The quick answer
On Build Assemblies, choose the assembly, then open the Bill of Materials list and select the alternate bill of materials that unpacks the carton. The components change to the carton and the labels. Enter the number of finished units in Quantity to Build, assign the carton's lot in Inventory Detail and save. NetSuite uses up the carton and labels and adds the individual units to stock.
The screenshots show sample data. Person and company names are fictional. Use your own assembly, bills of materials and quantities when following the steps.
Before you start
In this example, Alex Morgan at Example Supply Co. receives CT-150 Cedar Candle Tin in lot-tracked cartons of 20. A carton isn't a sellable unit, but the tin is. The assembly has two bills of materials:
- CT-150 Pour and Fill BOM is the default. It pours wax into an empty tin and adds a label.
- CT-150 Unpack Carton BOM breaks a carton open. It uses 0.05 of a carton per tin, which is one carton for every 20 tins, and one label per tin.
Five cartons are on hand, and there are no empty tins. The carton item is lot-numbered. The CT-150 tin itself isn't lot-numbered or serialized, so the finished units need no number assignment.
This walkthrough covers a standalone build on Build Assemblies. It assumes Advanced Bill of Materials is enabled so the assembly can have more than one bill of materials, and that the assembly isn't built through WIP work orders. 0.05 of a carton per tin is intentional: it means one carton for every 20 tins. Check that your units and rounding support a fractional quantity like that.
01. Start the build
Go to Transactions > Manufacturing > Build Assemblies. Select Marrow Lane US as the Subsidiary, Main Warehouse as the Location and CT-150 Cedar Candle Tin as the Assembly.
The Bill of Materials fills in with the assembly's default, CT-150 Pour and Fill BOM. Its components are wax, empty tins and labels, all at quantity 0 because no quantity has been entered yet. There are no empty tins on hand and Buildable Quantity is 0, so this bill of materials can't build anything today.
02. Switch the bill of materials
In the Bill of Materials field, open the list and select CT-150 Unpack Carton BOM. If your bill of materials has revisions, confirm the revision shown too. The Components subtab is replaced with one carton and the labels. Buildable Quantity shows 100 here: 5 cartons on hand, 20 tins from each. It's limited by whichever component runs out first, and the labels are plentiful. It can also reflect availability, commitments, units and component yield in your account.
03. Enter the quantity
Type 20 in Quantity to Build. That's the number of finished tins, not cartons. Each component quantity is the bill of materials quantity times 20, so the carton line becomes 1 and the label line 20. A quantity of 40 would use 2 cartons.
04. Assign the lot
The carton is lot-numbered, so its line has an Inventory Detail icon. The label line doesn't, because labels need no lot or serial assignment. Bin or status detail could still apply if your account uses them. Click the icon on the carton line. In the popup, choose lot LOT-C2417, enter 1 as the quantity and click OK. The quantities in Inventory Detail have to add up to the component quantity, which is 1.
05. Save the build
Click Save. Assembly build ASSYB5236 (your reference number follows your numbering setup) opens with a Confirmation that the transaction was saved. It's a build of 20 CT-150 Cedar Candle Tin at Main Warehouse using CT-150 Unpack Carton BOM.
On the Components subtab, the build used 1 CT-150 Candle Tin Carton and 20 CT-150 Tin Labels. The carton and labels leave stock at Main Warehouse and 20 CT-150 units are added there.
Check the result
- Switching to CT-150 Unpack Carton BOM replaced the components with the carton and the labels, and Buildable Quantity became 100.
- Quantity to Build 20 gave a carton quantity of 1 and 20 labels.
- Lot LOT-C2417 was assigned to the carton in Inventory Detail.
- Assembly build ASSYB5236 saved for 20 tins at Main Warehouse.
Common questions
How do I break a carton into individual units in NetSuite?
Give the unit's assembly item a second bill of materials that uses the carton as its component. On Build Assemblies, select that bill of materials, enter the number of finished units in Quantity to Build and save. The carton is issued from stock and the individual units are added.
Can an assembly item have more than one bill of materials?
Yes. On Build Assemblies the Bill of Materials field starts with the assembly's default and lists its other bills of materials. Selecting a different one replaces the components for that build.
Why did the components change when I picked another bill of materials?
The components come from the selected bill of materials. Quantities show 0 until you enter a Quantity to Build.
How is Buildable Quantity calculated?
It is the number of units the stock on hand at the build location supports for the selected bill of materials, limited by the scarcest component. In the example, 5 cartons at 0.05 per tin support 100 tins. The effective bill of materials revision, units and component yield can change the result, so check the component lines.
Does this work for a WIP work order?
No. This is the standalone Build Assemblies process. For WIP work orders, components are issued with Work Order Issue and production is recorded with Work Order Completion. A non-WIP work order builds with its own Create Build action.
What do I enter in Quantity to Build when I unpack cartons?
Enter the number of finished units, not cartons. The carton quantity is the bill of materials quantity times Quantity to Build. For 20 tins at 0.05 carton per tin, that's 1 carton.
Why does the build ask for Inventory Detail on the carton but not on the labels?
A lot-numbered component needs Inventory Detail before you save, with the lot quantities adding up to the quantity issued. The labels aren't lot-numbered, so they need no lot assignment. If the finished assembly were lot-numbered or serialized, the 20 finished units would need their own lot or serial detail as well.