Documentation Index
Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.firstresonance.io/llms.txt
Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
Overview
Every part in ION has a tracking type. The tracking type determines how each individual unit (or batch) of that part is identified, traced, and reconciled. There are three options:- Serial — every unit has a unique serial number.
- Lot — units are grouped into batches, each batch identified by a lot number.
- Untracked — only the count is tracked; no per-unit identifier.
How to choose
Pick serial when:- Each unit has its own physical identity that matters downstream — you’ll attach test results, calibration records, or run history to specific units.
- Regulatory or customer requirements demand per-unit traceability (e.g. aerospace, medical).
- You’ll install the unit into an assembly and need to know later “which exact one went in here.”
- The unit is expensive, complex, or repairable.
- The part comes in batches and units within a batch are interchangeable.
- You care about batch traceability (lot recall, supplier batch, manufacturing date) but not unit-level identity.
- Common for raw materials, fasteners, fluids, electronic passives.
- You don’t need traceability beyond “we have N of them.”
- Common for low-cost consumables (gloves, wipes, generic hardware).
- Untracked parts are simpler operationally — but switching to serial or lot later is hard once inventory exists.
What each tracking type changes downstream
| Surface | Serial | Lot | Untracked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Receiving | Each unit gets a serial; ION generates labels per unit | Receive against a lot number; one label per lot | Receive a count; no per-unit identifier |
| Inventory | One inventory row per unit | One inventory row per (location, lot) tuple | One inventory row per location with quantity |
| BOM install | Operator scans the specific serial being installed | Operator scans the lot; quantity counts down | Operator confirms count |
| Run history | Per-unit history available — scan the serial, see every run it touched | Per-lot history; lot-level rollup | Aggregate counts only |
| Issues | Issues can attach to a specific serialized unit | Issues attach to a lot | Issues attach to a part inventory row at a location |
| Traceability report | Full chain of custody per unit | Lot-level genealogy | Quantity-level only |
Serial number generation
When a part is serial-tracked, ION generates serial numbers either:- Automatically from the part’s revision scheme (recommended for in-house manufactured parts), or
- From the supplier at receive time (for purchased serialized components — scan or enter the vendor’s serial).
Lot number generation
Lot numbers are typically:- Generated by ION at receive time using a configured pattern, or
- Entered from the supplier’s lot label, or
- Captured from your manufacturing batch identifier when producing a lot internally.
LOT-2026-0123 on part A is different from LOT-2026-0123 on part B.
Switching tracking type
Switching tracking type after inventory exists is constrained:- Serial → Lot or Untracked — blocked while serialized inventory rows exist. You’d need to consume or archive every serial unit first.
- Lot → Serial or Untracked — blocked while lot-tracked inventory rows exist.
- Untracked → Serial or Lot — allowed, but existing untracked inventory stays untracked. New receipts will use the new tracking type. Often a sign you should archive the existing inventory and start clean.
Pick the right tracking type at part creation. Switching later is operationally expensive — you’re effectively asking the floor to reconcile all inventory of that part.
Made on Assembly (MOA) and tracking
When a serialized sub-assembly is installed onto a parent assembly via Made on Assembly (see Editing Build Requirements), ION still tracks the sub-assembly’s serial. The MOA flag changes the workflow (the sub-assembly is built into the parent rather than as a separate run) but not the identity — the serial trail is preserved.Tips
- When in doubt, lot-track. It’s a reasonable middle ground between the operational overhead of full serialization and the loss of traceability that comes with untracked parts.
- Don’t over-serialize. Every serial scan is an operator action. If your downstream traceability genuinely doesn’t need per-unit identity, lot-tracking is faster on the floor.
- Document your numbering schemes. Serial and lot numbering schemes belong in a runbook somewhere — when an auditor or new operator asks “what does this format mean?” you want to point at one document.
- Reconcile on a cadence. Inventory drift — counts that don’t match what’s physically in the bin — is most expensive when it goes undetected. Schedule cycle counts; ION supports them via inventory adjustments.