The quick answer
In Ship Central, open the packed shipment from Shipping > Sales Order, choose Enter Shipment, then Ship. Enter the contact phone if asked, pick the address on Confirm Shipping Address, and choose Print & Ship. Shipping Summary shows each carton's tracking number. Then open the item fulfillment: its status should read Shipped and its Packages subtab should list the same tracking numbers.
The screenshots show sample data. Person, company, customer, address and tracking values are fictional, and your carrier integration supplies the real ones.
Before you start
You need Ship Central available to your role, a shipment that is already packed, and a carrier account connected to the ShipEngine account created inside NetSuite. The order's shipping method needs a Ship Central shipping item, and the ship-from and ship-to addresses and package weights must be usable. Packing through WMS is common but not the only path: if the cartons were packed through WMS or the NetSuite UI, change the shipment filter on Shipments to include them. Label printing has its own setup, so with no printer configured a Print prompt can ask you to pick a printer and template.
Print & Ship generates real carrier labels and ships the cartons, and carrier charges can follow. Review the address, service and package details first, because some cannot be changed after the label exists without voiding it. Only run it on a shipment you mean to ship. Screens, buttons and prompts vary by release, carrier, printing setup and preferences, so the button may read differently, or the label may print automatically.
01. Check the starting status
Open item fulfillment IF31072 for Cobalt Stationers. Status is Packed and Mark Shipped is still available, so the cartons are packed but nothing has shipped.
02. Open the shipment on Ship Central
On the mobile device open Ship Central, choose the warehouse Lakemont Depot, then Shipping and Sales Order. On Shipments, select SH-3107, or scan or enter the shipment, order, carton, pallet or UCC, and choose Enter Shipment. Ship Packages lists the three cartons, CTN-3107-1 to CTN-3107-3, on FedEx Ground with an estimate of 98.97 USD and the carrier's shipping warning. These are example values. If no estimate appears, check the address, the shipping method's Ship Central shipping item, and the package weight and size.
03. Start shipping
Choose Ship. Shipping Details opens with the addressee, a Phone and an Email. This carrier service needs a phone number and the shipment has none, so enter 302-555-0187 and choose Submit. Which details are required depends on the carrier and service, and an email may come from the customer record.
04. Confirm the address and ship
Confirm Shipping Address lists the Original Address and the Matched Address, each with its Residential Address flag. The match differs only in capitalization and a full ZIP code here. Compare the two and select the one you want. In this example that is Matched Address. Then choose Print & Ship. The screen reports that it is preparing label details and printing the ship label report.
05. Read the Shipping Summary
Shipping Summary lists every carton with its Tracking Number and Label ID, followed by the Actual Shipping Cost, 101.52 USD here against the 98.97 USD estimate. With third-party or recipient billing the cost can show as zero. Note the tracking numbers. Choose Next Shipment when you are done.
06. Verify the item fulfillment
Reopen item fulfillment IF31072. Status now reads Shipped. Open the Packages subtab: each carton appears with its weight and Package Tracking Number, matching the Shipping Summary. Nobody had to copy a number across.
Check the result
- The item fulfillment status reads Shipped.
- The Packages subtab has one row per carton.
- Each tracking number matches the Shipping Summary.
Common questions
Does Print & Ship generate the label right away?
Yes. It requests the labels from the carrier and submits the shipment, so use it only when the shipment is ready to go. Charges, and whether a label can be voided, depend on the carrier and your account. Before final submission you can use Void Label on Ship Packages, and carrier rules and fees may apply.
Why does Ship Central ask for a phone number?
The shipment had none, and the selected carrier or service needs one for the label. You can enter or correct it in Shipping Details. If the customer record already has a number, you may not see the prompt.
Do I have to pick the Matched Address?
No. It is a normalized suggestion from the shipping integration's address validation. It can change capitalization, add a ZIP+4 or change the residential flag. Compare it with the original and pick the one that is right. Neither choice guarantees the carrier will accept or deliver the package.
Why does the actual cost differ from the estimate?
The estimate is a quote for the package as entered. The actual cost is what the carrier returns when the label is created, so weight, dimensions, address classification, surcharges and rerating can move it, and third-party billing can show zero.
Does Shipped mean the carrier has the cartons?
No. Shipped records the outbound fulfillment in NetSuite and normally takes the stock out of inventory. It does not show carrier pickup or delivery, which you follow with the tracking numbers.
What if the item fulfillment still says Packed?
The shipment probably did not finish. A label can be generated without the shipment being submitted, and leaving with Save & Close does not ship it. Check that the screen reached Shipping Summary, then look for a carrier or address validation error, the package weight and size, and the printing setup before you try again.