RECEIVING GUIDE

                  

 

 

Receiving Guide

 

Whether you are a new client or an existing client, this Receiving Guide will ensure you are following the necessary steps for us to receive your inventory into stock as quickly as possible after arrival on our dock.

 

And….a shoutout to all new clients!

 

 

Welcome!

 

If you are reading this guide for the first time and preparing to send your first shipment to us, please be sure that you have received confirmation from your Client Care Account Specialist that your account set-up is complete and we are ready to accept your shipment.

 

 

 

 

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

SECTION 1.  Receiving Timelines

 

SECTION 2.  Preparing to Ship Your Inventory

 

SECTION 3.  Amazon Removal Orders

 

SECTION 4.  Non-compliance Fee Schedule

 

SECTION 5.  Pallet Requirements

 

SECTION 6.  Suggestions for Preparing Your Products

 

SECTION 7.  Examples of Scannable Barcodes

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 1.

 

HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE TO PROCESS MY SHIPMENT?

 

Our normal receiving processing timeline is 2-3* business days, beginning the day after your stock arrives, provided we have all of the necessary information to begin.  This includes the Advance Ship Notice (ASN) being completed by you, a verified packing list, and confirmation that your items have scannable barcodes.

If your product requires additional Inventory Prep services such as bagging and labeling, or if we are applying barcode labels for you, please allow additional processing to the incoming receipt timeline. 

 

*Exceptions to these timelines apply during the peak season.

 

Please Note:  Expedited Receiving is available as an option if there are extenuating circumstances (your manufacturer delayed shipping your inventory, or you have a large number of backorders).

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 2.

 

STEPS TO COMPLETE BEFORE WE RECEIVE YOUR INVENTORY

 

All merchandise coming into the EFS Receiving Department will require the following:

 

1.  A scannable, visible barcode**  

 

There are many different types of scannable barcodes.  Some products have a UPC (Universal Product Code) under which you have them registered (this might also be an EAN (European Article Number) or GTIN (Global Trade Item Number).  If you have any of these types of barcodes it is most likely already affixed to your item at the time of manufacturing.

Scannable barcodes can also be a barcode created for by you or your manufacturer that scans to your own internal items number or SKU number. 

All barcodes must be able to be scanned without opening or unwrapping a packaged item.

 

**Please Note:  Any merchandise coming into the fulfillment center that does not have a scannable barcode will have one applied by EFS for the fees outlined in the table at the end of this document.

 

Want to create your own barcode labels? 

If you wish to create and apply your barcode labels, please review the article in this Zendesk forum

 

How do I create my own SKU barcode label?

 

Your CCAS can help you with any questions.   At the end of this article is a list of compliant barcode types.

 

 

2.  Complete the Advance Ship Notice (ASN)

Completion of the ASN (Advance Ship Notice) should be completed when you have shipped your products, providing us with any information you have, including tracking and/or P.O. numbers for your shipments. 

Please be sure you are creating the ASN under the company name you are registered under with EFS.  There is a link to the ASN form on your Client Dashboard in the "Quick Links" box.

 

 

3.  Provide a packing list

All inventory shipments coming into the EFS Receiving Department must have a packing slip included with the shipment, or there must be a packing list on file with the Receiving Department before arrival of a shipment.  There is a link to the EFS Packing List template in the ASN, that can be downloaded and filled out at the same time the ASN is completed.  Your Client Care Account Specialist or Customer Service can provide a template.

 

The packing list should include:

• Your company name only (the name that is registered with us), not the name of your supplier or manufacturer.
• Each SKU Number included in the shipment (it should match the SKU number entered in our system).
•  The quantity of each of that SKU expected in the shipment. 
•  Please allocate the number of cases and the number of singles for products that have a SKU for   each.  Please do not indicate how many cases should be broken into singles - list only the quantity  for each SKU.

          Example:    Case SKU - quantity to be put into cases

                            Single SKU - quantity to be put into singles

 

Important!  Packing lists supplied within the shipment by your manufacturer or supplier must follow the above instructions as well.  If you are unsure this is the case, we ask that you attach a packing list to the ASN, or send it in via the Zendesk ticket system.

Please keep in mind that if inventory comes in without the proper documentation, it will not be put into the queue for processing and the applicable non-compliance fees will apply (see fee schedule below). 

If your shipment cannot be put into the queue to be received, this means the receiving timeline does not start until we receive all the information necessary to process your shipment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 3.

 

AMAZON REMOVAL ORDERS

 

If your initial inventory shipment is an Amazon removal, please let your Client Care Account Specialist know immediately as these typically present a more challenging inventory receipt. 

This stems directly from Amazon’s procedures about packing and shipping your inventory. 

We want to be sure we can minimize your receiving time and subsequent costs as much as possible.

Amazon removals are typically shipped without any packing list or information inside the boxes and can be spread out over several days and numerous shipments. 

It is helpful if you can run an inventory report from your Amazon portal listing all of the SKUs/quantities we will receive, and provide that when you place your removal order.

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 4.

 

NON-COMPLIANCE FEE SCHEDULE

The following is important information for non-compliance fees that can be assessed on your shipments. 

These fees apply to all clients and include, but are not limited to submitting an ASN, providing a packing list with every shipment, ensuring that new SKUs are added to the Fulfillment Control Panel if needed, and following OSHA guidelines for safe box weights.

 

A $50.00 fee will apply to each of the items below if:

• An ASN is not submitted before the inventory arrives on our dock.  (The ASN should be completed at the time the inventory has shipped or is preparing to ship).

• A packing list has not been received prior to your inventory arriving (meaning it was attached to the ASN or sent in via a support ticket), or there is no packing list included with the shipment upon arrival.

• New SKUs have not been added to the Fulfillment Control Panel (FCP) dashboard.

• Boxes exceed the OSHA safety limit of 50 lbs.

 

• Your shipment is not addressed properly to your company name

              Example:       (Your company name)

                                    c/o EFS Receiving Department

                                    807 Airport Access Rd., Unit D

                                    Traverse City, MI 49686

 

A $300.00 fee will apply to the following:

 

If a sea freight container arrives at our facility that has not been scheduled via the ASN prior to that arrival, we will assess a $300.00 non-compliance fee.  Please note that containers require more personnel to handle and unload the contents and must be scheduled to notify the Receiving Department.

 

NON-COMPLIANCE / HOLD SKUs REQUIRED

The following fees will apply if any merchandise cannot be entered into stock within three (3) business days after arriving on our dock.

 

• We will assess a $25.00 per pallet/per week fee (minimum of one (1) pallet) to inventory that cannot be processed, if we have requested information such as a packing list or SKU entry/identification and it has not been provided within 72 hours after request.  
• If the information has still not been provided after 30 days, the fee will be increased to $50.00 per pallet/per week (minimum of one (1) pallet) until we can enter your inventory into stock.
• Individual items will be assessed the standard storage fee based on dimensions, however, if the number of items warrants a pallet location, the above pallet fees will apply.

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 5.

 

PROVIDING PALLETS AND PALLET REQUIREMENTS

• Larger shipments of separate boxes not already secured to a pallet will require EFS to put these parcels on a pallet to move about the receiving staging/processing/storage areas. We will provide the pallet(s) for $10.00 each.
• Shipments with more than 15 un-palletized boxes in one (1) shipment, requiring our team to off-load the boxes by hand will be charged $10.00 per pallet and an additional $22.50 per half-hour to unload and sort.

Pallet Replacements* or Restacking Pallets* will be assessed at $22.50 per half hour.

 

*The following conditions trigger pallet replacement or restacking: 

• Two or more broken, split, and missing top or bottom slats
• Damaged or broken mains (the three (3) perpendicular heavier studs).  If these supports have been repaired and are sturdy, the pallet is usable.
• Any pallet that uses composite or sawdust-compressed blocks as separators
• Any pallet that is not standard 40" wide x 48" deep
• Plastic Pallets
• Pallets exceeding 54" in height - when the full pallet will be inventoried on pallet racking shelves and the tall pallet needs to be reduced to two (2) shorter pallets to fit on the shelves, or, for safety reasons where heavy boxes at the top of a tall pallet might fall.
• Any pallet that shows overt signs of structural weakness and could present a potential safety issue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 SECTION 6.

 

How to Prepare Your Products*

Please read below to locate your type of product and the preparation required for us to receive it into stock without additional handling. If your items fall under more than one category and you are not sure, please check with your dedicated CCAS.

 

*Deviations from these preparation steps must be approved prior to shipping your inventory.  

 

TEXTILES, OR ANYTHING EASILY SOILABLE

• Apparel
• Plush Items (i.e. stuffed toys)
• Fabrics
• Powder, Pellets and Granular Materials (Make-up, powder detergents)
• Small Items:  The longest side is less than 3” / 7.6 CM (Key chains, jewelry, USB flash drives)
• Baby Products for small children (teething rings, bibs) or exposed toys (boxes with a cut-out in the outer packaging larger than 1” square)

Required:   SCANNABLE BARCODE LABEL, POLYBAG, OR PROTECTIVE OUTER WRAP

 

 

NON-LIQUID/NO EXPIRATION DATES

• Vitamins
• Nutraceuticals
• Skin Care

Required:  SCANNABLE BARCODE LABEL, RETAIL PACKAGING PROVIDED BY THE MANUFACTURER

 

 

ADULT PRODUCTS (non-nutraceutical)

Items that might be considered “obscene” to a third party must be packaged discreetly to cover any nudity, profanity, or pornography. 

Note:  If your product is of an adult nature but does not display any suggestive wording, nudity, and/or profanity, or you are not sure about whether or not your product falls under this category, please check with your dedicated CCAS.

 

Required:  SCANNABLE BARCODE LABEL, BLACK, OR OPAQUE POLYBAG/WRAPPER.

 

 

PRODUCTS WITH EXPIRATION DATES*

• Foods / Food Products
• Beverages
• Products Packaged with Food
• Vitamins
• Nutraceuticals

Perishable items are not allowed to be stored in our warehouse. Non-perishable items must be lot-controlled and more than 180 days from the expiration date at the time of receipt by EFS.  EFS will accept items with a shorter expiration/shelf-life noted, however, they will be placed into a "Hurt" category until you confirm that it is acceptable to put them into saleable stock. 

Required:  SCANNABLE BARCODE LABEL, LOT #/EXPIRATION DATE, PROTECTIVE PACKAGING/SHRINKWRAP

 

*Any product with a Lot/Expiration Date must have that date clearly displayed. The expiration date must also be printed on the master carton in a font that is large enough to easily read (preferably 36 font or larger).  

NOTE:  If you require the lot #/expiration date to be noted in outgoing orders, you must have a scannable barcode on the outside of the item, in a barcode format accepted by EFS scanners.

 

 

LIQUIDS IN PLASTIC BOTTLES (holding more than 8 oz. without a double seal)

 It is recommended that a piece of sturdy packaging tape be put over the top of any twist top or pop-up lid after tightening.

Required:  SCANNABLE BARCODE LABEL

 

 

FRAGILE/GLASS - INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:

• China or Dishware
• Picture Frames
• Clocks
• Mirrors
• Liquids in glass bottles or jars

Required:  BUBBLE WRAPPED* AND PLACED IN A BOX OR POLY BAG, SCANNABLE BARCODE

 

*Please Note:  If you are not able to bubble wrap before shipping us the inventory, we can wrap the items as we process your orders for an additional $.30 per item (added to your “pick” fee for that SKU). 

We can also pre-wrap the merchandise when it arrives at our facility.  The cost is $22.50 per half-hour labor rate.  If we pre-wrap, the added order processing fee of $.30 will not apply.

 

 

SHARP,  POINTED, OR ITEMS OF A SAFETY CONCERN - INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:

• Scissors
• Tools
• Metal Raw Materials

Required:  SCANNABLE BARCODE LABEL, BUBBLE WRAP, BOX 

 

 

BUNDLED PRODUCTS (More than one (1) unit is sold as one (1) SKU) - INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:

• Skin Care Multi-Packs
• Food Product Multi-Packs

Multi-packs should arrive at the EFS warehouse already bundled, however, with prior arrangements, you can have your items bundled in our Inventory Prep/Kitting Department.  If you elect to do this yourself, please make sure the scannable barcode label is affixed to the multi-pack on the outside of the packaging for scanning.

Required:  SCANNABLE BARCODE LABEL, BOX, POLYBAG, OR SHRINK WRAP

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 7.

 

EXAMPLES OF SCANNABLE BARCODE TYPES

 

Code 128

Code 11

ITF (2of 5 Interleaved)

Code 39

Code 39 Full ASCII

Code 93

GS1-128 (UCC-EAN128)

GTIN

EAN-13 Composite

EAN-8

EAN-13

EAN-14

EAN-8 Composite

UPC-A

UPC-E

UPC-A Composite

UPC-E Composite

EAN-8

PDF 417

Micro QR Code

QR COde

QR Code Mobile

Data Matrix

 

 

Thank you for taking the time to review our Receiving Guide.

 

If you have any questions or concerns about the information in the Receiving Guide, please contact your dedicated Client Care Account Specialist via this Zendesk ticket system.

 

 

eFulfillment Service Receiving Guide

Rev. 5/27/24