Amazon Warehousing and Distribution (AWD) Transfer Shipments Overview

Amazon AWD Transfer Shipments

In Finale Inventory, Amazon Warehousing and Distribution (AWD) shipments are imported to help companies efficiently manage the process of moving inventory from their warehouse to Amazon’s distribution centers, as well as from AWD distribution centers, to FBA fulfillment centers. By using transfer shipments, you can ensure that the stock is accurately tracked as it moves through the various states in Amazon.

How Send to Amazon Shipments work in Finale for AWD

When you create an inbound shipment to AWD in Seller Central, the system creates the shipment in Finale as a Transfer Order and tracks the movement of inventory from your warehouse (or staging location) to Amazon's inbound statuses until it’s received and available for replenishment. This ensures that your inventory levels are always up to date in Finale as it is in Seller Central. The transfer shipment process can be broken down into the following steps:

1. Creating a Transfer Shipment:
   • The transfer shipment process begins with creating a send to Amazon request in Seller Central. This creates the Transfer Order in Finale. This order specifies the source location (e.g., your primary warehouse) and the destination (Amazon AWD).
   • This setting can be found by configuring your Inventory sync to FBA task on the Amazon integration.
   • You can either automate the creation of these using the FBA integration for "Create Transfer order.
   • Match them to existing AWD shipment IDs.
2. Assigning Inventory to the Transfer Shipment:
   • After creating the transfer order, Finale automatically assigns your product IDs to the transfer order based on your product lookup mapping in addition to the quantities selected on Amazon.
   • Finale allows you to modify the location of the stock while the order is in a “Draft” state also known as “Working” in Amazon. However, this is typically automated based on your “AWD origin Sublocation” predefined in the configuration settings for the FBA task.
3. Updating Shipment Status:
   • Once the transfer order is created and inventory is assigned, the shipment status will automatically be updated to an “Inbound Shipped” state once Amazon receives tracking confirmation from the carrier. 
   • The transfer shipment status is automatically synced with Amazon AWD through the integration, keeping your inventory data aligned across both platforms.
4. Tracking and Receiving Stock in Amazon AWD:
   • As the shipment moves to Amazon, Finale continues to track its progress creating multiple shipments for the Transfer Order for each instance where Amazon provides an update. When Amazon receives the inventory, Finale will update stock levels accordingly. When Amazon closes the shipment Finale will mark the order as Completed recording any discrepancies as Problem quantity.
   • This ensures that the inventory now available for fulfillment in Amazon’s network is reflected in both systems.
   • 

Creating Outbound Shipments from AWD

1. Creating the outbound shipment:
   • The outbound shipment process begins with creating a shipment request in Seller Central. This creates the Transfer Order in Finale. This order specifies the source location (Amazon AWD) and the destination (Amazon FBA).
   • If utilizing AWD's automated replenishment option, no user action is needed.
2. Assigning Inventory to the Transfer Shipment:
   • After creating the transfer order, Finale automatically assigns your product IDs to the transfer order based on your product lookup mapping in addition to the quantities selected on Amazon.
3. Transfer to AWD Outbound:
   
   • As the outbound shipment is processed in AWD, Finale will automatically transfer the products  from the AWD "Available" sublocation to the AWD "Outbound" sublocation.
4. Transfer from AWD Outbound to the final destination:
   
   • For transfers to Amazon FBA: Finale will automatically create a transfer order from the AWD "Outbound" Sublocation to FBA following the FBA Transfer Workflow, but utilizing AWD as the origin instead of your default origin sublocation (see Amazon FBA Transfer Shipments Overview)
   • For all other transfers: For transfers moving from AWD to a warehouse outside of the Amazon network, a transfer order must be created manually, with an origin sublocation of AWD's "Outbound" sublocation, and the appropriate destination location. (see Creating a transfer order)

Key Benefits of Using Finale for AWD Transfer Shipments

• Accuracy: By managing your transfer shipments in Finale, you can reduce the risk of errors and ensure that your inventory levels are consistently accurate across all sales channels.
• Efficiency: Automating transfer shipments allows you to move inventory with minimal manual intervention, freeing up time for other business tasks.
• Visibility: With Finale, you have full visibility into the status of your shipments and can easily track inventory as it moves from your warehouse to Amazon’s distribution centers.
• Syncing with Amazon: Finale Inventory's real-time syncing ensures that your stock levels in Seller Central and Finale are always in sync.

Best Practices for Managing FBA Transfer Shipments

• Plan Ahead: Ensure that your transfer shipments are created well in advance of when the stock will be needed in Amazon's fulfillment centers. This helps avoid delays during peak selling periods.
• Use Reordering: Take advantage of Finale’s reordering features to schedule regular inventory transfers based on stock levels or sales velocity.
• Monitor Inventory Closely: Regularly review your stock levels in both Finale and Amazon to ensure that all transfers are being processed and reflected accurately in both systems.