Understanding the "quantity Going Negative" Error
If you are in the midst of an order-pick on the mobile barcode scanner and you receive an error message "Quantity going negative" – it means that the action of picking that item would cause the inventory quantity to dip below zero at the sublocation you are picking from.
More often than not, this error is a result of missing a step during the picking process, which is scanning the sublocation barcode to confirm that you've moved to the appropriate sublocation upon being prompted by the device.
For example, the photos below show that the next item on the pick is 1 carton of Strawberries, to be retrieved from A100-1. The app is showing the user to be at A200-2. If the user goes ahead and scans the product, without first changing sublocations according to the prompt, they're going to see the error message below.
You can choose to undo the scan or to keep the item. Note that if you do opt to keep the item, you must make a correction to your inventory, as this will create a discrepancy upon syncing the scanner.
Other Variations of the Error
Other scenarios in which you may see a variation of the "Quantity going negative" message include:
The "Lot qty going negative" error which appears if the Lot-specific quantity of a particular item would go negative should you choose to keep the scan.
The "Pack qty going negative" error which occurs if you are scanning in case mode versus units mode accidentally, causing a negative quantity in cases or units, respectively.
How to Resolve
To resolve these warnings:
Undo the last scan.
Ensure you are scanning in the correct sublocation.
Verify your Lot ID's and case barcode settings on the device.
For detailed information on the Barcode Scanner Application Settings, please click here. The settings that are most relevant to review here, with regards to case barcodes, are #27 and #29.
Best Practice
All in all, the "Quantity going negative" and related warnings help prevent data entry errors and inventory discrepancies during