Blog
Templates, deadlines and the awkward half hour at the bay.
Forms you can print, with no email address required, and plain answers about what the rules actually require, linked to the statutes and standards so you can check them yourself.
LatestThe barcodes on a carton, and which one you should actually be scanningGTIN, SSCC, GS1-128 and the plain retail barcode do different jobs. Scanning the wrong one is why a scan sometimes tells you nothing useful.Hamza Rivera ·
Templates you can print
Real forms, on the page, free, no email address. Print one or copy the columns into a spreadsheet.
Packing slip template, and what every field on it is actually forA free printable packing slip, plus what each field does, who reads it, and why the price column is the one to leave off.Goods received note template, and the four fields auditors look forA free printable GRN, what ISO 9001 expects a receiving record to show, and why the condition field matters more than the count. · 1 cited sourceReceiving log template, and the spreadsheet version that does not fall apartA printable receiving log plus the exact column set to use if you keep it in a spreadsheet, and the three habits that make one searchable a year later.Delivery discrepancy report template, and how to send one that gets answeredA printable discrepancy report, the five things a supplier needs before they can act, and the wording that turns a complaint into a credit note.A printable receiving inspection checklist that fits on one pageEighteen checks in the order you actually do them, from the truck arriving to the record being filed, on a single printable sheet.
When it goes wrong
The awkward half hour at the bay, and what the rules actually say about it.
What signing for a delivery actually commits you toSigning the driver's paperwork and accepting the goods are two different acts with two different consequences. Here is where the line sits, and how to sign without crossing it. · 4 cited sourcesFreight damage claim deadlines, and the one that starts the day it arrivesHow long you actually have to claim against a carrier in the US, where those limits come from, and why concealed damage runs on a much shorter clock than the law's minimum. · 2 cited sourcesA supplier short shipped you. Here is the half hour that decides how much it costsWhat to do in the first thirty minutes when a delivery arrives short, in order, and the three decisions that are much harder to reverse than they look.
Running it properly
Records, retention and what to buy: the parts that only hurt later.
How long to keep receiving records, and what the periods actually rest onThe retention periods that apply to delivery paperwork in a US small business, where each one comes from, and why the longest requirement is rarely the tax one. · 3 cited sourcesChoosing receiving software when you are too small for a WMSAn honest look at the four options a ten to fifty person manufacturer actually has, what each one costs in practice, and the point at which a spreadsheet stops being the right answer.
The paperwork, properly
The four documents that decide who owes whom, and printable versions of the two you raise yourself.
Purchase order template, and the clause that decides whose terms winA free printable purchase order, plus why the terms printed on the back of it matter more than anything on the front. · 2 cited sourcesThe bill of lading, read from the receiving endWhat a bill of lading actually is, the four things on it that matter when a pallet is in front of you, and why writing on it is the most valuable thirty seconds of the day. · 3 cited sourcesProof of delivery: what a clean POD costs you, and when to refuse oneA clean proof of delivery is the carrier's best defence and your worst document. Here is what the difference is worth and how to note an exception properly. · 2 cited sourcesDamaged goods claim letter template, with the four things that make it a claimA copy-and-send claim letter for a carrier or a supplier, and the specific elements a claim has to contain before anybody is obliged to act on it. · 3 cited sources
Who owes whom
Risk, terms and matching: the questions that decide who pays when something is wrong.
Concealed damage: the claim that is already half lost when you find itWhy damage found after a clean signature is the hardest kind to recover, the short clock nobody tells you about, and what to do in the first hour. · 2 cited sourcesFOB origin or destination: who owns the pallet while it is on the truckFreight terms decide who carries the risk in transit and therefore who claims when a load arrives smashed. The difference is three words on a purchase order. · 3 cited sourcesTwo-way and three-way matching, and when the third document is worth the effortThe difference between matching an invoice to an order and matching it to what actually arrived, what each one catches, and where a small company should draw the line. · 1 cited sourceVendor scorecard template, built from records you already haveA printable supplier scorecard scored on delivery data rather than opinion, and the four measures that survive contact with a small operation. · 1 cited source
Doing it well
Method, measurement and the mistakes that cost the most, for when the paperwork is already sorted.
A receiving procedure one person can actually followA printable standard operating procedure for goods in, short enough to be read, plus the two places every long SOP breaks down. · 1 cited sourceReceiving metrics that are worth measuring, and three that are notOn time in full, receiving accuracy, dock-to-record time and discrepancy rate, how to calculate each from records you already keep, and the popular measures that mislead.How to count a pallet without unwrapping it, and when to unwrap it anywayThe arithmetic that makes a wrapped pallet countable in thirty seconds, the three patterns that break it, and the point at which the shortcut stops being safe.The receiving mistakes that cost the most, in orderSeven failures ranked by what they actually cost a small manufacturer, why each one survives, and the specific change that removes it.
The goods themselves
Barcodes, batches, sampling and serial numbers: the part of receiving that is about the goods rather than the paperwork.
The barcodes on a carton, and which one you should actually be scanningGTIN, SSCC, GS1-128 and the plain retail barcode do different jobs. Scanning the wrong one is why a scan sometimes tells you nothing useful. · 2 cited sourcesLot and batch traceability, and why it is decided at goods inTraceability fails at the receiving dock more often than anywhere else, because that is the one point where a batch number can still be attached to the right delivery. · 2 cited sourcesHow much of a delivery should you actually inspect?Checking everything is impossible and checking nothing is negligent. Sampling plans are the formal answer, and there is a simpler version that works for most small operations. · 2 cited sources
Imports and freight charges
The rules that decide who pays, and the two that get an import held at the border or billed after it arrives.
Incoterms, read from the buyer's sideEleven rules, and the four a small importer actually meets. What each one makes you responsible for, and the one letter that decides whether a delay is your bill. · 1 cited sourceThe stamp on a pallet that decides whether your import clearsWood packaging crossing a border needs treating and marking. The rule is ISPM 15, the mark is small, and a missing one can get a whole consignment refused entry. · 1 cited sourceDetention, demurrage and the charges that start while nobody is watchingFree time runs out quietly, the meter runs daily, and the first anyone usually hears is an invoice. What the terms mean and the four habits that keep them small. · 1 cited source
Working with suppliers
Telling them how to ship to you, and what to do with what you have to send back.
A one-page routing guide, so suppliers ship the way you needMost receiving problems are created before the truck leaves. A routing guide is the short document that prevents them, and here is one you can send today.Returns to vendor: getting the wrong goods off your floor and off your booksRejected stock that stays in the corner is money you have already paid for. The RTV process, why it stalls, and a form that keeps it moving. · 2 cited sourcesEDI 856 and the advance ship notice, for people who do not have EDIWhat an ASN actually contains, why bigger customers insist on them, and what a small manufacturer can do with the idea without buying an EDI system.
Around the dock
Insurance, flow and the physical safety of the place where all of this happens.
Carrier liability is not insurance, and the difference is usually most of the valueA carrier's liability is capped, often by weight, and often at a fraction of what your goods are worth. What released value means and when to buy actual cover. · 1 cited sourceCross-docking, and whether a small operation should botherMoving goods from inbound to outbound without putting them away sounds efficient and usually is not, at this size. The three cases where it genuinely pays.The loading dock is the most dangerous place in a small buildingMoving vehicles, moving loads and people on foot in the same few metres. The hazards that actually cause injuries at goods in, and what the rules require. · 2 cited sources