Co-Packer Workflows

A co-packer (or co-manufacturer) is a third-party that produces finished goods for you. Peasy supports the two most common arrangements: you ship raw materials to the co-packer, or the co-packer sources everything themselves. The setup is similar in both cases — the difference is whether your raw materials are tracked through the production run.

Add the Co-Packer as a Vendor

Either model starts the same way: add the co-packer as a vendor so you can purchase from them.

1. Go to Buy > Vendors.
2. Click + New Vendor.
3. Enter the co-packer's name and contact info.
4. Save.

If you also want to track inventory that's physically at the co-packer's facility (raw materials you've shipped, or finished goods waiting to ship to you), create a location for them too:

1. Go to Configure > Locations.
2. Click + New Location.
3. Name it after the co-packer (e.g., "Acme Co-Pack").

A co-packer location works like any other location — Peasy doesn't have a special "co-packer" location type. Treat it as a regular warehouse for transfer and inventory purposes.

Model 1: You Ship Raw Materials to the Co-Packer

Use this when you buy ingredients and packaging yourself and send them to the co-packer to assemble.

1. Build the Production Template

Set up a template that lists every raw material and packaging component the co-packer uses, plus the finished good as the output. This is what tells Peasy how much to deduct.

2. Transfer Raw Materials to the Co-Packer's Location

If you set up a co-packer location, create a transfer order to move the raw materials from your warehouse to the co-packer's location when you ship them. Now your inventory shows what's physically at the co-packer.

3. Create a Work Order at the Co-Packer's Location

When you're ready to schedule the run, create a work order from the template. Set the Location to the co-packer's location so the deductions and additions both happen there.

You can also use the Co-Manufacturer Cost Basis field on the template to capture the labor cost the co-packer charges you per unit or per batch. See Co-Manufacturer Cost Basis.

4. Complete the Work Order When Finished Goods Arrive

When the co-packer ships you finished goods, mark the work order Complete. This deducts the raw materials from the co-packer's location and adds the finished goods.

If you want the finished goods at your warehouse instead of the co-packer location, follow the work order completion with a transfer back, or set the work order's Output Location to your warehouse before completing.

5. Capture the Co-Packer's Invoice as a Bill

When the invoice arrives, log it as a bill against the co-packer vendor. This keeps your spend tracked and lets you sync to QuickBooks if you're connected.

Model 2: The Co-Packer Sources All Materials

Use this when the co-packer buys their own ingredients and packaging — you only see the finished good. Peasy treats this much like buying any other finished good.

1. Build a Co-Manufacturer Template

Create a template for the finished good and use the Co-Manufacturer Cost Basis field to record what the co-packer charges per unit (or per batch). You can leave the inputs list empty since you don't track the co-packer's own materials.

2. Add to Cart and Send a PO

When you create a work order from a co-manufacturer template, the dialog's primary button changes to Add to Cart. Peasy adds the make-item to your shared cart at the co-packer's price so you can send it on a purchase order. See Co-Manufacturer Templates Add to Cart.

In the cart, the co-manufacturer's group shows a Work Order card with two fields: a production date and a manufacturing location. Peasy creates a draft work order with these values when you submit the PO, so the work order is scheduled at the right place from day one. The manufacturing location defaults to the location row associated with the co-packer vendor (if you've set one up under Configure > Locations), otherwise to your entity's default location. The production date is optional — leave it blank if you don't have a target date yet.

On multi-location accounts the Create Work Order modal also shows a Receive Location field. Use it to pick where finished goods land when the shipment arrives. It defaults to the manufacturing location.

3. Receive Finished Goods Against the PO

When the shipment arrives, receive the PO to add the finished goods to inventory. Enter a finished-goods lot code at receive time so you keep traceability.

4. Capture the Bill

Log the co-packer's invoice as a bill. Same pattern as Model 1.

Lot Traceability Through a Co-Packer

Both models preserve lot tracking:

• Model 1 — When you complete the work order, Peasy records which raw-material lots were consumed and ties them to the finished-goods lot. You retain full forward and backward traceability.
• Model 2 — Lot tracking starts at the receive step. The co-packer's internal materials aren't tracked in Peasy, but the finished-goods lot you assign at receive time gives you traceability from there forward.

Ask your co-packer to print or label finished goods with the lot code you assign — that way the lot in Peasy matches the lot on the case.

Good to Know

• You don't need a co-packer location. If you don't care about tracking what's physically at the co-packer's facility, skip the location and just use your own warehouse for the work order. The finished goods will appear there when the work order completes.
• Templates are reusable across co-packers. If two co-packers make the same product, you can use the same template and pick a different vendor at PO time.
• Cost rolls into COGS. Toggle Include in COGS on the template's co-manufacturer cost field if you want that labor cost to flow into your unit cost calculation. See COGS.

Related

• Creating Templates — Including the Co-Manufacturer Cost Basis field
• Managing Work Orders — Completing co-manufacturer work orders
• Lot Tracking — Forward and backward traceability
• Locations — Set up a location for the co-packer
• Managing Bills — Capture the co-packer's invoice