➡️ What is Consigned Inventory?
Consigned Inventory (Vendor Managed Consigned Inventory) is Ferguson-managed inventory that’s stored at your location. Your team uses it as needed, and replenishment is triggered based on that usage.
📦 Owned Inventory | 🏭 Consigned Inventory |
Your stock — in warehouses and trucks | Ferguson's stock — at your location |
👤 You own the materials | 🔧 Ferguson owns the materials |
💰 You paid for them when ordering via PO | 💳 You pay only when you use them |
🏠 Stored in your Warehouses or Trucks | 👻 Tracked as a "Ghost Warehouse" in Ply |
🔄 You reorder manually when stock runs low | ⚡ Replenishment is automatic — Ply triggers it |
➡️ Where you’ll see Consigned Inventory in Ply
Go to Stock Locations. Your Consigned Inventory locations appear in a separate Consigned Inventory/Consignment section (separate from owned Warehouses/Trucks).
➡️ Why is it in a separate section
Even if consigned inventory is physically stored inside your warehouse, Ply keeps it separated in the app so it doesn’t get mixed with inventory you own.
➡️ Do I need to “add” Consigned Inventory myself?
No, you don’t need to manually create the Consigned Inventory section.
The Consigned Inventory section appears automatically after your Ferguson agreements/jobs are configured and turned on for your account.
If you believe you should have Consigned Inventory but don’t see it yet, reach out to Ply Support and we’ll help confirm your setup. ([email protected])
➡️ How many Consigned Inventory “locations” will I see?
It depends on how your Ferguson setup is structured.
If your Ferguson agreement/job includes multiple locations (for example, one in Florida and one in New York), you’ll typically see multiple Consigned Inventory “boxes/locations” in Ply, usually one per location (as long as each one is enabled in your setup).
➡️ What can be tracked in Consigned Inventory
Only Ferguson-supplied items are eligible for a Ferguson Consigned Inventory location.
➡️ Day-to-day workflow
Your team uses materials from the Consigned Inventory location
Ply records the usage
Replenishment is triggered automatically (next article)
🔄 Use → Track → Replenish — Fully Automated
| Rule | Description |
👤 | Your team's only job: use materials on jobs | Assign consigned materials to jobs in Ply exactly as you would with owned inventory. The rest — tracking, ordering, replenishment — happens automatically. |
🚫 | No manual POs for consigned items | You never create a Purchase Order to replenish consigned stock. Ply handles this automatically through the daily batch. See the PO Tracker to view auto-generated consignment orders. |
🕐 | Replenishment is once per day — not instant | Usage from Monday gets batched and sent to Ferguson on Monday evening. Physical restocking depends on Ferguson's fulfillment timeline from that point. |
💡 | Track consignment orders in the PO Tracker | Auto-generated Consignment Replenishment Orders appear in Purchasing → Purchase Orders with a 🔵 Consignment badge — distinct from manual POs. |
➡️ Best practices
✅ Confirm every location that should have Consigned Inventory is flagged as active with your Ferguson rep before go-live.
A missing Ghost Warehouse for a location is almost always a Ferguson-side setup step, not something to troubleshoot on the Ply side first.
✅ Don't try to manually create a Purchase Order to replenish consigned stock. This isn't how the flow works — see Purchase Order (PO) vs. Consignment Automatic Replenishment Order to confirm when a manual PO is actually the right tool versus letting the automatic daily batch handle it.
✅ Set expectations with your team about replenishment timing.
Since it's a once-per-day batch (not instant), materials used early in the day won't show up as restocked until the next business day at the earliest, depending on Ferguson's delivery timeline.
✅ Use the PO Tracker's Consignment badge to distinguish auto-generated orders from manual POs at a glance, especially if your team also places manual Ferguson POs regularly.
➡️ Common issues & fixes
"I don't see a Consigned Inventory / Ghost Warehouse location for one of our sites, even though I know we have consigned stock there."
This is usually a Ferguson-side setup gap rather than a Ply issue — the location's job account likely hasn't been flagged as active for consignment yet. Reach out to Ply Support with the location/job name, and we can coordinate directly with Ferguson to confirm and enable it.
"Materials were used from consigned inventory this morning, but I don't see the replenishment order yet."
That's expected, replenishment is batched once per day, not instant. Usage from earlier in the day is compiled and sent to Ferguson that evening; check the PO Tracker the next business day.
"Can I create a manual PO if I need consigned-type materials faster than the daily batch allows?"
Yes, if you need something urgently, a regular manual PO (not the automatic consignment flow) is the right tool. See Purchase Order (PO) vs. Consignment Automatic Replenishment Order for when to use each.
Questions about Consigned Inventory setup or your Warehouse? We're happy to help get it sorted.