Blocking
In manufacturing inventory and supply-chain systems, blocking is the act of placing stock, a location, or a quantity of material on hold so it cannot be reserved, issued, consumed, shipped, or otherwise processed until the block is removed or the status changes. In Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, blocking can be created manually, through a quality order, through a process that generates a quality order, or through inventory status blocking.
On the shop floor, blocking is the system-side equivalent of a 'Do Not Use' tag. After incoming inspection or an in-process test failure, a quality coordinator places a hold on the affected lot or handling unit, so production orders cannot reserve or issue it until disposition is complete. In warehouse execution, that same block protects available-to-promise calculations: outbound waves, pick lists, and transfer demands skip blocked quantities, preventing pickers from retrieving material that is not cleared for release. The blocked quantity remains visible in on-hand balances for traceability but is excluded from usable availability. Because blocking can be transaction-specific, teams can quarantine suspect stock while still allowing other movements when rules permit. This visibility allows planners, buyers, and material handlers to reconcile physical status with system status without accidentally allocating nonconforming or allocation-sensitive inventory.
- Stock appears available but cannot be issued: Planners see usable on-hand, yet allocation fails at pick or wave release when a hold or block is created after demand planning consumed the quantity.
- Bottlenecked receiving and inspection: Inbound lots blocked too broadly or left blocked after inspection fill docks because receipts accumulate faster than QA disposition clears them, delaying replenishment to production.
- Wrong inventory dimension blocked: Entering the wrong site, warehouse, lot, serial, or location blocks clean stock or leaves suspect stock free, causing production stoppages or release of nonconforming material.
Does blocking change physical stock?
Blocking does not necessarily change physical stock. In many systems it changes availability and transaction eligibility rather than removing the material from on-hand balances. Blocked stock remains in inventory records but cannot be reserved, issued, consumed, shipped, or processed until the block is lifted or the status changes.
Can blocked inventory still be visible in the database?
Yes. Blocked stock is usually retained as on-hand with a blocked or reserved state. This supports traceability and allows planners to see the existing quantity while preventing it from being allocated. The block can be removed or the inventory status changed to make the material available again.
What master data does an inventory block depend on?
Blocking commonly requires item, quantity, site, and warehouse dimensions. Depending on the system, additional dimensions such as lot, serial number, location, handling unit, or inventory status may be used. In transaction-specific blocking, the restriction can be applied to inbound movement, outbound movement, transfers, assembly, or transshipment at levels such as zone, location, lot, stock point, serialized item, handling unit, or peg.