Product Management (PM)
The Product Management programs are used to perform a variety of product setup and maintenance tasks. The Product Management system includes tools that allow you to quickly and create or update catalog and inventory records, and lookups that allow you to view historical and current item information. The Product Management applications are also used to create and maintain information related to your products. This product related information includes images, comments, customer cross reference information, and special pricing and special cost information.
Product Management Business Processes
The primary tasks or business processes that can be performed using the Product Management System include
Produt Catalog Setup and Maintenance
The Product Catalog or Catalog file defines all of the items that are available in the StreamV System. Catalog records can be automatically loaded into the system from vendor catalog information or they can be manually set up as required. Each Catalog record contains basic information about each item. This information includes how the item is handled by the inventory control, order processing, and warehouse management systems, whether or not the item is serialized, the item manufacturer, the default vendor used to purchase the item, and other information that is common to the item across all of your warehouse locations.
Inventory Item Creation
Inventory records store warehouse location specific information about each product and they determine which items exist or can be processed in a specific warehouse location. An item or product cannot be used for transaction processing in a specific warehouse until both a Catalog record and an Inventory record have been created for the item. Once a Catalog record exists for an item, the system allows you to quickly create one or more Inventory records for the item in the specific warehouse locations where it will be processed. Inventory items can be created for an item automatically as a Catalog records is saved for the first time or manually as required.
Product or Inventory Comment Management
The Product Management system allows you to create and maintain “comments” or text notes for each of your products. The comments can be used to store various types of information about each inventory item.
Freeform, Pre-defined or “standard” comments, and special purpose items comments (that are used during transaction processing or during order entry) are all supported. Some Item comments are automatically displayed by the system during transaction processing or are automatically printed on specific documents.
Customer and Vendor Specific Item Comment Management
StreamV allows you to create comments for Customer/Item combinations to store information that is relevant when a specific item is sold to a specific customer. If present, the system automatically makes this comment information available when you are processing a sales order for the company and item number that the comment is created for. The System also supports Vendor/Item Comments that are automatically displayed by the Purchasing System during Purchase Order Entry.
Maintaining Customer and Vendor Cross Reference Information
Cross Reference records allow you to locate and place orders for items using your customer or vendor’s part numbers instead of your in-house part numbers.
Keyword Management, Keyword Search Management
The Product Management system contains a powerfull keyword search option that can be used during Sales Order Entry and Point of Sale processing. The Keyword Search system allows you search for items using specific keywords in addition to using information such as the item number, description, vendor or product line stored in the Catalog record.
The keywords to be used for each item can be contained in specific fields in each Catalog record, or in comments that are attached to the catalog record, or in a control record that can be used to add additional keywords for a specific item. The system uses the Catalog fields and the other information to build a “keyword” table and this table allows you to search for, display and select from all of the items containing the keyword. The Product Management System includes a program that can be used to define the fields and other information to be used by the Keyword Search system, and to rebuild the Keyword and Wordlist files that are used by the system to store keyword information.
Normalizing Product Information
Defining the information that is copied from the Catalog to Inventory when Inventory Items are created from Catalog records. Once a Catalog record has been created, you may create Inventory or warehouse records for the item in each of the locations in which the item will be processed. As Inventory Items are created from Catalog information, the Catalog information is copied to the inventory record, and then inventory default information is loaded into the new item. As existing Catalog records are modified, the system uses the information in a control file to determine the fields which are copied or “normalized” from the Catalog record for the item to the new Inventory record for the item. This control file can be modified as required.
Processsing Item Number Changes
The Item Number Change Submission and Processor programs allow you to change an existing item number to a new item number. Any historical or transaction activity for the item is updated with the new item number.
More:
Product Management Operations Programs
Product Management Lookup Programs
Product Management Report Programs
Product Management Maintenance/Utility
Programs
Product Management End of Period Procedures