Dropship to subcontractor¶
In the Dropship to Subcontractor workflow, a company purchases the components of a product from a vendor, who delivers them directly to the subcontractor for manufacturing. The subcontractor then ships the finished product back to the contracting company.
The following documentation covers how to configure a subcontracted product and trigger the Dropship to Subcontractor workflow.
Configuration¶
To use the Dropship to Subcontractor workflow, contractors must first configure subcontracted products with a vendor pricelist and a subcontracting-type BoM. Each component must then be configured with the appropriate route.
The pricelist allows the contracting company to purchase the product from the vendor (subcontractor) through a PO, while the BoM allows the product to be manufactured externally by the subcontractor. Routes are applied to each component in order to be properly sent from the dropshipping vendor to the subcontractor.
Configure product vendor¶
To configure a product’s vendor for subcontractor dropshipping, navigate to , and select a product, or create a new one.
On the product form, click the Purchase tab and add the product’s subcontractor as a vendor by clicking Add a line. Select the subcontractor in the Vendor drop-down menu.
Then, enter the price of the product in the Price field.
Finally, set a lead time for the product in the Delivery Lead Time field to specify the number of days for the subcontractor to receive components, produce the product, and deliver the finished good.
Note
Contractors do not need to configure manufacturing lead times on a BoM. Instead, provide only a single Delivery Lead Time on the vendor pricelist, factoring in the duration for the subcontractor to receive the components from the dropship vendor, manufacture the product, and deliver the finished good back to the subcontractor.
Configure BoM¶
After specifying the vendor, configure a subcontracting-type BoM for the product. To start, click the Bill of Materials smart button on the product’s page. Then, select the desired BoM or create a new one.
Tip
Alternatively, navigate to , and select the BoM for the subcontracted product.
In the BoM Type field, select the Subcontracting option. Then, add one or more subcontractors in the Subcontractors field.
Finally, make sure that all necessary components are specified on the Components tab. To add a new component, click Add a line, select the component in the Component drop-down menu, and specify the required quantity in the Quantity field.
Configure components¶
When dropshipping to subcontractors, each component of a product must have a specified vendor and have the Dropship Subcontractor on Order route enabled. This allows the components to be properly dropshipped from the vendor to the subcontractor.
To specify a component’s vendor, select the component’s name in the Components tab, and click the (Internal link) arrow.
Tip
Alternatively, navigate to and select the component.
On the component product form, click the Purchase tab. Add a vendor by clicking Add a line. Then, select the vendor in the Vendor field.
Next, to configure the route, click on the Inventory tab and select the Dropship Subcontractor on Order route in the Routes section.
Repeat the process for every component dropshipped to the subcontractor.
Workflow¶
The Dropship to Subcontractor workflow begins by creating a PO to purchase the product from the subcontractor (1).
The contractor (Your Company) then confirms the subcontractor PO (2). This creates an RfQ to purchase the components from the vendor, as well as a receipt to transfer the final product.
Next, the contractor confirms the RfQ, turning it into a vendor PO and creating a dropship order to send the components from the vendor to the subcontractor (3). Once the contractor validates the dropship order, the subcontractor begins to manufacture the final product with the components and ships it to the contractor when done.
Once the product has been produced and received, the contractor validates the receipt (6) to trigger inventory moves from the subcontractor to the company’s stock (4, 5).
Create and confirm subcontractor PO¶
To create a PO for the subcontracted product, navigate to , and click New.
Begin filling out the PO by selecting a subcontractor from the Vendor drop-down menu. In the Products tab, click Add a product to create a new product line. Select the subcontracted product in the Product field, and enter the quantity in the Quantity field.
After adding the product, the Expected Arrival field is updated with the finished product’s expected delivery date, as configured earlier with the vendor’s Delivery Lead Time.
Finally, click Confirm Order to confirm the PO. A receipt is automatically created, and a Receipt smart button appears at the top of the form. In addition, a separate RfQ is automatically created to purchase the components from the dropship vendor.
Note
This RfQ is not automatically linked to the PO. It is accessed separately on the Requests for Quotation page.
Confirm vendor RfQ¶
To confirm the vendor RfQ, navigate to . Select the newly-created RfQ for the appropriate vendor.
On the RfQ, the Deliver To field reads Dropship Subcontractor, and the Dropship Address field shows the name of the subcontractor to whom components are being dropshipped.
Click Confirm Order to confirm the purchase of components from the vendor. Doing so turns the RfQ into a vendor PO. A Dropship smart button appears at the top of the vendor PO.
Note
Simultaneously, a Resupply smart button appears at the top of the subcontractor PO created earlier. In dropship subcontracting, this smart button links to the dropship order.
Validate dropship order¶
Once the components have been delivered to the subcontractor by the dropship vendor, click the Dropship smart button on the vendor PO to open the dropship order.
Note
The dropship order can also be opened from the subcontractor PO. Navigate to , select the PO, then click the Resupply smart button.
Finally, click the Validate button at the top to confirm that the subcontractor has received the components. The subcontractor then begins manufacturing the final product.
Process receipt¶
After the subcontractor completes production, the finished product is shipped to the contractor.
To receive the product into stock, navigate to , and select the subcontractor PO.
At the top of the PO, click the Receive Products button, or click the Receipt smart button. Then, click Validate to enter the incoming shipment into inventory.
Note
If multi-step inventory flows are enabled, additional transfers must be validated to enter the incoming product into stock.
Track inventory moves¶
After validating a receipt, Odoo automatically generates inventory moves to track the movement of subcontracted products between locations. To view these inventory moves, navigate to .
In the Dropship to Subcontractor workflow, product components are first sent from the vendors to a dedicated Subcontracting Location. A virtual location called Production then consumes the components and produces the finished good. Once produced, the good then moves back to the Subcontracting Location before finally entering the contractor’s stock when the receipt is validated.
