| LAN | Local Area Network, a typically IP-based network of machines capable of digital communication within an enclosed area such as an office, a home, or a small workgroup of computers. LAN also refers to the private portion of a network inside of a firewall, which may connect a LAN to the Internet, a WAN, or another LAN. LANs are further broken down into wired and wireless LANs. Wired LANs use Ethernet cabling to connect network devices via network equipment, such as hubs, switches, and routers. Wireless LANs (802.11X) use radio frequencies to connect wireless network devices to wired LANs or other wireless devices via a Wireless Access Point (WAP). |
| Last Count Date | Date maintained in the inventory control system database that records the last date that the item/location combination was on an approved count sheet. Last count date is used in combination with the cycle count period to calculate the next count date. |
| Lead Time | Amount of time required for an item to be available for use from the time it is ordered. Lead time should include purchase order processing time, vendor processing time, in transit time, receiving, inspection, and any prepack times.
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| Lead Time Demand | Forecasted demand during the lead time period. For example, if your forecasted demand is 3 units per day and your lead time is 12 days your lead time demand would be 36 units. |
| Lean Manufacturing | Alternate term used to describe the philosophies and techniques associated with Just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing. |
| Legacy System | Implies a computer or information system that is old or outdated. Often used to describe home-grown (custom built) mainframe systems, however, software companies will use the term legacy system to define any external system that is not based on the current version of a software package. |
| Less than Truck Load | A shipment that is less than a standard full trailer load. Certain freight carriers specialize in LTL shipments, which require more logistics management than full truckloads, since many pickups and deliveries must be scheduled for the same truck. |
| License Plate | A document, tag, or label used to identify a unitized load.
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| LIFO | In inventory control and financial accounting, this refers to the practice of using stock from inventory on the basis of what was received last and is consumed first, i.e. last-in-first-out. |
| Line Item | A single detail record. The term line item is most commonly used to describe the detail (each line that reflects an item and a quantity) on sales orders or purchase orders.
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| Location Sequencing | Used with a Warehouse Management System (WMS); allows for efficient order picking and put away. Locations are associated with a sequence number, which directs the user, with a portable terminal, to a predefined location when picking and/or putting away order items. This reduces the travel time when putting away and picking orders. |
| Lot Number | Number assigned to a discrete batch of an item. Lot numbers are usually assigned to each separate production run of an item. |
| Lot Tracking | The process of tracking inventory by lot number through manufacturing and distribution processes. |
