Item Setup and Maintenance

In the Stream V Product Management system, the Catalog file is used to define the inventory items that can be processed on the system.  An item must exist in the Catalog file before Inventory, QVL or Broker records can be created for it.  Once an item is set up in the Catalog file, the catalog record can be used to create inventory records in each of  the warehouses where the item will be purchased or sold.  As transactions for an item are processed, the system will also create BinLoc or Bin records automatically as needed to track the on hand quantity of each item.

Once a Product Catalog and one or more Inventory records have been created for an item, optional QVL and Broker records can also be created for the item as required.  The system does not require an item to be set up in the QVL and Broker file.  The QVL and Broker files are used to store purchasing information about specific vendor and item combinations.  If QVL or Broker information is available for an item, this information can be used during the purchasing or sales order entry process.  If no QVL or Broker information exists for a particular item, the system uses the information in the Inventory and Catalog records during item processing.

Note:  An inventory item cannot be used for transaction processing if only the catalog record for the item exists.  Sales Orders and Purchase Orders are placed out of specific warehouses.  Therefore a sales order or purchase order cannot be processed for a specific item unless the item is set up in the Inventory Master file in the warehouse location where the order is being placed.

The normal sequence for creating an inventory item that can be used for transaction processing is as follows.

1.  Verify that the appropriate information has been entered into the Table files that are used in the Catalog Manager program.  You should set up the valid Product Lines, Product Groups, Vendors and Manufacturers in your system prior to entering Catalog records.  This allows you to use this information when creating Catalog records.

2.  Set up the item in the Catalog file.  This can be done manually in the Catalog Manager program or automatically by downloading vendor catalog information into the Catalog file.  If you are manually creating an item in the Catalog Master, the system will automatically load the new record default information that has been specified for new catalog records.  You may then accept or change this default information as required, based on your security settings (your ability to access fields in the Catalog Manager program can also be restricted).

3.  Create Inventory Master records for the item in the locations in which the item will be processed.  Depending on your system configuration, the system may automatically create inventory records for each new catalog item.

4.  Inventory Master records can be created in one or more inventory locations by selecting the item in the Catalog Manager program and using the “Create Item in Inventory” option that is available in the program.  The Catalog Manager program can also be configured to automatically create inventory records in each warehouse as each new Catalog record is saved.  Inventory Master records for a Catalog item can be created in the Catalog Manager by

a)  Creating the Catalog record and saving it.

b)  Reloading the newly created item into the Catalog Manager program.

c)  Pressing the Warehouses Button.  This action will cause the system to display the Warehouse Lookup program which displays any existing Inventory records for the Catalog item (the Warehouse Lookup screen will be blank if you have not already created any inventory records for the Catalog record manually or using the automatic creation option discussed in a following section of this document).

d)  Pressing the Insert button or Insert Key in the Warehouse Lookup Program.  At this point, the system activates the Create Item in New Location program.  This program displays the Inventory or Warehouse Locations in which the selected Catalog item does not already exist.  The program also allows you to create inventory items for the catalog record by highlighting one of the displayed locations and then pressing the  Create Button to create the item in the selected warehouse location.  As the Inventory Item is created, the system normalizes the data in the Inventory record based on the information in the System Control records that are used by the Normalization process discussed earlier in this document.

5.  Optionally set up QVL records for the vendors from which you can buy the item.  The QVL file allows you to maintain inventory information (vendor pricing, item lead times and reorder point and quantity) by vendor.  The QVL file also allows you to maintain the purchase price for an item in currencies other than your local currency.  If QVL records exist for an item, the system will use the records during the purchasing process, but QVL information is not required for basic transaction processing.

6.  Optionally set up Broker records to track the specific items and quantities that are available at each vendor location.  The Broker file allows detailed information about individual vendor stock balances to be kept in the system.  This information is optional and Broker records are not required for basic transaction processing.

7.  Begin processing transactions with the new item.  Once the Catalog, Inventory and optional QVL and broker records have been set up for the item, you may begin using the item on sales and purchase orders.  As transactions for the item are processed, the system will automatically create Bin records for the item as required.

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Editing an Inventory Record