Event-Based TraceabilityObserve Events

Observe Events

Wholechain uses observe events to record observations about an item instance and, where supported, to adjust the recorded quantity of that instance.…

Start with Understanding Event-Based Traceability in Wholechain for shared concepts. To perform this event in the application, see Observe.

What an observe event represents

Wholechain uses observe events to record observations about an item instance and, where supported, to adjust the recorded quantity of that instance. An observe event records something you noticed or measured. It doesn't move the item, change what it is, or end its life. It does not change the Lot number: Observe is not used to change a Lot number to change a quantity.

When and why to use it

Use observe for:

  • Quantity shrink or swell. The amount on hand is slightly different from what is recorded, for example because of moisture loss, trimming loss, or weighing differences. This includes re-weighing Lots as they are received and stock taking.
  • Measurements, such as temperature at a point in time.
  • Recording new information about an instance without necessarily changing its identity.

Observe, transform, or decommission?

SituationUse
1,000 kg recorded, 994 kg weighed after drying. The product is the same.Observe (quantity adjustment)
Cold-room reading of 2 °C at 08:00.Observe (measurement)
Whole fish filleted into fillets and trim.Transform
You need a new lot number for the same goods.Transform
A case was dropped and destroyed.Decommission
The goods left for a customer.Ship

The test: did the product change into something else, leave, or end? If yes, another event fits better. If it's the same product, still here, and you're recording information about it, observe is the match.

What it does to traceability history

An observe event adds a dated note about the instance to its history, optionally with a quantity change. The instance stays the same instance. Its identifier doesn't change, and it stays where it was.

In Wholechain, the Business Step of an observe event defaults to Packing (CBV). You can change the Business Step to reflect why you are really using Observe, such as Stock Taking or Temperature.

Required information and master-data prerequisites

CategoryFor observe
LocationWhere the observation was made.
ItemThe product observed.
QuantityIf adjusting: the adjusted amount, in the item's configured unit of measure.
Lot or serial identifierThe specific instance observed.
Event date and timeWhen the observation was made.

A measurement such as temperature is the observation itself. What other fields you can capture depends on how your account is set up.

The item and its unit of measure come from Trade Items. Your Location comes from Locations.

Relationship to inventory, lots or serials, and other events

  • Inventory. A quantity-adjusting observe event changes the recorded quantity of the instance. A pure measurement doesn't.
  • Lots or serials. The instance and its identifier are unchanged. You can observe all or part of a lot.
  • Containers. You can record an observe event on aggregated contents without disaggregating first.
  • Other events. Observe can happen at any point between commission or receive and the end of the instance's life.

Examples

Quantity adjustment. Northline Processing has 1,000 kg of lot SAL-0412 recorded. After the fish are held overnight, a reweigh shows 994 kg. Northline records an observe event adjusting the quantity to 994 kg. The lot, item, and Location are unchanged.

Temperature recording. Metro Fresh checks the cold room holding fillet lot FIL-0412-A and measures 2 °C. It records an observe event with that reading. Nothing about the product's identity or quantity changes.

Many businesses never use observe. It's one option for recording information you actually collect.

Common misunderstandings

  • "Observe can fix any mistake." It's meant for real observations and small real-world differences. Correcting a lot number is a transform. Removing destroyed product is a decommission.
  • "There's no percentage limit, so any number is fine." See below.
  • "Observe is how I record a sale." A sale to another business is a ship. End-of-lifecycle recording is decommission.

Relevant restrictions

Wholechain has no built-in percentage limit on how much a quantity can shrink or swell through an observe event. That isn't permission to enter any value. Quantities must still be valid: not negative, not implausible, and consistent with the item's unit of measure. Other validation may apply. Your own policies and any customer or regulatory requirements still apply. A large unexplained change is a signal to check whether another event type, such as transform or decommission, is the accurate record.

Observe is recorded at your own Location. If a Trade Partner is Wholechain connected, your account can't record observations at that partner's Locations. See connected trade partners.

Notes on standards and regulations

  • GDST (Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability) and FSMA 204 (the U.S. FDA Food Traceability Rule): If you record observations for either, see GDST and Wholechain and FSMA 204 and Wholechain for what they ask you to record.

An observe event doesn't by itself satisfy a standard or regulation.

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