Stay in control when production is outsourced
Track materials sent to manufacturers, monitor production orders, and receive finished goods with full traceability. Outsource production without losing control of your inventory.
Real-time view, no matter where
Know exactly what materials you’ve sent to manufacturers, when they shipped, and when they arrived. Full visibility into outbound shipments.
Track what comes back
Receive finished goods with full documentation—quantities, batch numbers, and automatic inventory updates.
Maintain the chain of custody
Full traceability from raw materials through external production to finished goods in your warehouse.
Bridge the visibility gap in outsourced production
When you manufacture in-house, you see everything. Outsourcing creates blind spots: materials leave your control, production happens somewhere else, and you’re left tracking status through emails and spreadsheets.
Katana gives you a system for managing what you can control. Track materials shipped to manufacturers. Receive finished goods with proper documentation. Your inventory stays accurate even when production happens in facilities you don’t operate.
Know what’s at your manufacturer
When you send materials to an external manufacturer, you need visibility. Katana tracks everything from shipment to receipt confirmation.
Material tracking capabilities
- Log materials sent to external manufacturers with quantities and dates
- Track shipments in transit to production partners
- Confirm manufacturer receipt and flag discrepancies
- Monitor material consumption against expected yields
- Keep accurate across your warehouse and manufacturer locations
Monitor outsourced orders from placement to receipt
Katana’s outsourced purchase orders work differently from standard supplier orders—tracking both the materials you provide and the finished goods you expect back.
Production order features
- Outsourced POs: Specify materials provided and finished goods expected
- Expected dates: Set completion dates and track against actuals
- Partial receipts: Receive shipments in batches and track remaining
- Cost calculation: Include materials, manufacturing fees, and logistics
- Alerts: get notified when orders are due or delayed
Receive finished goods with confidence
When products come back from your manufacturer, proper receiving workflows ensure accuracy and maintain traceability.
Receiving workflow features
- Log received quantities against original orders
- Capture batch and lot numbers for traceability
- Update inventory automatically upon receipt verification
- Maintain documentation for compliance requirements
Integrate with barcode scanning to speed up receiving and reduce errors.
Stay on top of every order and stock movement with live updates across sales, inventory, and production
Save hours by automating order fulfillment in Katana and extending workflows with integrations
Unlock full customization with Katana’s robust API, connecting every tool to your unique workflows
Tools to success
Tools for outsourced production
Everything you need to manage inventory when manufacturing happens externally
All Katana features
All Katana features
With the right software and workflows, it will feel like your products are selling themselves. Here are just some of Katana’s features that will make that feeling achievable
Purchasing
Maintain a perfect balance between supply and demand.
Order management
Manage orders seamlessly across all of your channels.
Warehousing
Reliably move stock in and out of warehouses.
Manufacturing
See, control and deliver every step of production on time.
See all features
Everything you need to sync inventory and track orders
Frequently asked questions
Katana’s outsourced purchase orders let you log materials sent to manufacturers. When you create an outsourced PO, you specify what materials you’re providing and what finished goods you expect back. Materials are tracked as “at manufacturer” in your multi-location inventory until finished goods are received.
Yes. Many Katana customers don’t manufacture anything themselves. Katana works as a complete inventory and order management system whether you handle production in-house, outsource everything, or use a mix of both approaches.
Katana’s batch and lot tracking works throughout your supply chain. You can trace which material batches were sent to manufacturers, log production batch information from your partners, and connect finished goods batches to their source materials—critical for food safety, cosmetics compliance, and recall readiness.
Katana supports multiple manufacturers as separate suppliers. Create outsourced purchase orders for each, track materials and finished goods independently, and see consolidated inventory across all partners and locations.
Katana tracks what you send and what comes back. For real-time status within their facility, you’d rely on updates from your manufacturing partner, which you can log in Katana to keep your records current. Consider establishing regular check-ins with your contract manufacturers.
Contract Manufacturing focuses on the business model of working with CMs and co-packers. This page focuses on the operational workflows—tracking materials, managing orders, and receiving finished goods. Both cover similar Katana features from different angles to help you find the information most relevant to your search.
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