What are dispatch templates in tspoonlab, what are they for, and how do you create them?
A dispatch template in tspoonlab is a preconfigured structure that stores a list of products and recipes you dispatch regularly. These templates speed up managing your stores, removing the need to load the same products and recipes manually every time you run identical or cyclical services.
This feature is aimed especially at hotels with repetitive buffets, catering companies with fixed menus, and storeroom managers who dispatch identical goods periodically to internal departments.
How to create a new dispatch template
To set up an dispatch template in tspoonlab, follow this sequence:
Go to the top-right corner of the screen and click the "Options" menu (in the black top bar, next to your user name). In the three-dot dropdown menu, select "Dispatches".
In the panel that opens, find the search bar on the left side. Right next to the dispatch search box, click the three-dot dropdown menu to open the options and select "New dispatch template".
The system opens a pop-up window. Enter a descriptive name that identifies the recurring type of service (for example: "Breakfast Buffet") and click "Ok".
Inside the record of the dispatch template you created, go to the "Products"section and click "Edit products".
Enter the products or recipes and the recurring quantities that will leave the store one by one. You can separate them into groups such as "Products" and "Recipes". Click "Accept".
How to generate a dispatch from a dispatch template
When you need to make the physical stock-out for an event using an existing dispatch template, follow these steps:
Open the "Options" menu (top-right corner) and select the "Dispatch" section.
In the left sidebar, locate the dispatch template you want to use in the list and click it to open its record.
Inside the template record, click the "Generate dispatch from template"button.
The system opens a pop-up window where you must enter the dispatch information:
Dispatch name: choose a name that matches the event the dispatch belongs to.
Date: select the event date.
Number of guests (Pax): enter the number of guests. The system performs two operations: before the event, it multiplies the base recipe's ingredients by the number of guests to calculate the stock that must leave the kitchen; at the end of service, it divides the total raw-material cost by the number of guests to report the real cost per person.
Click "Ok".
The outbound dispatch is created in "Pending" status.
📌 Note: Follow the step-by-step in the article "Generate dispatches 🚚"to learn how to start a dispatch in "Pending" status.
How to convert an existing dispatch into a reusable template
If you ran an event manually and want to save that same combination of products and recipes as a reusable template, tspoonlab lets you convert a dispatch into a template in a single click:
Go to the "Options" menu and select "Dispatches".
In the dispatch list on the left, find and open the specific outbound dispatch you want to keep as a model.
In the top-right corner of that dispatch record, find and click the three-dot menu. Select "Convert dispatch to template".
The system instantly clones the entire product structure and stores it permanently in your template library under the original name.
💡 Tip: If the dispatch you converted into a template has a date in its name, you can change it from the three-dot menu inside the template record by selecting "Edit template".
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