Create Purchase Orders
This function enables you to create back-to-back
Purchase Orders: Purchase Orders for Items on Sales Orders. You can also run it from the 'Orders: Browse' window by highlighting some Sales Orders in that window and then selecting 'Create Purchase Orders' from the Operations menu. The function will create Purchase Orders for the Sales Orders that you highlighted.
However you run this function, the Purchase Orders it creates will be saved in an unapproved state. You can print them in a single batch, using the 'Documents' function on the File menu or the [Documents] button in the Master Control panel having first changed to the Purchase Orders module. Printing is covered in more detail here.
Usually, only Stocked Items will be ordered: Plain, Structured and Service Items will be ignored unless you specify otherwise.
Suppliers will be selected for Items as follows:
- If an Item has a corresponding record in the Purchase Item register in the Purchase Orders module with a Supplier specified and with the Default check box switched on, that Supplier will be used. Such a Purchase Item is known as a "Default Purchase Item": please refer here for details of Purchase Items.
- In all other cases, the Supplier will be the Default Supplier specified in the Purchase Order Settings setting. If you have not specified a Default Supplier, Purchase Orders will not be raised for Items that do not meet the criteria in point 1 above.
Selecting the 'Create Purchase Orders' function brings up the following dialogue box:
If the function is to consider all Sales Orders, leave the three fields blank. Otherwise, use them as described below.
- Period
- Paste Special
Reporting Periods setting, System module
- If you would like to consider only Sales Orders that fall within a certain period, enter the start and end dates of that period separated by a colon.
- Order
- Range Reporting
Numeric
- Use this field to ensure the function refers to a particular Sales Order or range of Sales Orders.
- Order Class
- Paste Special
Order Classes setting, Sales Orders module
- Use this field to ensure the function refers to Sales Orders of a particular Order Class.
- Function
- Use these radio buttons to determine how the Purchase Orders are to be produced. In each case, the Supplier used will be that in the Default Purchase Item record or the Default Supplier in the Purchase Order Settings setting.
- Per Sales Order
- Purchase Orders will be generated for each Sales Order. Thus, if you have two Sales Orders for a particular Item, two Purchase Orders will be created, each for the quantity on the corresponding Sales Order (depending on whether you use the Only With Suggestions option (below)).
- Per Supplier
- One Purchase Order will be created for each Supplier. Thus, if you have two Sales Orders for a particular Item, a single Purchase Order will be created for an aggregate quantity.
- Collected Order
- This option is as the Per Supplier option, with the exception that Sales Order Numbers are shown on the Purchase Order.
If there are any unapproved open Purchase Orders in the name of any of the Suppliers used by this function, the Per Supplier and Collected Order options will add the Items to be purchased from those Suppliers to the earliest of those Purchase Orders. New Purchase Orders will only be created if there are no appropriate existing unapproved Purchase Orders. The Per Sales Order option will always create separate new Purchase Orders for each Sales Order.
- Item Specification from Order
- Check this box if you would like the Description for each Item on the Purchase Order to be taken from the Sales Order. Otherwise, it will be taken from the Purchase Item.
- Customer's Del Address on Purchase Order
- Use this option if you would like the Customer's Name and Delivery Address to be printed on each Purchase Order. You can only use this option with the Per Sales Order or Collected Order options above.
- Only with Suggestions
- This option controls how the function will calculate Purchase Order quantities.
- Usually, the Purchase Order quantity of each Item will be the Sales Order quantity or the Minimum Order quantity in the Default Purchase Item, whichever is the greater. If there is no Minimum Order quantity in the Default Purchase Item, but there is a Normal Order quantity, then the quantity on the Purchase Order will be the Sales Order quantity or the Normal Order quantity, whichever is the greater. Current stock levels will not be taken into account.
- If you want stock levels, minimum stock levels and existing outstanding Sales and Purchase Orders to be included in the calculations, switch on this check box. The Purchase Order quantity will then be the Sales Order quantity less the stock level plus the minimum stock level after all outstanding Sales and Purchase Orders have been fulfilled, or the Minimum/Normal Order quantity in the Default Purchase Item, whichever is the greater.
- Order Comment to Purchase Order
- You can only use this option together with the Per Sales Order option above. It will copy any text of the Comment field of an Order to the Comment field of any Purchase Orders generated from that Order.
- Include Non Stocked Items
- Check this box if you want Plain, Service and Structured Items to be included in the new Purchase Orders. Suppliers will be taken from Default Purchase Items in the same way as for Stocked Items, and pricing will be determined by the Purchase Price options below.
- Purchase Orders will not be created for non-Stocked Items that do not have Default Purchase Items, unless you have specified a Default Supplier in the Purchase Order Settings setting. In this case, Purchase Orders will be created for all non-Stocked Items in the specified Sales Orders, in the name of the Default Supplier. For this reason, take care when using this option if you have specified a Default Supplier.
- Purchase Price
- Use these options to specify how the purchase price of each Item in each Purchase Order will be chosen.
- Always from Purchase Item
- If an Item has a related Default Purchase Item, the purchase price will be taken from there. Otherwise, and if you have specified a Default Supplier, the purchase price will be taken from the Cost Price field on flip C of the Sales Order (by default, this is the Cost Price of the Item plus its Extra Cost).
- Always from Item's Cost Price
- The purchase price will be the Cost Price in each Item record ('Costs' card). If this is empty, it will be the Cost Price from flip C of the Order. In this case the role of the Default Purchase Item if there is one will be to provide the Supplier but not the price.
- From Item's Cost Price or Purchase Item
- If an Item has a related Default Purchase Item, the purchase price will be taken from there. Otherwise, and if you have specified a Default Supplier, the purchase price will be taken from the Cost Price field in the Item record.
In all cases, if an Item does not have a Default Purchase Item and you not specified a Default Supplier, it will not be included in a Purchase Order.
Click [Run] to run the function. It may take a few moments, depending on the number of Purchase Orders to be created. When it has finished, you will be returned to the 'Maintenance' list window.
If the function does not create a Purchase Order when expected, one possible reason is that the Contact record for the Supplier has no Purchase Payment Terms ('Terms' card). The function will not create Purchase Orders made out to such Suppliers. A second possible reason is that the Sales Order has been Closed.
The purpose of this function is to create Purchase Orders for goods that are needed to fulfil outstanding Sales Orders ("back-to-back" Purchase Orders) only. If you need to create Purchase Orders for Items that have fallen below their minimum stock level ("stocking" Orders) as well, use the 'Create Purchase Orders' function on the Operations menu of the 'Purchase Orders: Browse' window.
Introduction to Maintenance in the Sales Orders Module
