How to Create a Product Variant Mapping/Substitution Order Rules [Step-By-Step guide]

By default, techOMS allocates orders using the original Product Variant or its alternates defined in the Product Variant SKU file.

Product Variant Mapping and Substitution Order Rules let you bulk-replace a Product Variant in scenarios such as:

• No alternates are configured.
• You need different substitutions based on specific conditions (e.g., ship-to state).

The difference between these rules is:

• Product Variant Mapping: Always replaces products with their defined substitutes.

• Product Variant Substitution: Replaces products only when they are out of stock.

This process process has the following main stages: 

1. Create the Sales Order Rule
2. Define the Rule parameters and logic
3. Run the Rule
4. Verify the logs to confirm results

NOTE: Make sure that you are operating at the right Vendor/Warehouse beforehand.

I. CREATE THE SALES ORDER RULE

Create the Sales Order Rule as detailed in How to Create Sales/Purchase Order Rules [Step-by-step guide].

NOTE: For these rules, the most common trigger is Allocate & Fulfill Sales Order UI. This allows you to run the rules manually when needed, instead of applying it automatically to all incoming orders. If the rule's trigger is set to Create Sales Order API, it will automatically apply replacements to all incoming orders matching the SKU condition. 

II. DEFINE THE RULE PARAMETERS AND LOGIC

Follow How to Edit Sales/Purchase Order Rules [Step-by-step guide] to configure the rule logic.

When adding actions, select either Add Product Variant Substitution Action or Add Product Variant Mapping Action in the desired position of the workflow, and configure it as described in the Rules Conditions and Actions Guide [Information].

For example, if you need to replace SKU123 with the following logic:

• If SKU123 is out of stock, substitute it with SKU456 (priority 1).

• If SKU456 is also out of stock, use SKU789 instead (priority 2).

Configure the Product Variant Substitution action as follows:

On the other hand, if you always need to replace SKU123 with SKU456, regardless of stock, configure the Product Variant Mapping action as follows:

NOTE: When combined with Split Shipment, place the Product Variant Mapping action before Calculate Enough Stock and Split Shipment. For more details, see How to Split Shipments Automatically [Guide].

NOTE: You can also combine both actions. For example, always replace some products with a defined substitute, while replacing others only when they are out of stock. 

III. RUN THE RULE

1. Click Sales Orders from the left menu under the Sales section.

2. Click the Advanced Filter icon.

3. Enter the SKU for the affected product.

4. Press Apply to display relevant orders.

5. Select applicable orders:

• Orders in Draft status (must be moved to Approved before processing).
• Orders in Approved status that do not contain shipments.

6. Press Actions.

7. Select Allocate & Fulfill Orders.

This triggers the rule.

IV. VERIFY THE LOGS TO CONFIRM RESULTS

1. Click Logs from the left menu under the Sales section.

2. Locate and click on the entry for the rule run.

3. Review the results to confirm that the replacements were applied correctly.

Repeat this process for any additional Product Variants that require replacement. Once finished, disable the Sales Order Rule as detailed in How to Enable/Disable a Sales/Purchase Order Rule [Step-by-step guide] to prevent unintended replacements in future orders.