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Numbering and barcodes

Numbering Scheme​

Open Numbering Schemes and choose New to open the Numbering Scheme Card.

  1. Enter a Code and Description.
  2. Set Mode to one of:
    • Global No. Series: every Style using this scheme draws from one shared standard number series. Set No. Series Code to that series.
    • Per Style No. Series: each Style gets its own dedicated series, created automatically the first time a SKU is generated for it. Set Per-Style Series Template to the series that new per-style series are patterned from.
    • Compound Code: a text pattern is resolved per SKU rather than drawing a number at all. Set Compound Code Pattern using the tokens {Brand}, {Style}, {Colour} (truncated to 10 characters), and {Size} (truncated to 10 characters); any other characters (dashes, dots, slashes) are kept literally. For example: {Brand}-{Style}-{Colour}-{Size}. Set Padding Length for the zero-padding width used if generation ever has to fall back to a plain sequence.
  3. Set Allow Style Override if individual Styles under a Brand using this scheme should be permitted to point at a different scheme instead.
  4. Run Preview Pattern to see a sample resolved number before using the scheme live.

Result: the scheme is available to select on a Brand or a Style.

The numbering cascade​

For any given Style, the scheme that actually gets used to generate its SKUs' Item Nos. is resolved most-specific-first:

  1. The Style's own Numbering Scheme field, if set.
  2. Otherwise, the Style's Brand's Default Numbering Scheme, if set.
  3. Otherwise, Apparel PIM Setup's Default Numbering Scheme, if set.
  4. Otherwise, an automatic {StyleCode}-NNNN sequence, guaranteed not to collide with an existing Item No.

The same automatic fallback also applies if a Global No. Series scheme resolves but its No. Series Code was left blank, or if a Compound Code pattern resolves to a string longer than 20 characters (the Item No. field limit): rather than risk a collision by truncating, generation falls back to the safe sequence form instead.

The Style Card shows exactly what will happen: an editable Numbering Scheme override field, and next to it a read-only Effective Numbering Scheme field showing the resolved scheme code with a note of which level supplied it, for example "SCHEME01 (Brand default)" or "Auto (Style code sequence)" if nothing at all is configured.

If a Style tries to set its own override to a different scheme than its Brand's default, and that Brand-default scheme has Allow Style Override turned off, the change is blocked with an error naming both schemes. Turn on Allow Style Override on the scheme, or clear the Style's override, to proceed.

GTIN Pools​

GTIN Pools manage purchased barcodes (GTIN, EAN, or UPC numbers) and allocate them onto generated SKUs. Open GTIN Pools and choose New to open the GTIN Pool Card.

  1. Enter a Code and a Description (for example, the reseller batch or the Brand it belongs to).
  2. Load entries into the pool one of three ways:
    • Export Template, fill the single GTIN column offline, then Import from Excel. Every row is checked against the official GS1 check-digit rule and against every existing entry (in any pool) and every GTIN already live on a standard Item. One bad row does not abort the whole import: the batch completes, and a summary names how many were accepted and rejected, listing the first ten rejected rows and the specific reason (bad check digit, duplicate, or already assigned).
    • Generate Range, entering a Starting GTIN and an Ending GTIN of matching length. The system expands and validates every number in between, recalculating the check digit fresh for each one (a GTIN's check digit is not a simple linear function of the number, so this is not just "count upward"). Capped at 10,000 GTINs per run; a larger range is rejected up front with the requested count and the limit.
    • Typing a row directly into the GTIN Pool Entries grid is not available; entries only arrive through Import or Generate Range, so every entry is always properly linked to its pool.

Result: the pool's entries show as Available until they are consumed. Once an entry is Allocated, it stays that way permanently: it is never returned to Available automatically, and it cannot be deleted (an Available entry can be, to correct a bad import).

Allocation cascade​

This resolves exactly like the numbering cascade: Style's own GTIN Pool override, then the Style's Brand's Default GTIN Pool Code, then Apparel PIM Setup's Default GTIN Pool Code, then no allocation at all if nothing resolves (this is not an error). The Style Card shows the same editable-override-plus-read-only-effective pattern as numbering, with an Effective GTIN Pool field.

How a SKU actually picks up a barcode​

  • Automatically, if Apparel PIM Setup's Auto-Allocate GTIN switch is on. As a new SKU's Item is materialised, if it does not already have a GTIN, the system resolves the pool through the cascade and draws the oldest Available entry (first in, first out by import date). If the switch is off, no pool resolves, or the resolved pool is empty, the SKU is still created; a pool shortage is only reported as an advisory note in the generation summary, never a blocking error.
  • Manually, in bulk, from the standard Item List, using the Allocate GTIN action. Select the Items to allocate, choose a pool, and every selected Item that does not already have a GTIN draws the next Available entry; Items that already carry a GTIN are always skipped, never overwritten. A summary reports how many were allocated and how many were skipped, and why.
  • Validate Check Digit, an action on the standard Item Card, lets you spot-check whatever GTIN is currently typed on an Item against the GS1 rule, independent of pools or auto-allocation. A blank GTIN gives a distinct "nothing to validate" message rather than a false failure.