Dynamics 365 for distributors and wholesalers
Econix implements Microsoft Dynamics 365 for distribution — order management, purchasing and replenishment, multi-site inventory, warehouse, transportation, EDI and 3PL — on Supply Chain Management, Business Central, and Finance.
Where distribution ERP breaks down
If your operation is living with any of these, the system is holding back growth — and costing you margin and customers.
Inventory out of balance
Overstocked in one warehouse and stocked out in another, with working capital tied up and customers waiting.
Fulfilment errors
Wrong items, short shipments, and late orders that erode margin and cost you customers to the competition.
Manual, paper-driven warehouse
Pick-and-pack on paper or spreadsheets, no real-time inventory, and mistakes that only surface at shipping.
No multi-site visibility
Inventory fragmented across sites and 3PLs, so nobody can see true availability or rebalance stock.
Legacy ERP cannot scale
Dynamics GP or NAV straining under growing SKU counts, channels, and order volume.
EDI chargebacks
Compliance failures and chargebacks with major retail and grocery trading partners because EDI is brittle.
Freight in spreadsheets
Carrier costs and routing managed by hand, with no rating, load planning, or freight reconciliation in the system.
Returns are a black hole
Returns and RMAs handled manually, with slow credits, lost stock, and no visibility into what came back or why.
How distribution runs on Dynamics 365
One connected flow from sourcing to invoicing — no disconnected systems, no manual hand-offs.
- SourceVendors & pricing
- PurchasePO & replenishment
- ReceivePut-away
- StockMulti-site inventory
- SellOrders & pricing
- Pick & PackWarehouse (WMS)
- ShipTMS & 3PL
- Invoice & CostTo GL & report
Distribution functionality Econix delivers
Explore the offering by function — the pain it removes, the Dynamics 365 capability behind it, and how Econix delivers it.
Order management & fulfilment
When orders arrive across channels and pricing lives in spreadsheets, promises slip and fulfilment errors follow.
D365 Supply Chain Management
- Sales orders across channels
- Available-to-promise (ATP / CTP)
- Order allocation & reservations
- Intercompany & drop-ship
Business Central
- Sales orders, quotes & invoicing
- Item availability & substitution
How Econix delivers it: Econix configures order-to-cash so pricing, availability, and allocation are accurate the moment an order lands — across every channel you sell through.
Order-to-cash flow
- Quote / OrderOmnichannel intake
- Price & ATPAgreements & availability
- AllocateReserve stock
- Pick & PackWarehouse
- ShipCarrier & 3PL
- InvoicePost to GL
Purchasing & replenishment
Manual reordering means overstock, stockouts, and cash tied up in the wrong SKUs.
D365 Supply Chain Management
- Demand-driven & min/max replenishment
- Vendor management & trade agreements
- Purchase requisitions & approvals
- Budget control on purchase orders
Business Central
- Requisition worksheets & reordering
- Vendor pricing & purchase orders
How Econix delivers it: Econix tunes replenishment policies, lead times, and vendor terms so you buy the right stock at the right time — not by gut feel.
Multi-site inventory & availability
Inventory fragmented across warehouses and 3PLs means nobody trusts availability or can rebalance stock.
D365 Supply Chain Management
- Multi-site & multi-warehouse inventory
- Real-time on-hand & available-to-promise
- Transfer orders & rebalancing
- Cycle counting & inventory accuracy
Business Central
- Multi-location inventory & transfers
- Item tracking (lot / serial)
How Econix delivers it: Econix gives buyers and operations one live view of inventory across sites and 3PLs, ending the "overstocked here, stocked out there" problem.
One view across every site
Advanced warehouse management
Paper-driven warehouses mean inaccurate inventory, slow fulfilment, and errors caught only at shipping.
D365 Supply Chain Management
- Directed put-away & pick, wave & load planning
- License-plate, bin & location control
- Mobile / handheld scanning & Warehouse app
- Warehouse Copilot work-line insights
Business Central
- Bins, put-away, pick & basic warehousing
- Mobile warehouse for lighter operations
How Econix delivers it: Econix configures warehouse processes to match your physical operation so scanning speeds fulfilment and inventory stays accurate in real time.
Transportation management
Freight planned in spreadsheets hides carrier cost, delays shipments, and makes freight reconciliation painful.
D365 Supply Chain Management
- Carrier rating, routing & optimization
- Load building & consolidation
- Freight reconciliation & settlement
- Inbound & outbound transportation
How Econix delivers it: Econix has delivered transportation and freight integration in real supply-chain engagements — including BluJay TMS on the Mother Parkers program.
Transportation flow in D365 SCM
- Rate & PlanCarriers & modes
- RouteOptimize stops
- Load BuildConsolidate
- Ship & ConfirmASN & docs
- TrackStatus & POD
- Freight SettleMatch & pay
3PL & EDI integration
Third-party warehouses and trading-partner EDI, bolted on badly, cause chargebacks and manual re-keying.
D365 & integration
- 3PL warehouse integration (orders, ASN, inventory)
- EDI trading-partner compliance
- Automated order, ship & invoice flows
- Data Management & API / dual-write integration
How Econix delivers it: Econix builds EDI and 3PL integrations that clear retail and grocery trading-partner requirements and remove manual re-keying — proven on multi-party programs.
How EDI & 3PL connect
Orders, advance ship notices, inventory updates, and invoices flow automatically between trading partners, Dynamics 365, and third-party warehouses — no manual re-keying.
Returns & RMA
Manual returns mean slow credits, lost stock, and no visibility into what came back or why.
D365 Supply Chain Management
- Return orders & RMA with reason codes
- Disposition: restock, repair, scrap
- Credit notes & replacements
- Returns analytics
Business Central
- Sales return orders & credit memos
- Return receipts to inventory
How Econix delivers it: Econix sets up returns so RMAs, dispositions, and credits are fast and traceable — and returned stock goes back to the right place.
Returns / RMA flow
- RequestCustomer return
- AuthorizeRMA & reason
- ReceiveBack to warehouse
- InspectDisposition
- Credit / ReplaceSettle customer
- RestockOr scrap
Pricing & trade agreements
Customer-specific pricing, volume breaks, and rebates in spreadsheets lead to margin leakage and disputes.
D365 Supply Chain Management
- Trade agreements (price / discount / charges)
- Customer & group pricing, volume breaks
- Rebates & royalties
- Supplementary items & promotions
Business Central
- Price & discount lists
- Customer-specific pricing
How Econix delivers it: Econix moves pricing, trade agreements, and rebates into the system so the right price applies automatically and margin is protected.
How the right price is applied
Business Central or D365 Supply Chain — by scale
For distributors the decision is driven by scale and complexity, not a missing capability. Business Central fits most mid-market distributors; Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management fits high-SKU, multi-DC operations that need advanced warehouse, transportation, and planning. Dynamics 365 Finance is the costing backbone underneath either.
Mid-market distributor
Business Central
One or a few sites, moderate SKU counts, standard warehousing — a single, fast-to-deploy system for finance, sales, purchasing and inventory.
- Sales orders, purchasing & inventory
- Core warehousing (bins, put-away, pick)
- EDI & 3PL via integration
- Fast, lower-cost deployment
Typical: Regional wholesalers, importers, B2B distributors
Enterprise / complex distributor
D365 Supply Chain Management
High SKU counts, multiple distribution centres, advanced warehouse automation, transportation and demand planning at scale.
- Advanced warehouse (WMS) & automation
- Transportation management (TMS)
- Demand-driven replenishment & planning
- Multi-site inventory & available-to-promise
Typical: National distributors, multi-DC, high-volume fulfilment
| Capability | Business CentralMid-market | D365 Supply ChainEnterprise | D365 FinanceCosting backbone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sales order management & fulfilment | |||
| Advanced pricing & trade agreementsSCM adds trade agreements / rebates | |||
| Demand-driven replenishment & planningBC has reordering; SCM adds planning | |||
| Multi-site inventory & available-to-promise | |||
| Advanced warehouse (WMS) & mobile scanningBC has core warehousing | |||
| Transportation management (TMS)Native TMS is a SCM module | |||
| EDI & 3PL integration | |||
| Returns / RMA | |||
| Costing & financial backbone |
Not sure which fits?
Most mid-market distributors are well served by Business Central — faster to deploy and lower cost. If you run high SKU counts, multiple distribution centres, advanced warehouse automation, or transportation, Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management is the stronger fit. Econix confirms the right platform against your SKUs, sites, and integrations during assessment.
The Microsoft platforms behind our distribution work
Business Central
The mid-market fit — sales, purchasing, inventory and core warehousing in one fast-to-deploy system.
Learn moreD365 Supply Chain Management
For scale and complexity — advanced WMS, transportation, demand planning, and multi-DC inventory.
Learn moreD365 Finance
The financial and costing backbone — inventory valuation, AR/AP, budget control, and reporting.
Learn moreDistribution work we have delivered
Mother Parkers Tea & Coffee
A multi-project supply-chain program spanning 3PL warehouse configuration, EDI, BluJay transportation (TMS), and MRP across a Canadian and US retailer network.
Read Case Study Business CentralValid — US Entity Rollout
Greenfield Business Central covering finance, sales, purchasing and inventory with multi-currency and US tax for a global digital-security company.
Read Case StudyTalk to a distribution specialist
Tell us how your operation runs — your channels, sites, SKUs, and trading partners — and the problems you are trying to solve. A senior Econix consultant will help you scope the right Dynamics 365 platform and a practical path to delivery.
- Order management, inventory, warehouse & transportation
- EDI & 3PL trading-partner integration
- Multi-site availability and replenishment
- Canada & USA delivery, senior-led
Request a distribution consultation
We typically respond within one business day.
Free Guide: Dynamics 365 for Distribution & Wholesale — Fit & Readiness
Capability-by-capability guide across order management, purchasing, inventory, warehouse, transportation, EDI/3PL, returns and pricing, with a Business Central vs D365 Supply Chain fit matrix and a readiness checklist.
Distribution ERP — Frequently Asked Questions
Should a distributor run Dynamics 365 Business Central or Supply Chain Management?
It comes down to scale and complexity. Business Central is the right fit for most mid-market distributors and wholesalers who need sales orders, purchasing, inventory, and core warehousing in a single, fast-to-deploy system. Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management suits larger distributors with high SKU counts, multiple distribution centres, advanced warehouse automation, transportation, and demand planning. Econix helps you choose based on SKU volume, sites, and integration needs rather than defaulting to the biggest platform.
Does Dynamics 365 support advanced warehouse management and mobile scanning?
Yes. Both Business Central (with warehouse management) and Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management support directed put-away and pick, license-plate and bin tracking, wave and load planning, and handheld or mobile barcode scanning on the warehouse floor. Econix configures the warehouse processes to match your physical operation so scanning speeds fulfilment rather than slowing it.
Can we get real-time inventory visibility across multiple sites?
Yes. Multi-location and multi-company inventory, transfer orders, and consolidated availability let you see and rebalance stock across warehouses in real time, ending the "overstocked here, stocked out there" problem. Power BI dashboards on top of Dynamics 365 give buyers and operations a shared, live view of inventory and fulfilment performance.
Does Dynamics 365 include transportation management and freight?
Yes. Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management includes a Transportation Management module for carrier rating, routing and route optimization, load building, and freight reconciliation and settlement, for both inbound and outbound freight. Econix has delivered transportation and freight integration in real engagements, including BluJay TMS on the Mother Parkers program.
Do you handle EDI and 3PL integration for trading partners?
Yes. Econix delivers EDI compliance for major retail and grocery trading partners and integrates third-party logistics (3PL) providers with Dynamics 365, so orders, ASNs, and inventory updates flow automatically instead of through manual re-keying. Our Mother Parkers engagement spanned 3PL warehouse configuration and EDI across a Canadian and US retailer network.
How does Dynamics 365 handle returns and RMAs?
Return orders and RMAs capture the reason, route the return back to the warehouse, and drive disposition (restock, repair, or scrap) plus the credit note or replacement. Business Central handles sales return orders and credit memos for lighter operations; Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management adds richer RMA, disposition, and returns analytics for higher volumes.
Can we manage customer-specific pricing, volume breaks, and rebates?
Yes. Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management uses trade agreements for price, discount, and charges, plus customer and group pricing, volume breaks, rebates, and promotions. Business Central supports price and discount lists and customer-specific pricing. Econix moves pricing out of spreadsheets so the correct price applies automatically and margin is protected.
We are on Dynamics GP or NAV — can we migrate to Business Central?
Yes. Migrating distributors from Dynamics GP and NAV to Business Central is core Econix work — including item, customer, vendor, and open-transaction data migration with a validated audit trail. See our GP end-of-life and NAV migration guides, and our RJ Lee Group case study for a legacy Dynamics migration.
Related Solutions
Explore the Microsoft platforms and services behind our distribution work.
Dynamics 365 Business Central
ERP for mid-market distributors and wholesalers.
Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management
Warehouse, transportation, and multi-site inventory at scale.
Upgrades & Managed Support
Migrations from legacy GP/NAV and ongoing support.
Implementation & Consulting Services
How Econix scopes, delivers, and supports Dynamics 365.
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