Automatic purchasing acts as a check on stock levels. You have to get good warehouse procedures in place first, then automatic purchasing provides feedback to close the loop on stock control
Use automatic reordering |
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There is no other option if you want your business running well, you have to use automatic purchasing. This may mean you change procedures, layout your warehouse locations and do a stocktake. What ever is required you need to do it. |
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Start with average weekly sales as your entry into automatic purchasing, it is easier to get started than min/max |
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Train your staff to use messages to understand suggested reorder quantities and to use the not reordered filter to show products that can be added to make up the minimum order quantity for suppliers | |
Use min/max reordering for key lines |
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It is easy to be a bit lazy and just use average weekly sales to calculate automatic reorder quantities for all products, don't do it. Min/max reordering should be used for some products. |
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Consumables used by the key products you sell, such as large photocopiers, must be on hand at all times. Those products should be purchased using min/max, to ensure they are in stock even if they are not selling regularly |
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Start by identifying your key products by product category |
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Use the min/max run to automatically suggest min/max levels. Use product categories to limit the products extracted. Then apply those min/max levels |
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Drag min/max onto your purchase reorder line window and edit min/max levels live as you review each purchase run |
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Setup purchase runs sets for different suppliers, days of week and times of day |
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Automatic purchasing is controlled by run sets which save the settings used by each automatic purchase run. |
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Save a range of purchase runs to suit your purchasing requirements for each day, time of day etc. |
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Then document your purchase run procedure. So any staff member can run the purchasing process for a few days using the documented procedure if your purchasing officer is away | |
Use drop shipments, allocated purchases and regular purchases |
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Use drop shipments purchase orders that support the supplier delivering the goods directly to the customer and you invoicing the customer when you receive the invoice from the supplier |
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Use allocated purchase orders, as allocated purchases will only allocate to the sale order or service order to which they are linked. This allows you to order specifically for a particular sale |
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Use regular purchases are for normal stock. When they are received, remember to put any backorders aside, don't put stock received for back orders onto the normal shelves |
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Review parts requested by service technicians |
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Service technicians can request purchase of parts you do not stock. Ensure there is a person in the service department reviewing those requests. You can often use some other part in order to prevent too many parts building up as product lines in your parts inventory | |
Follow best purchasing practice |
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Create a product for every line you purchase if it is going to be in stock for any amount of time |
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Avoid using miscellaneous non-stock products on purchase orders. You can't track stock for non-stock lines |
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Archive products that have not been purchased or shipped for a year and have been created more than a year ago |
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