The quick answer
Open the released WIP work order and click Issue Components. NetSuite opens a Work Order Issue created from the order, with each component at the quantity the order still needs. For every lot-numbered component, click its Inventory Detail icon and assign lots until the lines add up to the component quantity. Save. The issue gets its own number, normally credits component inventory and debits work in process, and moves the work order to In Process. Then check the issue's GL Impact and the work order's Used in Build.
The screenshots show sample data. Person, company, subsidiary, item, lot and amount values are fictional.
Inline images show the field or column used in each step. Select Enlarge to see the complete recorded screen and its surrounding context.
Before you start
This guide covers a manual issue on a WIP work order. You need the Work Orders, Manufacturing Work In Process and Manufacturing Routing features, and lot-numbered inventory turned on. The work order must be saved, Released, have WIP checked and not be closed. Its assembly needs an effective bill of materials revision and a routing, and the posting period must be open.
The components need stock at the work order's location, in lots, bins and statuses that are eligible to issue, with enough quantity across the lots you pick. The issue's location must be the intended WIP location, and it has to match the location on the work order and on the completion you enter later. Your role needs permission to create the issue, use Inventory Detail and view GL Impact. Labels, accounts and amounts depend on your forms and your costing and accounting setup.
01. Check the released work order
Open the work order. In this example it is WO5127, a WIP work order for 30 LPC-800 Lavender Pillar Candles. The header shows Status Released, WIP checked, Quantity 30 and Built 0, with the Bill of Materials, Bill of Materials Revision and Manufacturing Routing fields filled in.
On the Items subtab, read each component's BOM Quantity, Quantity and Used in Build. WX-210 Soy Wax Blend shows 15 and 15. FO-330 Lavender Fragrance Oil shows 30 and 30. The two numbers match here because component yield is 100%; a lower yield makes Quantity larger than BOM Quantity. Used in Build is 0 for both, so none of the requirement has been consumed. Open Related Records too: no Work Order Issue is listed yet. This is the baseline you compare against at the end.
02. Open the Work Order Issue
Click Issue Components. The Work Order Issue form opens with Created From set to Work Order #WO5127. The Bill of Materials Revision and Manufacturing Routing carry over from the order, but check them on your form.
Check Date, Posting Period and the location on the form. The date and posting period decide where the cost posts, and the period has to be open. Leave Custom Form on its default unless your process calls for a different Work Order Issue form.
Leave Starting Operation and Ending Operation blank when you want to issue every eligible component. If your routing calls for an operation scope, pick the range and check which components it includes. On the Components tab, WX-210 offers 15 lb and FO-330 offers 30 fl oz. NetSuite generally fills each line with the quantity still required within the operation scope, after the order quantity, component yield, units, earlier issues and backflush consumption. A work order that was part issued or backflushed earlier offers less. Change Quantity on a line to record a partial issue.
Both lines show an Inventory Detail icon because both items are lot-numbered.
03. Assign the lot for the wax
Click the Inventory Detail icon on the WX-210 line. The popup shows the item, the 15.0 lb to assign and an empty line. Open Serial/Lot Number and choose lot WX261014.
Bin, Status, Expiration Date, Lot Qty Available Across Bins and Unpicked Bin Qty fill in: RM-A-04, Good, 04/30/2028, 40 and 40. Lot Qty Available Across Bins is the eligible quantity of that lot across the bins at the location. Unpicked Bin Qty is the eligible quantity in the selected bin that has not already been picked or reserved. Both are availability results after your account's picking, allocation and inventory status rules, not the physical count. They match here because all of the lot's eligible stock sits in one bin. That is a result, not a rule. Where bins and inventory statuses are turned on, each line also needs an eligible Bin and Status, as in the screenshot.
Enter Quantity 15 and click Add. One lot covers the whole line, so one line is enough. Click OK.
04. Split the fragrance oil across two lots
Click the Inventory Detail icon on the FO-330 line, which needs 30 fl oz. Choose lot FO260811, the earlier-expiring lot (02/27/2027). It shows only 18 available, so enter Quantity 18 and click Add.
On the next line choose lot FO260930, which expires 06/30/2027 and has 60 available. Enter Quantity 12 and click Add. The two lines total the 30 fl oz on the component line. Before you click OK, confirm that the assignments add up to the line quantity, that each lot, bin and status is eligible, and that no line exceeds what is available.
Taking the earlier-expiring lot first is a sensible first-expiry-first-out habit. The form does not enforce it. Whether an expired lot can be selected or issued depends on the item, lot expiration, inventory status and transaction controls in your account, so do not assume a lot is issuable just because it is in the list.
05. Save the issue and check GL Impact
Click Save. NetSuite shows Transaction successfully Saved and numbers the issue WOI5131, with Created From pointing back to WO5127. The confirmation wording and the number format depend on your account.
Open the GL Impact tab. For a WIP work order the issue normally credits the component's inventory account and debits the configured work-in-process account. Here 1310 Inventory : Raw Materials is credited and 1340 Inventory : Work in Process is debited 27.75 for the wax and 18.60 for the fragrance oil, so the debits match the credits. Those amounts match the sample average costs, 1.85 per lb and 0.62 per fl oz, but your own valuation depends on the item costing method, location, date and cost layers. Check the GL Impact of the issue you saved. Your accounts, amounts and how the lines are grouped depend on your costing and accounting setup.
The issue does not create finished goods and does not raise Built. A Work Order Completion does that.
06. Confirm the result on the work order
Click the Created From link to return to WO5127. Status is now In Process, and Built is still 0.
On Items, Used in Build now shows 15 for WX-210 and 30 for FO-330. To confirm the stock that remains, review the saved issue's Inventory Detail and your inventory availability by location, bin, lot and status.
Open Related Records. In this account the Work Order Issue is listed under Builds, marked with a dot, as WOI5131 dated 10/19/2026. The sublist name and placement depend on your account and form, so look for the issue as a related transaction on the work order.
Check the result
- WOI5131 is saved with Created From set to WO5127, and its GL Impact debits match its credits.
- WO5127 shows In Process and Built is still 0.
- Used in Build shows 15 for WX-210 and 30 for FO-330.
- The issue is listed on the work order under Related Records.
The material side of the order is now recorded. That does not mean the order is ready to complete, because completion still depends on every component, the operation scope, yields and backflush settings. Used in Build reflects component consumption recorded against the work order, including manual issues and backflush. If you issue a component by hand and later backflush the same quantity on a completion, you can consume more than the order needs. Compare the remaining quantity before you use backflush, and check that auto-issue, Manufacturing Mobile or other automation is not consuming the same components.
Common questions
What does Issue Components do on a WIP work order?
It opens a Work Order Issue created from the work order. Saving that issue consumes the components from inventory, normally moves their cost into the configured work-in-process account, and records the consumed quantity against the work order, which shows in Used in Build. Backflush and other consumption processes can also change Used in Build. The work order commonly moves from Released to In Process.
Do I have to assign lots when I issue components?
For a lot-numbered component, yes. The line needs Inventory Detail, and the lines in the popup have to add up to the quantity on the component line before you click OK.
Can I issue one component from more than one lot?
Yes. Add a line for each lot in the Inventory Detail popup. In this example FO-330 needs 30 fl oz, but the earlier-expiring lot has only 18 available, so 18 comes from FO260811 and 12 from FO260930. No line can exceed what is available in its lot, bin and status.
What do Lot Qty Available Across Bins and Unpicked Bin Qty mean?
Lot Qty Available Across Bins is the eligible quantity of the lot across the bins at the location. Unpicked Bin Qty is the eligible quantity in the selected bin that has not already been picked or reserved. They can show the same number when all of a lot's eligible stock sits in one bin, but that is a result of the data and not a rule. Both are availability results after your account's picking, allocation and inventory status rules.
Does a Work Order Issue change the work order status or the Built quantity?
It commonly moves a Released work order to In Process, but status behavior depends on the transaction, the routing and operation scope, backflush or completion processing, and your account configuration. It does not raise Built and does not create finished goods. A Work Order Completion records finished units.
What does the GL impact of a Work Order Issue look like?
For a WIP work order it normally credits the component's inventory account and debits the configured work-in-process account. The accounts, the amounts and how the lines are grouped depend on your costing and accounting setup, so check the GL Impact tab on your own issue.
Why does the component line offer less than the BOM quantity?
NetSuite generally defaults each line to the quantity still required within the operation scope. Component yield below 100 percent raises the quantity needed, and earlier issues or backflush consumption lower what remains. Do not treat the quantity as a fixed multiplication, and change Quantity on a line to record a partial issue.