Multiple Units of Measure (MUOM) allows you to purchase products in one unit (such as pallets or cases) while tracking inventory in a different unit (such as individual bottles or grams). Unleashed automatically converts quantities between these units at the point of purchase, simplifying your purchasing process and inventory management.
Benefits of Multiple Units of Measure
Streamlined product management: Maintain fewer product records by consolidating variations into one product with multiple units.
Automatic conversion: Purchase in bulk units and let the system convert to sellable quantities without manual calculations.
Accurate reordering: Low stock alerts trigger based on actual inventory levels in your base unit, making reordering more efficient.
Flexible purchasing: Buy from suppliers in their preferred units while maintaining consistent inventory tracking.
Key Concepts
Base Unit of Measure
The base unit is how your stock is tracked and accounted for throughout Unleashed. We recommend using your smallest unit of stock as the base unit.
Important notes:
All inventory levels are displayed in the base unit.
Once assigned, the base unit cannot be changed if a transaction exists for the product.
Alternate Units of Measure
Alternate units are used only for purchasing. When you receive a Purchase Order, quantities automatically convert to your base unit.
📌 Note: Alternate units are NOT available for Sales Orders, Assemblies, or Stock Adjustments.
Conversion Rate
The conversion rate defines the relationship between units. Think of it as:
1 alternate unit = base unit × conversion rate
Examples:
1 case = 24 bottles (conversion rate: 24)
1 kilogram = 1,000 grams (conversion rate: 1000)
1 pound = 453.592 grams (conversion rate: 453.592)
Tutorial Video
Working with Multiple Units of Measure
Multiple Units of Measure for existing products
Set up Multiple Units of Measure
Step 1: Create Units of Measure
Before you can assign base and purchasing Units of Measure (UOM) to your products, you need to create them in your system settings:
From the main menu, go to Settings > System > Units of Measure.
Enter a unique Unit of Measure Name, e.g. Bottle, Case, Pallet.
Click Add.
Important: The name of a UOM cannot be edited once created, so choose your naming convention carefully before adding units.
Step 2: Set the base unit on your product
Open your product record and go to the Details tab.
Scroll to the Units of Measure section.
Click "Add New".
In the "Add Base Unit of Measure" window, select your base unit from the dropdown menu, e.g. Bottle.
The first UOM added to a product automatically becomes the base unit with a conversion rate of 1, and will be available for use in purchasing.
Optional: Provide a Barcode Number, Pack Size, and dimensions of the base unit.
Click "Add".
🤓 Tip: If an existing product has dimensions but no base unit, you'll see a blank Unit of Measure dropdown field under your product's description. Once you assign a base unit, the Units of Measure section will appear at the bottom of the Details tab.
Step 3: Add alternate purchasing units
In the Units of Measure section of a product's Details tab, click Add New.
In the "Add Unit of Measure" window, select your UOM from the dropdown menu, e.g. Case.
Enter the "Conversion Rate", e.g., 24 if one Case contains 24 Bottles.
Tick the "Purchasing" checkbox to make this unit available on Purchase Orders.
Optional: Provide a Barcode Number, Pack Size, and dimensions of the base unit.
Click "Add".
Repeat for any additional purchasing units, e.g. Pallets.
Step 4: Configure Supplier pricing
Navigate to the Purchase tab of your product:
Suppliers Tab: Set the default purchasing unit for each supplier
If existing supplier pricing shows the base unit, delete and re-add with the correct alternate unit.
Each supplier can only be added once here.
Quantity Prices Tab: Add volume-based pricing for different units
Useful when suppliers offer discounts for larger quantities or different units.
Example: Different pricing for cases vs. pallets.
Manage Units of Measure
The Barcode Number, Pack Size, and dimensions (weight, width, height, depth) set on a product's UOM can be changed at any time by clicking on the unit in the product's Unit of Measure section, updating the appropriate fields and clicking "Save".
When the weight, width, height, or depth of a UOM is zero or undefined, leave the dimension field empty. If the field is saved with a zero value, an error will be returned and the update will not be saved.
If an alternate unit of measure has not been used in a transaction and is not saved as a default purchasing unit in the product's Details and Purchase tabs, it can be deleted. Click on the UOM and select "Delete" when available.
Important: Update dimensions carefully; changes won't retroactively update existing open orders. Delete and re-add product lines on orders to apply new dimensions.
Importing Alternate Units
Use the Alternate Units of Measure template in Products > Import/Export to bulk update and import MUOMs.
Requirements before importing:
Products must exist with base units already assigned.
All alternate units must exist in System Settings > Units of Measure.
Include conversion rates in your import file.
Consolidate existing products
Before Multiple Units of Measure, if you purchased water bottles in different pack sizes from different suppliers, you might have created separate product records like:
WATER - Individual bottles (sold to customers)
WATER6P - 6-packs (purchased from Supplier A)
WATER24P - Cases of 24 (purchased from Supplier B)
All three are actually the same product, just different packaging, which can cause several headaches:
Multiple SKUs to manage.
Complicated reorder reports, which product do you reorder?
Inventory is scattered across multiple records.
Risk of overselling if you don't check all related products.
With Multiple Units of Measure, you can collapse these products into one product record:
WATER (the main product):
Base Unit: BOTTLE
Alternate Unit: 6-PACK (conversion rate: 6)
Alternate Unit: CASE (conversion rate: 24)
Now all your inventory lives in one place, tracked as BOTTLES, but you can still purchase in 6-packs or cases.
Consolidation process
Identify related products that are essentially the same product in different pack sizes.
Configure your main product (WATER) with:
The base unit (BOTTLE).
All alternate units with correct conversion rates (6-PACK = 6, CASE = 24).
Supplier pricing for each unit.
Transfer stock using Stock Adjustments, taking stock out of the old products to add to the main product:
Calculate equivalent base units (5 six-packs = 30 bottles).
Increase main product (WATER) by 30 BOTTLES.
Decrease old product (WATER6P) by 5 units.
Complete the Stock Adjustment.
In the old product's record, save it as obsolete.
Using Multiple Units of Measure
Step 1: Create a Purchase Order
Create a new Purchase Order and select your supplier.
In the Order Lines tab, search and select the product to be added.
The product's default purchasing unit (set in the product's Purchase Supplier tab) will auto-populate in the order line's "Purchasing Unit" field.
Change the unit via the dropdown if purchasing in a different unit.
Enter the order quantity in the selected purchasing unit.
Step 2: Receipt the Purchase Order
The "Unit" field in the Purchase Order's Receipt page will denote the quantity's "Purchasing Unit".
When the Purchase Order confirms receipt, the quantity is converted from the purchasing unit to the base unit, and the Stock On Hand increases by the converted base unit quantity.
Example: Receipt 1 CASE of water (conversion rate: 24)
Purchase Order shows: 1 CASE
Stock increases by: 24 BOTTLES
Serialized or Batched Products
Products with serial numbers or batch tracking are always receipted in the base unit:
Serial numbers: If you purchase 1 container = 20 tables, you'll add 20 serial numbers during receipting.
Batch numbers: If you purchase 1 carton = 100 tubes, you'll add batch details for 100 tubes.
Document Templates
When you create a Purchase Order with Multiple Units of Measure, there are now two relevant quantities and UOMs to consider, which you may want to include on your purchasing documents:
Purchasing Unit's Order Quantity
Base Unit of Measure Quantity
To include these values on your custom templates:
Navigate to Settings > Doc Designer and select either:
Purchase Order
Supplier Return
Labels
Select the template's LinesGrid component.
In the Headers field, mark the required headers visible:
OrderQuantity
UnitOfMeasure
BaseUnitOrderQuantity
BaseUnitOfMeasure.
Publish the template.
Reporting with Multiple Units of Measure
Most reports display quantities in the base unit since this reflects actual inventory levels. However, viewing purchasing unit information provides valuable insights for procurement planning and supplier management.
Purchase Reports
Viewing both base units and purchasing units gives you a complete picture of your procurement activity. While base units show inventory impact, purchasing units reveal your actual ordering behavior.
To view individual product purchasing unit information:
Open the Purchase Enquiry.
Click "Show Toolbar" above the report grid.
Drag "Purchasing Unit of Measure" and "Purchase Order Quantity" columns from Hidden Columns.
Save your layout.
Reorder Report
The Reorder Report uses base units because stock levels are tracked in these units. Understanding how base units interact with purchasing units helps you optimize inventory replenishment.
How it works:
In your product records, set minimum and maximum quantities in base units (e.g., 5,000 BOTTLES)
The Reorder Report calculates suggested replenishment in base units (e.g., 1,490 BOTTLES), using the product's min/max stock levels.
When generating a Purchase Order from the Reorder Report, the system converts the base unit replanishment to the supplier's default purchasing unit and quantity.
Example: Reorder suggests 1,490 BOTTLES
Default purchasing unit is CASE (24 bottles)
Generated PO shows: 62.0833 CASES (1,490 ÷ 24)
Edit to whole number before placing order: 62 CASES
Tips for effective reporting
Set your pack size to match your purchasing unit increment to ensure reorder quantities round appropriately.
Save custom report layouts for different purposes (supplier meetings, budget reviews, operational planning).
Schedule regular report reviews to identify patterns and opportunities for procurement optimization.
Cross-reference purchase reports with inventory turnover to ensure purchasing units align with consumption rates.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the most appropriate unit for base unit?
It is generally recommended that you use your smallest increment of product as a base unit. When you purchase in bulk, prices and quantities are more easily multiplied on purchase orders and during receipting.For example, if you use grams of salt in an assembly but purchase in kilograms, then your base unit should be grams, your purchasing unit kilograms, and the conversion rate x1000.
When are you supposed to use alternate units?
Alternate units are a great way to simplify your documents for purchasing.
You don’t have to use alternate units, but they make buying in bulk, or
buying in imperial or metric units less of a hassle.
For example, if you purchase chemicals in pounds, but store and use them by the kilogram,
then you can set up ‘pounds’ as an alternate unit. Your purchase orders will be completed in
pounds for that product, but it’s stock on hand will be adjusted in the correct quantities of
kilograms.
NOTE: Alternate Units of Measure are not available to use on Sales Orders.
How does the conversion rate work?
The conversion rate is the multiplier used to calculate your alternate unit. Think of it as: “1 alternate unit is the base unit multiplied by the conversion rate”
For example,
1 case = bottle x 12
1 gram = kilogram x 0.001
How do cloned products work in terms of multiple units of measure?
Cloning a product works as per usual, cloning all details of the product, including any units of measure.
How do I change a product's base unit of measure?
Change the product's Default Purchasing Unit to a Unit of Measure that is not being removed or edited (in the Purchase tab of a product's record).
Change the Unit of Measure allocated as a default for a specific Supplier for the product (in the Suppliers tab, in the Purchase tab of a product's record).
Change the Unit of Measure allocated as a default for a specific Supplier Quantity Price for the product (in the Quantity Prices tab, in the Purchase tab of a product's record).
Delete the product from any open (Parked or Placed) Purchase Orders.
Why can’t I change my base unit?
If any of the following are true, you cannot change the base unit of a product:
If the base unit is the default purchasing unit (you can undo this).
If the base unit has been set as a default purchasing unit on a product supplier record (you can undo this).
If the base unit has been set as a purchasing unit on a supplier quantity pricing record (you can undo this).
If the product is included on a Purchase Order (PO), including deleted PO's (you cannot undo this).
If the base unit is otherwise used in a manner in which the base unit is referenced i.e. If it ever became possible to select a unit within a Sales Order, it would lock the unit as soon as a reference is made.
Why can’t I change the Unit I created in Settings?
Once the unit is assigned to a product or used on a transaction, you cannot edit the unit nomenclature in Settings, as it would retro-actively apply the change to all historic
transactions.
What units are being displayed on the reports?
For most reports, Unleashed will report quantities, costs, and values against the base unit.
Some reports have been updated to specifically include quantities and values against the
purchased unit, but these columns must be added in via the toolbar hidden columns option.
How do purchase units interact on the reorder report?
The reorder report shows suggested replenishment stock in base unit, but will
generate the purchase order in your default or supplier purchasing unit (if specified)Units won’t round to the highest whole number of the purchasing unit
You can set an ‘alert’ via the pack size so that you can update your purchase orders
to the nearest whole numberDouble check the purchase order quantity before placing!
How do alternate units and pack sizes interact?
Set your pack size to ‘1’ or another whole number for your alternate units to guarantee that
the reorder report rounds up to the nearest whole number.
How does minimum order quantity work with alternate units?
Provided you have set up minimum order quantities for the appropriate unit of measure,
they will work as they did before.
What if I don’t want to use Multiple Units of Measure on a product or any of my products?
This is an optional feature that you can ignore or use depending on your business.
Why don’t I see the ‘Units of Measure’ section on my Product Details tab?
If you have a product with dimensions but no Base Unit of Measure, the original Unit of Measure dropdown and Dimensions section will be shown on the Product Details tab. Once you select a Base Unit for your product, the new Units of Measure section will show and the dimensions will be applied against the Base Unit of Measure.
Why don't my totals match on some Purchase Orders?
Using this example to illustrate why this can occur:
This purchase order is for pencils that are purchased in packs of 10 at 0.3695 per pack and sold as single units.
The Units of Measure are therefore set up as:
This order is for 20,000 packs of pencils:
The sub total and total for the purchase order is calculated using the purchasing unit "Pack":
> 20,000 x 0.3695 = 7390.00
The base currency (NZD) values are calculated in the base unit "EA" and used to calculate the internal value of the stock purchased. The base unit pricing is rounded to 4 decimal places:
> base units calculate as 20,000 x 10 = 200,000 (the pack conversion rate is 10)
> base unit pricing is calculated as 0.3695 / 10 = 0.037 (0.03695 rounded to 4 decimal places)
> base currency total is therefore calculated as 200,000 x 0.037 = 7400.00 (a difference of 10.00)
Rounding issues like this can occur, especially when there are large quantities purchased with relatively small prices per unit.
The base currency values are used for the actual internal value of the SOH purchased, and in cases like the above, can differ from what you pay for that purchase if using a different unit of measure.