# Use the production flow guide

> Follow the production and inventory stages from order aggregation to stock allocation with the floating flow guide at the bottom of the page.

Source: https://docs.vestislabs.com/getting-started/production-flow-guide/

The production pages and the inventory pages sit in different parts of the sidebar, so their order is not obvious. The flow guide is a small bar floating at the bottom of the page that shows the whole pipeline, marks where you are, and lets you jump to any stage.

**Where to find it:** Production or Inventory pages → bottom of the page

## Before you start

- The guide is shown only if it is switched on for your brand. It appears on desktop only, not on phones.
- It appears on the pages that belong to a flow and nowhere else.
- A stage is shown only if you can open that page: it needs the matching view permission and the module (Production, Style Inventory or Materials Production) must be on for your brand. The guide is hidden if fewer than two stages are available to you.

## Open the guide

1. **Find the bar**
   Look at the bottom centre of the page for a pill reading **Production flow** or **Materials flow**, followed by your position, for example *Step 3 of 7*.

   

2. **Click the bar**
   Click the pill to expand the guide. It is collapsed by default. Your choice is remembered in your browser, so it stays open as you move between stages.

3. **Click a stage**
   In the **Production Workflow** or **Materials Workflow** timeline, click a stage to open that page. Earlier stages are filled in and your current stage is ringed.

   

4. **Preview a stage**
   Point at a stage, or move to it with the keyboard, to read what happens there in the line under the timeline. When you are not pointing at a stage, the line describes the page you are on.

5. **Close the guide**
   Click the pill again, or the **×** at the top right of the panel.

## Production workflow stages

The **Production Workflow** covers finished styles. Each stage feeds the next.

1. **Order Aggregation**: merge wholesale orders into factory-ready production orders, grouped by factory.
2. **Production Orders**: create purchase orders with quantities by size, factory, dates and stock destination.
3. **Production Overview**: track orders by SKU, style or option, with health, stage and milestones.
4. **Shipping & Tracking**: ship finished units from the factory, split across warehouse destinations.
5. **Receiving**: confirm delivered quantities against the order, and incoming stock becomes on-hand.
6. **Stock Overview**: on-hand, reserved and incoming quantities for every SKU in every warehouse.
7. **Stock Allocation**: assign available or reserved stock to clients, warehouses or Shopify, then pick it.

If no wholesale orders are waiting to be aggregated, the first stage is shown as **Create Order** instead of **Order Aggregation**. It opens **Production Orders** with the create dialog ready, and is shown only to users who can create production orders. While you are standing on **Order Aggregation**, that stage stays as it is.

Under **Also**, the guide links to **Production Dashboard**, **Inventory Dashboard**, **Stock Adjustment** and **Rules & Automation**. They belong to the flow but are not numbered stages.

## Materials workflow stages

The **Materials Workflow** covers raw materials, ordered straight from the supplier.

1. **Create Order**: raise a material purchase order. This is where the pipeline starts, and it opens **Order Management** with the create dialog ready. It is shown only to users who can create material orders.
2. **Order Management**: raise material purchase orders with quantities, supplier, dates and destination.
3. **Shipping & Tracking**: ship ordered materials from the supplier and follow them to the warehouse.
4. **Receiving**: confirm delivered material quantities against the order.
5. **Stock Overview**: on-hand, reserved and incoming quantities for every material in every warehouse.

Under **Also**: **Production Dashboard**, **Inventory Dashboard** and **Stock Adjustment** for materials.

## Related

- [Production overview](https://docs.vestislabs.com/production/production-overview/)
- [Production orders](https://docs.vestislabs.com/production/production-orders/)