Three dates matter for every PO receipt line:

Days Late = Rec'd Date − Required Date (positive = late). Days Early = Required Date − Rec'd Date (positive = early). A receipt with both at zero arrived exactly on the required date.

Late supplier deliveries are one of the primary causes of stockouts. When a PO arrives after its required date, P21's replenishment logic was already counting on that stock to fill orders or maintain safety stock levels.

Chronic late suppliers increase your effective lead time, which should be reflected in your safety stock calculation. If a supplier consistently runs 5 days late, your safety stock days for their items should be set 5 days higher to compensate.

Early receipts are generally positive, but they tie up cash and warehouse space sooner than planned. Suppliers who are consistently very early may also be unreliable — shipping opportunistically rather than to schedule.

In P21, navigate to Inventory › Inventory Management › Inquiry › Vendor Supplier Management, select a vendor, and open the Supplier On Time tab.

From there you can:

1. 1Filter by receipt date range, PO number, or receipt number.
2. 2Hide line detail to see only summary totals (Total Early, Total Late, Avg Days Late).
3. 3Review Expected Date Update Count — the number of times the supplier moved their promised date, indicating scheduling volatility.
4. 4Use the data to adjust lead times on the supplier's items in Item Maintenance → Replenishment tab.