Supplier Linkage for Item Supplies
Feature code: REF::SPLNK
The Supplier Linkage feature connects the item catalog to the supplier catalog. Every sourcing record on an item — an item supply — can reference a real supplier rather than carrying a loose, hand-typed name. A supplier here is a Business Affiliate that holds the VENDOR role; the supply points at that VENDOR role, so the same affiliate can also act as a carrier or customer without those roles being confused with its supplier identity.
The linkage is bidirectional: from an item you can navigate to the supplier that sources it, and from a supplier you can see every item it supplies. The feature also ensures that this connection stays trustworthy over time — supplier names stay current, removed suppliers do not silently break or erase the supplies that depended on them, and a supplier can be created in the moment a supply is added.
Use case references: Item Supply Behaviors (REF::SPL), Business Affiliate Behaviors (REF::BA)
Related features: Item Management (REF::ITM), Reference Data overview
Supplies Reference Real Suppliers
Section titled “Supplies Reference Real Suppliers”An item supply links to a supplier by referencing that supplier’s VENDOR role, not by storing a free-typed name in isolation. When a supply is linked, the supplier name on the supply card becomes a navigable link to the supplier record, and the supplier’s profile lists the supply among the items it sources. This gives purchasing a single, authoritative supplier identity shared across every item that buys from it.
Supplies created before the supplier catalog existed remain supported as unlinked, name-only entries, so no historical sourcing data is lost when the linkage capability is introduced.
Requirements
Section titled “Requirements”| ID | Requirement |
|---|---|
REF::SPLNK::FR-0001 | An item supply shall be able to reference a supplier identified by that supplier’s VENDOR business role. |
REF::SPLNK::FR-0002 | A linked supply shall present the supplier name as a navigable link to the supplier record, and the supplier record shall list every item supply that references it. |
REF::SPLNK::FR-0003 | Supplies without a supplier reference (legacy or deliberately unlinked) shall remain valid and shall display their stored supplier name as plain text. |
Use case references: REF::SPL::0002, REF::SPL::0006, REF::BA::0002
Supplier Names Stay Correct
Section titled “Supplier Names Stay Correct”A linked supply caches the supplier’s name so the supply can always be displayed without first fetching the supplier record. When a supplier is renamed, the change propagates to the supplies (and other downstream records, such as purchase orders) that reference it, so the cached names stay consistent with the authoritative supplier record. Users never see a stale name on an active link.
Requirements
Section titled “Requirements”| ID | Requirement |
|---|---|
REF::SPLNK::FR-0004 | A linked supply shall cache the referenced supplier’s name for display. |
REF::SPLNK::FR-0005 | When a supplier is renamed, the updated name shall propagate to the item supplies that reference it so cached names remain consistent. |
Use case reference: REF::BA::0004::0002
Supplier Removal Degrades Gracefully
Section titled “Supplier Removal Degrades Gracefully”Removing a supplier — deleting the affiliate, or removing only its VENDOR role — never silently deletes the supplies that depended on it. Instead, each referencing supply is marked stale: it is kept, retains its last-known supplier details pinned to the supplier’s final state, and is flagged so it is visibly distinct from an active link. Stale supplies still resolve, so workflows that already committed to those supplier values continue to work, and the user can re-link the supply to an active supplier or leave it as a historical record.
A new supply, by contrast, may never be linked to an already-removed supplier: the supplier typeahead only offers active VENDOR-role affiliates, and any attempt to link to a removed supplier is rejected so a supply never starts in a dead state.
Requirements
Section titled “Requirements”| ID | Requirement |
|---|---|
REF::SPLNK::FR-0006 | When a supplier is removed, item supplies that reference it shall be marked stale and preserved, never deleted. |
REF::SPLNK::FR-0007 | A stale supply shall retain its last-known supplier details and continue to resolve them for display and downstream workflows. |
REF::SPLNK::FR-0008 | A new item supply shall not be linked to a supplier whose VENDOR role or affiliate has been removed. |
Use case references: REF::SPL::0007, REF::SPL::0008, REF::BA::0005::0003
Create a Supplier While Adding a Supply
Section titled “Create a Supplier While Adding a Supply”When a user is adding a supply and the supplier does not yet exist, they can create it inline — without leaving the item form or the supply dialog. The system creates the Business Affiliate, assigns it the VENDOR role, and links the new supply to it in a single workflow. This keeps the catalog clean (real supplier records rather than ad-hoc names) without forcing the user to break their flow to set up the supplier first.
Requirements
Section titled “Requirements”| ID | Requirement |
|---|---|
REF::SPLNK::FR-0009 | A user adding a supply shall be able to create a new supplier (Business Affiliate with the VENDOR role) inline and link the supply to it in one workflow. |
REF::SPLNK::FR-0010 | Inline supplier creation shall not resurrect a removed supplier; it shall always produce a new, active supplier record. |
Use case references: REF::SPL::0002::0002, REF::SPL::0005::0002, REF::BA::0003
Summary
Section titled “Summary”| Aspect | Detail |
|---|---|
| Feature code | REF::SPLNK |
| Requirements | REF::SPLNK::FR-0001 through REF::SPLNK::FR-0010 |
| Use cases | REF::SPL (Item Supply Behaviors), REF::BA (Business Affiliate Behaviors) |
| Related features | Item Management (REF::ITM) |
| Personas | David Dealsworth (Purchasing Manager), Irene Itemsworth (Inventory Manager) |
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