Chemical Distribution Software: Lots, CoA and Credit

Short answer: Chemical and polymer distribution needs every lot linked to its certificate of analysis, every hazardous substance to its own storage zone, every foreign-currency contract to an exchange rate, and every customer to a credit limit. An ERP such as Odoo runs these four controls in one database and, when a complaint comes in, shows within minutes which lot went to which customer.

Chemical raw materials trading is not ordinary wholesale: customers buy the product, but also its quality certificate, its lot number and a reliable supply. Polyethylene, polypropylene, PVC, inputs for paint and plastics makers and laboratory reagents are usually bought in foreign currency, sold in soums and shipped on credit. The market is active. According to Uzbekistan's Statistics Agency, the country exported 174.1 thousand tons of polyethylene worth $141.1 million to 15 countries in January–August 2024 (stat.uz, 2024). Globally, BCG expects third-party chemical distribution to reach €465 billion by 2030 (BCG, 2025). This article looks at chemical distribution software and raw materials accounting through four lenses: lots, certificates, currency and credit.

What are the main risks in chemical distribution?

Chemical distribution means supplying manufacturers with materials whose quality varies from lot to lot and which can be hazardous. What we see most often in projects:

Lot numbers are not recorded, so when a customer complains about quality nobody can tell which bags came from which lot.
The certificate of analysis (CoA) sits in a folder or an inbox and is never attached to the sales document.
Hazardous materials are stored next to ordinary goods, and expired reagents are not caught in time.
Purchases are in dollars, sales in soums; when the rate moves, the price list is updated late and the margin disappears.
A large manufacturer gets open-ended credit, and the debt builds up for months.

How should lots and certificates of analysis be tracked?

Lot tracking means giving each incoming batch a unique number and following it from the warehouse to the customer. For chemicals this is not paperwork but a necessity: melt flow index, density or moisture of a polymer vary between lots, and the customer's production line is tuned to them.

In Odoo, lots and certificates work as follows:

Lot tracking is enabled on the product, and the supplier's lot number is entered at receipt.
The CoA is attached to the lot as a PDF and sent to the customer with the sales documents.
Reagents with a shelf life get an expiry date, and the system proposes the lot that expires first (FEFO).
A quality check step is added at receipt: until the lab approves it, the lot cannot be sold.
When a complaint arrives, the lot traceability report shows which customers received that lot, when and how much.

You can also supply one customer from a single lot: for a large manufacturer the lot is reserved in advance.

How can a system control hazardous materials storage?

Handling chemicals is also a safety issue. The International Labour Organization reports that more than 1 billion workers are exposed to hazardous substances every year (ILO, 2021). An ERP does not replace safety rules, but it builds them into daily work:

The warehouse is split into zones: flammable, corrosive, oxidizing and general goods.
Putaway rules send each product to the right zone automatically based on its category.
The safety data sheet (SDS) is attached to the product, and the storekeeper opens it with one click.
Lots close to expiry trigger automatic reminders, and disposal is recorded with its own document.

We cover warehouse processes in more detail in Odoo Inventory: digitizing the warehouse.

How do you manage currency contracts and exchange differences?

An exchange difference is the gain or loss caused by the rate changing between the purchase date and the payment date. Chemical raw materials are usually imported in dollars or euros and sold to local customers in soums or "at the dollar equivalent".

Multi-currency accounting in Odoo works like this:

Purchase orders and vendor bills are kept in the contract currency, and exchange rates are updated daily (automatically or manually).
The price list is held in dollars, and the soum price is calculated at the rate on the day of sale.
When payment arrives, the system calculates the exchange difference and posts a separate journal entry.
The margin on each order is visible in both soums and the foreign currency.

Small price differences hit profit hard. McKinsey calculated that for the average S&P 1500 company, a 1% price increase with stable volumes lifts operating profit by 8% (McKinsey, 2003). For example, if a distributor sells a $100,000 lot in soums on 30-day terms and the rate moves 2% in that time, the unexpected difference is $2,000 (an illustrative calculation; the amount and rate change are assumptions). For the accounting side, see the Odoo Accounting app.

How should you set credit limits for manufacturers?

A chemical distributor's customers are usually manufacturers: they take the material, produce, sell and only then pay. So 30–60 day terms are normal. Atradius's 2024 US survey found that half of all B2B invoices are overdue and bad debts average 8% of B2B credit sales (Atradius, 2024).

Credit control in Odoo:

Each customer gets a credit limit and payment terms (for example, 50% upfront and 50% in 30 days).
Once the limit is exceeded, new orders do not ship without finance approval.
Receivables are shown by age (0–30, 31–60, 60+ days) and by currency.
Overdue accounts get automatic reminders and account statements.

What changes after automation: in numbers

Market opportunity: third-party chemical distribution could reach €465 billion by 2030, and 71% of chemical producers expect to increase outsourcing to distributors (BCG, 2025); that demand goes to distributors with reliable lot and certificate records.
Price discipline: a price list updated with the exchange rate protects margin; a 1% price improvement adds 8% to operating profit on average (McKinsey, 2003).
Receivables: where half of invoices are overdue, credit limits reduce the risk of bad debt (8% of credit sales on average) (Atradius, 2024).
Safety: more than 1 billion workers are exposed to hazardous substances each year; zoned storage and quick SDS access lower the risk (ILO, 2021).
Overall return: ERP returns $7.23 for every dollar spent on average (Nucleus Research, 2014).

How does Deep Vision approach this?

Deep Vision is an official Odoo Gold Partner based in Tashkent. Odoo's partner page lists 7 certified experts on our team and 24 client references, mostly in wholesale, retail and manufacturing, with 89% customer retention; our largest client has more than 100 users.

In our experience with this kind of business, a rollout for raw materials distributors usually runs like this:

Product catalog: lot tracking, expiry dates, certificates and safety data sheets.
Warehouse zones and putaway rules.
Multi-currency purchasing, price lists and exchange difference accounting.
Credit limits and receivables reports.
E-invoices through our ready-made Didox module.

Standard Sales and Inventory often go live in 6–8 weeks; a full project usually takes 2–6 months. The Deep Vision team translated Odoo into Uzbek, so storekeepers and lab staff can work in their own language. For the general wholesale approach, see Odoo ERP for wholesale; for your customers' side, see Odoo ERP for manufacturers.

If you want us to look at your processes, fill in a short brief or read about our Odoo implementation service.

Frequently asked questions

What software suits chemical and polymer distribution?

An ERP that keeps lots, expiry dates, certificates, multiple currencies and credit limits in one database. Odoo covers this with its Inventory, Sales, Purchase and Accounting apps.

Can a certificate of analysis be attached to a lot?

Yes. The certificate file is attached to the lot or the receipt and sent to the customer at sale.

How is margin calculated if we buy in dollars and sell in soums?

The system records purchases in the foreign currency and sales in soums, and shows the margin on each order including the exchange difference.

How do we separate hazardous materials from ordinary goods?

Split the warehouse into zones and set putaway rules by product category; the system routes goods to the right zone.

How long does implementation take?

Standard Sales and Inventory often go live in 6–8 weeks; a full project usually takes 2–6 months.

Sources

To bring order to your raw materials trading, leave a brief or call +998 77 093 00 07.

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