With any shipment you will be given two numbers, these numbers are typically in or similar to the format of: 578686-150425, the first number (578686) is the order number of the order and the second number (150425) is the shipment number (goods out note number if you use Brightpearl).
These numbers are also reference numbers, the order number (578686) is reference 2 and the shipment number (150425) is reference 1. The shipment number is unique to every shipment whereas the order number is used for the whole order, meaning the order number can be shared for different shipments.
For example, if a customer of yours purchased two TVs in the same order but the TVs were to large to send out in one shipment each TV would have their own shipment number but would share the same order number. It would look like something similar to this:
TV 1 = 123456-000001
TV 2 = 123456-000002
The order number is the same as they came from the same order but the shipment numbers are different as they are sent as separately. This is so that the carrier can keep track and make updates for each shipment.
If you have any questions or need anything cleared up, don't hesitate to contact our support desk.