Warehouses and Trucks in BuildOps
BuildOps helps you track materials across your company’s storage locations and technician vehicles. Use warehouses to manage stock kept at a fixed location, and use truck warehouses to manage the materials technicians carry in the field.
This article explains how warehouses and trucks work, where to find them, how to set them up, and how inventory moves through your daily workflows.
Before you begin
Make sure that:
Inventory is enabled for your company.
Your role has access to the Inventory module and the Warehouses page.
The items you want to track already exist in the Item List.
Technicians who will be assigned to trucks have been added to Directory.
Only items with the Inventory item type track quantities in warehouses and trucks. Non-Inventory and Fee items can be used in other workflows, but they do not update stock quantities.
Where to find warehouses and trucks
From the BuildOps web app:
Hover over Operations > Inventory
Select Warehouses.
The Warehouses page lists both fixed warehouses and truck warehouses. From the table, you can review the warehouse name, assigned technicians, type, and status. Select a warehouse name to open its details and review the items stored there.
You can also use the table’s columns, filters, saved views, and export options to focus on the locations you manage most often.
Understand the two warehouse types
Static warehouses
A static warehouse is a fixed storage location, such as a stockroom, branch, storage area, trailer, or locked cage. Use static warehouses for bulk storage, replenishment, and materials that will later be transferred to trucks or issued to work.
Truck warehouses
A truck warehouse represents a technician vehicle, such as a truck, van, sprinter, or box truck. It is connected to the mobile app so technicians can record materials used during service visits.
You can assign one or more technicians to a truck warehouse. If a vehicle is shared, the technicians can use the same truck warehouse. The first technician selected is treated as the primary owner of that truck’s inventory.
Understand inventory quantities
BuildOps uses three primary quantity values:
Quantity | Meaning |
Qty On Hand | The total quantity currently stored at the warehouse or truck. |
Qty Reserved | Quantity set aside for a specific job or project. Reserved quantity remains part of Qty On Hand but is not free to use. |
Qty Available | Quantity currently available to use or transfer. In general, Qty Available equals Qty On Hand minus Qty Reserved. |
Free stock is inventory that is not reserved for a specific job or project. Job or project stock is inventory that has been reserved or received for specific work. See the Inventory Glossary.
How inventory moves through BuildOps
A typical inventory workflow looks like this:
Create Inventory items in the Item List.
Create warehouses and truck warehouses.
Receive purchased materials into the correct warehouse or truck.
Transfer materials between locations when stock needs to move.
Record materials used on jobs or projects through Inventory Issues.
Review quantities and transactions regularly so the system reflects what is physically available.
The most important distinction is between moving stock and consuming stock:
A transfer moves or reserves inventory; it does not use the inventory up.
An Inventory Issue records inventory that was used or removed from stock.
Set up a static warehouse
Use a static warehouse for a stockroom, branch, trailer, or another fixed storage location.
Go to Operations → Inventory → Warehouses.
Select New Warehouse.
Select Warehouse as the type.
Enter a clear warehouse name, such as Main Stockroom or North Branch.
Optionally enter the warehouse address.
Select Save.
After you create the warehouse, open it from the Warehouses table to add items and enter the quantities currently on hand.
Set up a truck warehouse
Use a truck warehouse when inventory is stored in a technician vehicle and needs to be available through the mobile app.
Go to Operations → Inventory → Warehouses.
Select New Warehouse.
Select Truck as the type.
Enter a name that matches your company’s naming convention, such as Truck 4, Van 12, or Service Vehicle – South.
Under Technicians, select the primary technician. Add additional technicians if the vehicle is shared.
If your company uses inventory templates, select a template to pre-populate the truck’s expected items.
Select Save.
Open the new truck warehouse and confirm its items and actual quantities.
An inventory template provides a standard list of items and expected quantities for a truck. It helps standardize truck loadouts, but you should still confirm the actual quantity on hand for each vehicle after setup.
Add and review items
To add an item to a warehouse or truck:
Open the warehouse from the Warehouses table.
Select Add Item.
Search for and select the item.
Enter the Minimum Quantity, Maximum Quantity, and Available Quantity as appropriate.
Select Save New Item.
The warehouse detail page includes a category tree and an item table. Use the categories to browse items, and use the table to review item details, units of measure, item type, and quantities.
Minimum and maximum quantities can help guide replenishment decisions. BuildOps does not currently send automatic low-stock alerts, so review these values and current quantities regularly.
Receive materials into a warehouse or truck
Purchase orders bring materials into stock based on the Ship To selection. To replenish a warehouse or truck:
Open the Purchase Order.
Create a receipt.
Confirm the correct receipt location.
Enter the quantities received.
Post the receipt.
Posting the receipt increases inventory. Saving the receipt alone does not update stock quantities.
If materials are shipped directly to a job site or customer site, they do not increase warehouse stock. Choose the destination that matches where the materials were actually delivered.
Transfer materials between locations
Use a transfer when materials move from one warehouse or truck to another, or when available stock is reserved for a job or project.
From the Transfers page:
Go to Operations → Transfers.
Select Create Transfer.
Select the inventory item.
Choose the Transfer From location or stock assignment.
Choose the Transfer To location or stock assignment.
Enter a quantity greater than zero.
Select Transfer Items.
BuildOps only shows source locations with valid available or reserved quantity for the selected item. A completed transfer cannot be edited or voided. If you need to correct one, create a new transfer that reverses the original transfer. Learn more about Inventory Transfers.
You can also start a transfer from an item’s actions menu while viewing a warehouse.
Record materials used on a job
When a technician records an Inventory item used during a service visit, BuildOps can create a Draft Inventory Issue linked to the visit or related job record. The mobile app typically uses the technician’s assigned truck warehouse as the source.
A Draft Issue does not decrease inventory. Office staff should review the issue and post it after confirming the job, item, warehouse or truck, and quantity.
To review and post an issue:
Go to Operations → Issues.
Filter the list by Status = Draft.
Open the Issue Number.
Confirm the job or project, item, source warehouse or truck, and quantity.
If the issue is correct, select POST.
Posting the issue decreases Qty On Hand and Qty Available for the selected item in the selected warehouse or truck. Posted issues cannot be edited or deleted. If an auto-generated issue is incorrect, use its originating document link to return to the visit or job report and correct the source entry. Learn more about Inventory Issues.
Adjust quantities and reconcile stock
Use physical counts to compare what is actually in a warehouse or truck with the quantities shown in BuildOps.
For a small, one-time correction, open the warehouse item’s actions menu and select Edit Quantity. Manual quantity adjustments are available for Standard and Average valuation items. FIFO and LIFO items require a receiving or issue workflow instead.
For large starting balances or updates across many items, use the appropriate import process rather than editing each item individually.
Use views and exports
The Warehouses table can be customized for daily reviews, replenishment, and physical counts.
Use Columns to show or hide fields and change their order.
Use Filters to display only the locations or statuses you need.
Use Density to control how much information appears on screen.
Use Views to save a combination of columns, filters, and density for reuse.
Use Export to download the current view as a CSV file or open a print-friendly version.
For example, create an Active Trucks view for daily truck checks or a Warehouse Count view for a physical inventory review.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a warehouse and a truck warehouse?
A warehouse is a fixed storage location. A truck warehouse represents a technician vehicle and connects that vehicle’s inventory to mobile workflows.
Can technicians use items from any warehouse?
When Inventory is enabled, technicians select items from their assigned truck warehouse in mobile workflows. If an item is not available in that truck warehouse, review the truck assignment and confirm that the item has been added to the warehouse.
Why did a receipt not increase inventory?
The receipt may not have been posted, or the item may not be an Inventory item. Confirm the receipt status, receipt location, item type, and received quantity.
Why did a technician’s usage not decrease inventory?
The related Inventory Issue may still be in Draft status. Open Operations → Issues, find the issue linked to the job, review it, and post it.
Can an Inventory Issue add stock back?
No. Issues reduce inventory. To add stock, post a receipt or use the appropriate inventory adjustment workflow.
Why is an item’s quantity locked at zero?
The item may be set up as Non-Inventory. Only Inventory items track warehouse and truck quantities.
Can I edit a completed transfer?
No. Create a new transfer to reverse the original one.
Best practices for inventory managers
Use clear, consistent names for warehouses and trucks.
Keep truck assignments current when technicians change vehicles.
Confirm actual quantities after applying a truck template.
Use transfers for stock movement and Inventory Issues for stock consumption.
Post receipts and Draft Issues as part of the regular workflow.
Review minimum and maximum quantities manually because low-stock alerts are not currently automatic.
Perform periodic physical counts and investigate negative or unexpected quantities.