The quick answer
A saved plan whose Zones field names one zone filters the rows you can count to the bins in that zone, and the plan's other filters still apply. Open Generate Cycle Count from Plan, choose the plan in Plan Number and click Display. NetSuite lists the candidate item and bin rows that match the plan. Click Mark All, clear the check box on every row for a bin you want to skip, choose a counter in Assigned To and click Generate and Release. That creates the inventory count, normally in Open status. Click Start Count to move it to Started and take the snapshot. The Started count has lines only for the rows you left checked.
This example counts Zone A Overflow at Harbor Warehouse. Three bins hold stock there, AO-01 with PUL-210, AO-02 with BRG-330 and AO-05 with SHF-150. A restock is still going on in AO-05, so that bin stays out of today's count. The company, user, warehouse, bin and item names in the screenshots are fictional example data.
Before you start
You need NetSuite WMS with cycle count plans and bin management, and a role that can generate and release counts. The saved plan needs a Location and a Zones value. Assigned To on the plan is optional. A variance Account, a Subsidiary, a Department and a Class can be required or filled in by default, depending on your account and its preferences. The bins have to belong to that zone and hold stock.
A bin that already has a cycle count in progress can be left out of the Display list, and so can a bin with no stock while Count Bin Rows with Zero Quantity is cleared. Read the rows you get back and do not assume they are every bin in the zone. The three rows in this example are sample data, and your result depends on your stock and plan.
Page titles, button labels and wording differ between versions and roles. The plan and Generate pages in this example follow a current account. The success page with its Start Count button follows a 2022 demo of the feature, so yours can word it differently or send you straight to the count. The button can read Generate & Release in your account, and this guide uses Generate and Release throughout.
01 · Open the zone plan
Open the Cycle Count Plans list and click View beside Zone A overflow count. The plan shows Location Harbor Warehouse, Account Inventory Variance and Zones Zone A Overflow. Assigned To, Aisle and Bins are empty, and Use Item Frequency is cleared. The Inventory Count subtab at the bottom has no records, so this plan has not generated a count yet. Opening a plan only shows you its scope and creates nothing.
02 · Choose the plan on the Generate page
Open Generate Cycle Count from Plan and choose Zone A overflow count in Plan Number. Leave Count Start Date and Count End Date empty. Use Item Frequency is cleared on this plan, so the dates have no effect on the result here. If your plan uses item frequency, the dates narrow the list to items due for a count. Click Display.
03 · Read the rows Display returns
Display lists candidate item and bin rows, one row per item in each bin. Three come back in this example, all from Zone A. AO-01 holds PUL-210 Pulley Assembly, AO-02 holds BRG-330 Ball Bearing Set and AO-05 holds SHF-150 Drive Shaft. Bins in Zone B hold stock too, and none of them are listed because the plan names Zone A Overflow. No row is checked yet. Display is a preview and creates nothing. Assigned To is empty because this plan has no default counter.
04 · Leave AO-05 out
Click Mark All to check every row, then clear the Select box on the AO-05 row. Only checked rows become lines in the count. AO-01 and AO-02 stay checked. Each row is one item in one bin. If a bin holds several items, clear the Select box on every row for that bin to leave the whole bin out.
05 · Assign a counter and release
Choose Rosa Delgado in Assigned To and click Generate and Release. NetSuite shows Cycle Count success with a Confirmation that the cycle count record was created, and offers New Cycle Count and Start Count. The count exists now, and release creates it in Open status. In some configurations the handheld app can start a count too, so the desktop sequence here is not the only path. Who sees the count on a handheld can depend on your WMS version and role.
06 · Start the count
Click Start Count. The count changes to Started and inventory count IC0072 opens. The Items list has a line for AO-01 and a line for AO-02. AO-05 has no line, so it gets no snapshot quantity and nobody is asked to count it. Start Count takes the system quantity as the snapshot. It enters no counted quantity and posts no adjustment. This guide stops here. After that the counter enters quantities, the count is completed and reviewed, and an adjustment posts only after approval when there is a variance.
Check the result
- Plan scope: Zone A overflow count names Zone A Overflow at Harbor Warehouse and showed no earlier counts.
- Rows: Display listed AO-01, AO-02 and AO-05, and nothing from Zone B.
- Count: IC0072 is Started and lists AO-01 and AO-02, with no line for AO-05.
Common questions
Why are some bins missing from the Display list on Generate Cycle Count from Plan?
Display shows candidate rows that match the plan, and it does not list every bin in the zone. Check the plan's Location, Zones, Aisle and Bins, and its item, vendor and item type filters. A bin or item with no on-hand stock is generally left out while Count Bin Rows with Zero Quantity is cleared. A bin that already has a cycle count in progress can also be left out. The two dates narrow the list only when the plan has Use Item Frequency turned on. The number of rows in your account can differ from the three shown here.
Does Generate and Release start the cycle count?
No. Release normally creates the inventory count in Open status and offers Start Count. Start Count is a separate action that moves the count to Started. Your version can word the success page differently, open the count itself, or let the handheld app start it, so check the status on the count.
How do I leave a whole bin out when it holds several items?
Each row on the Display list is one item in one bin. Clearing one row leaves out that item and bin only. If the bin holds more than one item, clear every row that shows the bin. Then open the Started count and confirm that the bin has no lines.
What does Assigned To do on the generation page?
It assigns the generated count to an employee. The field is optional. If the plan has a default assignee, that name fills in and you can change it before you release. On the handheld, employees generally see the counts assigned to them and unassigned counts. What a given person can see or work depends on your WMS version, role and permissions, so test it with the counter's role before you rely on it.
When does NetSuite take the snapshot quantity?
At Start Count. Release creates the count and takes no snapshot. Start Count captures the system quantity for each line on the count. It records no counted quantity and posts no adjustment. The counter enters the counted quantities later and completes the count. A variance posts an adjustment only after the count is approved, and approval is the posting point.
What happens to the bin I left out?
It gets no line, no snapshot and no change in this count. Once the count is started, the lines you selected are its scope. The row can appear on Display again the next time you generate from the plan, but only if it still meets the plan's filters and no other cycle count in progress excludes it. Then you can count it in a later count.