Accessing the Vendor Catalog from a Proposal or Sales Order

A complete list of available products from multiple vendors can be conveniently accessed from a proposal or sales order even if these items do not exist within the main EBMS inventory file.  Unlike many inventory and order entry software, It is not recommended that the vendor product list be inserted into the EBMS inventory item database before they are purchased or sold. A inventory catalog within EBMS can be unduly massive if the user imports all parts numbers from a vendor's catalog. A user normally handles a very small percentage of the items handled by the distributor. The EBMS software gives the user access to all of the vendor's parts without including them in the main inventory catalog.    This feature allows a user to quote using any of the various vendor's catalogs that are attached to EBMS.   Complete the following steps to quote items that do not exist in the EBMS product catalog:

  1. Create a quote or proposal:   Review [Sales] Proposals > Creating a Proposal for instructions in creating a quote within EBMS.

  2. Add items on the quote that do not exist in the product catalog:  The following values can be entered into the Product column to access a specific item within the vendor catalog.   The Inventory > Options > Vendor Catalog > Properties > Links > Search Catalog when entering a product ID or UPC option must be enabled for each vendor catalog that should be included in the search.

    1. Product ID:  The Product is the main ID used to identify the product.  

    2. MFG:  The manufacture part number can be used to search product within the EBMS lookup and accessing vendor catalog parts based on the associated Vendor Catalog Expression within the Inventory > Options > Vendor Catalog > Properties > Links settings.

    3. UPC:  The UPC code or other barcode can also be used to search product in EBMS and the vendor catalog.
      Review Creating Inventory Items from a Vendor Catalog for details on accessing product information and pricing from multiple vendor catalogs.

Special order items can also be conveniently sold using EBMS even if the items are not listed in the product catalog. Create a sales order with special order item quickly.    The following steps can be completed while the customer is placing the order.

  1. Create new inventory items within the product catalog:  Review Creating Inventory Items from a Vendor Catalog to create item that contains descriptions and details.

  2. Calculate pricing in real time by entering default pricing:   Review Pricing > Default Pricing and Price Levels for configuration steps that calculates pricing based on price levels and margin targets.   

  3. Enter special order sales order:  Review [Inventory] Purchasing > Special Orders > Overview for instructions to record the special order within a sales order and purchase the product from a vendor.