Item Types

One of the fundamental configuration settings related to Products in ShipHawk is the Item Type.  Item Type defines how each Item is packed by the Packing algorithm.  

Starting with the 2023.1.0 release, ShipHawk has introduced a new Item Type structure to simplify the selection of Item Type yet provide more flexibility in defining how an item can be packed. 

ShipHawk supports three different item types and several other packing settings that define how a particular item can be packed.  The following table describes the three Item Types introduced in 2023.1.0 and how they map to the previous item types:

The Item Type setting can be set manually on the user interface, loaded through the latest Product .CSV file, or synced from ERPs that support Product import into ShipHawk.

ADVANCED PACKING SETTINGS

In addition to setting the Item Type, users can configure Advanced Packing Settings that allow you to specify how items should be packed in different scenarios:

These Advanced Packing settings can be set manually through the UI, loaded through the latest Product .CSV file compatible with the 2023.2.0 release or later.  Users that map Item Types values from an ERP will automatically map these Packing Settings.

The default settings for Box will never pack the item into another box when shipping by small parcel and will never pack items in containers before stacking on a pallet for LTL shipments.  This matches the packing behavior of the previous Unpacked > Box item type.

The Loose default settings will always pack items in containers before shipping Small Parcel and will always pack items in containers before stacking on a pallet for LTL shipments.  This matches the behavior of the previous Unpacked > Generic Unpacked Item type.

Example Item Settings

Example #1:  An item that can ship in its own box when ordered or shipped alone, but can also be combined with other items for Small Parcel shipping when shipping rates for a single container are lower than shipment containing multiple boxes.  Can be palletized for large orders.  

Suggested settings for this example: 

Item Type: Box 

Do NOT pack with other items: FALSE 
(This allows Box item to be combined with other items for Small Parcel shipments.)

Do NOT palletize: FALSE
(It is OK to palletize for LTL shipments.)

Do NOT pack before palletize: TRUE
(Item can be stacked directly onto a pallet.)

Example #2: An item that should always be packed when shipping Small Parcel but can be stacked directly onto a pallet without being packed into a container. 

Suggested settings for this example: 

Item Type: Loose 

Do NOT pack with other items: FALSE 
(This allows Box item to be combined with other items for Small Parcel shipments.)

Do NOT palletize: FALSE
(It is OK to palletize for LTL shipments.)

Do NOT pack before palletize: TRUE
(Item can be stacked directly onto a pallet.)

How to configure Item Type and Packing Settings

To configure Item Type and Packing Settings:

• Configure Item Types and Packing Settings in ShipHawk UI

• Configure Item Types and Packing Settings via Product Import using CSV

• Configure Item Types and Packing Settings via Product sync from NetSuite

Configure Item Types and Packing Settings in ShipHawk UI

Products can be configured manually in the Product page within the ShipHawk UI.  On the menu bar, select Products and either click on one of the existing products or select Actions > Create New Product to add a new product:

Open

In the Product view, scroll down to the Items section to set the Item Type and other settings. This section includes all fields related to an Item.  

An Item is a unit that defines a specific physical object to be packed, including the object’s type, dimensions and weight, freight class, and dangerous goods information, and other packing settings.  One Product/SKU can consist of multiple Items.

The new Item Types structure simplifies the selection of Item Types, providing three packing settings that allow users to define packing behavior in different scenarios.

Open

Configure Item Types and Packing Settings via Product Import using CSV

Item Types and shipping settings can be configured in bulk using the Product import function based on settings defined in a .CSV file.  Click here for more general information on loading and syncing Product information into ShipHawk.

The new Item Type settings are shown below (note that some columns are hidden from view):

Column J: “type_of_item” - select from Loose, Box, or Pallet.

Column BE: 

Configure Item Types and Packing Settings via Product sync from NetSuite

ShipHawk allows NetSuite users to automatically synchronize Product information including Name, SKUs, Item Names, Weight, Dimensions, and Type of Item, and Smart Packing related settings directly from NetSuite to simplify configuration and maintenance. 

New Item Types (requires NetSuite bundle 2023.4.0 or later) 

When configuring a New SKU Item in NetSuite, set the Type of Item field to “Loose” or “Box” (1) to  display the relevant settings (2). Once configured in NetSuite, these item settings will automatically synchronize to ShipHawk during regularly scheduled or manual product sync.   These fields are not relevant for Pallet items.     

Old Item Types

NetSuite items that were previously configured using the old Item Types scheme will automatically map to default behavior for that item type as described in the Definitions section above.  

For example, an SKU configured with ITEM TYPE as “unpacked”, and with no UNPACKED ITEM TYPE ID…

…will automatically sync as a Loose item with the identical packing behavior to an Generic Unpacked Item, with the following settings:

Merchants who want to take advantage of the new packing behavior using the Packing Settings should disable the syncing of the ITEM TYPE and UNPACKED ITEM TYPE ID, because these will overwrite the packing settings during synchronization.