When putaway stops generating in Manhattan WMS, the cause is usually upstream of the symptom. This guide walks the diagnostic path a senior consultant would take — from the receipt through to the configuration that drives directed putaway — so you can isolate the issue methodically rather than guessing.
1. Confirm work isn't already being created (and just not visible)
First rule out a visibility problem rather than a generation problem. Check whether putaway work actually exists for the LPN/receipt in question. If the work is there but not appearing on a device, the issue is task assignment, labour/queue configuration, or user permissions — not putaway generation itself.
2. Verify the receipt completed correctly
Directed putaway typically depends on the receiving process reaching the state that triggers work creation. Check that the LPN was received and closed as expected, that inventory posted to the receiving/staging location, and that the LPN status is one that putaway expects. A receipt stuck in an intermediate state is one of the most common reasons putaway never starts.
3. Check inventory is in a putawayable state and location
Confirm the inventory physically/logically sits in a location that putaway draws from, and that its status (e.g. available vs held) permits movement. Inventory in a held, damaged, or non-putawayable status will be skipped.
4. Review the putaway configuration that selects destinations
This is where directed putaway most often fails silently. Walk the rules that determine where stock should go:
- Putaway type / search logic: is the correct putaway type assigned for this item/receipt, and does its search sequence resolve to a valid destination?
- Location capacity and eligibility: are candidate destinations full, blocked, or excluded by capacity, mixing, or allocation rules? If no valid destination resolves, no directive can be created.
- Item setup: does the item have the attributes the putaway logic relies on (e.g. unit of measure, dimensions, hazmat, velocity/zone assignment)? Missing item configuration is a frequent culprit.
5. Look for blocking statuses and holds
Holds at the item, inventory, LPN, or location level can quietly prevent putaway. Check for any active holds in the chain and confirm none are blocking movement.
6. Check the logs for the real error
If the above looks correct, the system logs usually reveal the actual reason work creation failed — often a 'no valid location found' or rule-evaluation message that points directly at the configuration gap.
The faster way
This is exactly the kind of multi-step, cross-configuration diagnosis SupplyChain Assist is built for — describe the symptom, and it walks the likely causes with the specific checks for your setup, instead of you working through it alone or waiting on a support queue.