Module: Cold Chain Management v1.4.0
Temperature-controlled supply chain monitoring, equipment tracking, and excursion alerts for BIXCRM
Screen-by-screen guides (each tab explained)
Click a menu item below for step-by-step instructions on that Cold Chain Management screen:
- Cold Chain Dashboard
- Temperature Zones
- Equipment
- Monitoring Devices
- Temperature Readings
- Excursion Alerts
- Shipments
- Calibration Records
- Maintenance Schedules
- API Keys
- Webhooks
- Bulk Import
- Compliance Reports
- Chain of Custody
- Batch Traces
- Settings
How to use in BIXCRM (daily operations)
- Sign in to the admin area with a role that includes Cold Chain Management permissions.
- Open Cold Chain (sidebar) or search for Cold Chain Management in the admin menu.
- Start on the Dashboard (if available) to see open tasks, pending approvals, and KPIs.
- Review Settings after upgrades — new options may need defaults for your company.
- Create or import master data first; most modules block transactions until masters exist.
- Run the main business flow (create → submit → approve → post/complete) using the screens listed in Admin menu below.
- Use Reports / Analytics screens to reconcile stock, finance, compliance, or SLA metrics.
- For integrations (API, EDI, gateways, tax), confirm credentials in Settings and monitor logs or webhook delivery screens.
- Train staff with role-based access — give approvers approve permissions only, operators create/edit on their area.
- If something fails overnight, check BIXCRM cron ran and open the module log / failed queue screen if present.
Admin menu — where to work
Open the Cold Chain Management section in the admin sidebar. Screens your staff may use (depending on role):
- API Keys
- Batch Traces
- Bulk Import
- Calibration Records
- Chain of Custody
- Cold Chain
- Cold Chain Dashboard
- Compliance Reports
- Equipment
- Excursion Alerts
- IoT API & Webhooks
- IoT Bulk Import
- Maintenance Schedules
- Monitoring Devices
- Settings
- Shipments
- Temperature Readings
- Temperature Zones
- Webhooks
Detailed guide — features, workflows, API & FAQ
Phase 5 Features
- Compliance Reports — GDP/GMP audit-ready PDF temperature logs
- Chain of Custody — trace storage → transit → delivery with PDF export
- Batch/Lot Tracing — link temperature readings to manufacturing batches
- Multi-Plant Scoping — filter by active plant (Multi-Plant Management module)
- Warehouse Linking — assign equipment to warehouses and bin locations
- QMS Integration — optional auto-create NCR on excursion alerts
- REST API — expanded read endpoints for zones, equipment, alerts, shipments
- Webhooks —
calibration.dueandshipment.excursionevents
Permissions
| Feature | Capabilities |
|---|---|
| --------- | ------------- |
| Compliance Reports | view |
| Chain of Custody | view, create, edit, delete |
| Batch Traces | view, create, delete |
Database Tables (Phase 5)
ccm_chain_of_custodyccm_batch_traces
Also adds plant_id, warehouse_id, location_id to equipment; qms_ncr_id on excursion alerts.
Integrations
| Module | Integration |
|---|---|
| -------- | ------------- |
| QMS | Auto-NCR on excursion (Settings → enable) |
| Multi-Plant Management | Plant scoping on equipment/shipments |
| Inventory Management | Warehouse/location linking on equipment |
| Advanced WMS | Auto chain-of-custody on shipment completion |
Roadmap
All five planned phases are complete. See [docs/ROADMAP.md](docs/ROADMAP.md) for full history.
Features
Temperature-controlled supply chain monitoring, equipment tracking, and excursion alerts for BIXCRM
- **Compliance Reports** — GDP/GMP audit-ready PDF temperature logs
- **Chain of Custody** — trace storage → transit → delivery with PDF export
- **Batch/Lot Tracing** — link temperature readings to manufacturing batches
- **Multi-Plant Scoping** — filter by active plant (Multi-Plant Management module)
- **Warehouse Linking** — assign equipment to warehouses and bin locations
- **QMS Integration** — optional auto-create NCR on excursion alerts
- **REST API** — expanded read endpoints for zones, equipment, alerts, shipments
- **Webhooks** — `calibration.due` and `shipment.excursion` events
Permissions
Granular staff capabilities are registered on activation. Assign them under Setup → Staff → Roles for the Cold Chain Management capability group.
Typical capabilities include view, create, edit, delete, plus module-specific actions (approve, export, settings, API access).
Cron Jobs
Background tasks (if enabled) run through BIXCRM's main cron. Example crontab (every 5 minutes):
* * * * * php /path/to/bixcrm/index.php cron/index > /dev/null 2>&1
Check module settings for scheduled jobs (alerts, sync, reports, retention).
After activation — configuration checklist
- Go to Setup → Modules and activate Cold Chain Management.
- If prompted, click Upgrade Database or reload admin — migrations run automatically.
- Assign permissions under Setup → Staff → Roles.
- Open the module menu and configure settings.
- BIXCRM 3.0+
- PHP 7.4+ (8.1+ recommended)
- MySQL 5.7+ / MariaDB 10.3+ (InnoDB)
- PHP extensions: mysqli, json, mbstring, curl, fileinfo
One-time setup (first time only)
- Setup → Modules → activate Cold Chain Management.
- Setup → Staff → Roles → assign Cold Chain Management permissions (view, create, edit, delete, approve, export, settings as needed).
- Open Cold Chain Management → Settings and complete company defaults, prefixes, integrations, and notification options.
- Create master data (warehouses, products, templates, accounts, routes, etc.) before processing live transactions.
- Enable BIXCRM cron (
php /path/to/bixcrm/index.php cron/index) for sync, retries, alerts, and scheduled jobs. - Optionally enable REST API / webhooks in module settings if you integrate external systems.
BIXCRM Knowledge Base — usage guide generated from module README and documentation.