Can a purchasing agent reorder inventory from Slack?

Yes. Lancaster Agentic works as a purchasing agent in Slack for companies on EBMS ERP by Koble (formerly Eagle Business Software) today: your team asks in a channel, gets the answer and an Excel workbook in the thread, and purchase orders are created in EBMS when you tell it to. For other ERPs, Lancaster Agentic works in ChatGPT or Claude, and you can book a call to talk through Slack.

How does the Slack purchasing agent work?

Your buyers ask questions in a Slack channel the way they would ask a colleague, and Lancaster Agentic replies in the thread.

Behind the scenes it reads EBMS with read-only access: sales history, stock on hand, open purchase orders, primary vendors, warehouses, vendor lead times and EBMS minimums. It works out what each item needs and replies with a short answer plus a workbook that explains every line.

What can your team ask in the channel?

Anything a buyer would ask about stock and reordering. Typical requests, shown with example data for Brightline Supply and its vendor Ironwell Tools:

• "What should we reorder from Ironwell Tools this week?"
• "What is running low in the main warehouse?"
• "Make a PO for the Ironwell items."
• "Use a 30-day lead time for Ironwell from now on."
• "Why is this item on the list?"

You can narrow a question to one vendor, warehouse, product folder or item. Rules you give it, such as safety-stock days or a vendor lead time, are saved as your company's rules and used on later runs; they are not written into your EBMS item records.

What does the answer look like?

The reply in the thread names the items that need attention, and the attached Excel workbook carries the full detail. Each row shows what is available, what is on order, the sales forecast, safety stock, lead time, the expected stockout date and the suggested quantity, with a plain sentence naming the forecast method behind it.

The workbook also lists incoming purchase orders and summarizes inventory value and overstock value, so the same file answers "what do we need" and "what do we have too much of".

Can it run a reorder on a schedule?

Yes. Employees can set up a weekly reorder or a daily stock check that posts to the channel, so the list is waiting before the day starts. A scheduled run can also save purchase orders in EBMS when the job is set up to do that.

Schedules are a Slack feature for EBMS. In ChatGPT or Claude you ask when you need an answer.

How are purchase orders saved in EBMS?

When you tell Lancaster Agentic to create the purchase order, it saves it in EBMS through the EBMS API. EBMS assigns the PO number unless you give one. Nothing goes to a vendor until someone on your team sends it.

Before saving, it checks that every line uses one of the item's units in EBMS. The purchase order lands in EBMS like any other, so your normal review and sending process stays the same.

Which ERPs work in Slack?

Slack works with EBMS today; other ERPs use the ChatGPT plugin or Claude connector.

If you run one of those ERPs and want your team working from Slack, book a call and tell us. See the purchasing agent in ChatGPT and Claude for how the other ERPs work today.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a Slack inventory bot for EBMS?

Yes. Lancaster Agentic runs in Slack for EBMS companies today. It answers reorder and stock questions in your channel, posts scheduled checks and creates purchase orders in EBMS when you tell it to.

Does it send purchase orders to vendors?

No. It creates purchase orders in EBMS when you tell it to. Nothing goes to a vendor until someone on your team sends it.

Can I get it in Slack if I use QuickBooks Online or Business Central?

Not today. Slack works with EBMS only. Business Central, NetSuite, Odoo and Acumatica work through ChatGPT or Claude, QuickBooks Online and Zoho Inventory through ChatGPT or Claude, and Xero and Shopify through ChatGPT. Book a call if Slack matters to you.

How do we set it up?

Our team sets it up with you. Book a call, and we connect it to your EBMS company and your Slack workspace.

Does it change my EBMS reorder settings?

No. It reads EBMS and creates purchase orders when you tell it to. Safety stock and lead-time rules you give it are stored as your company's rules, not written into EBMS item records.