How can we automatically purge materials that are expired or expiring soon?

To automate an order to pick materials that are expired, or expiring soon, you will need:

• A Report identifying expired materials (or materials expiring within a specified time frame)
• An Order Builder integration set to automatically create pick orders based on the above report
• A Workflow that will trigger the Order Builder when the specified criteria is met for the above report (Example: Row Count is not 0)

If you don't already have a report, take a look at the templates for Material Reports. There are templates for reports on expired materials, as well as those expiring in the next 7 or 30 days. 

For more information on importing report templates see Create or Import a Report.