstock report request page | End Date (fixed horizon) or Lead Time (per-item horizon based on lead time) | — | | From Date | Overstock report request page | Start of the analysis window | From Item Availability Setup | | To Date | Overstock report request page | End of the analysis window (used when Calculation Type = End Date) | From Item Availability Setup | | Lead Time Factor | Overstock report request page | Multiplier applied to item lead time when Calculation Type = Lead Time (e.g. 1.2 for 20% buffer) | 1 | | Lead Time Buffer (days) | Overstock report request page | Fixed date formula buffer added to the lead time horizon | Blank | | Include History | Overstock report request page | Include historical item ledger movements in the inventory projection | Off | | Include Forecast | Overstock report request page | Include demand forecast entries as demand in the inventory projection | Off | | Production Forecast | Overstock report request page | The specific demand forecast to use when Include Forecast is enabled | Current demand forecast | | Ignore Forecast before | Overstock report request page | Exclude forecast entries before this date from the calculation | Blank | | Include Planning Lines | Overstock report request page | Include planning worksheet lines as planned supply in the projection | Off | | Planning Worksheet Template Name | Overstock report request page | Restrict which planning lines are included by worksheet template | Blank (all) | | Planning Journal Batch Name | Overstock report request page | Restrict which planning lines are included by journal batch | Blank (all) | | Include Purchase Order Handling | Overstock report request page | Use proposed dates from the Purchase Order Handling journal for purchase supply | Off |