The Purchase Ordering System

The Purchase Ordering System has three modules:

• Purchase Orders: Create a Purchase Order and record the receipt of goods or services against it fully or partially. 
• Deliveries: Full or partially delivered orders appear here where they can be invoiced. These can form the basis of accruals.
• Item Invoices: Once a Purchase Order has been invoiced, it will appear in the Invoice listing grid for further processing.

The Purchase Ordering System is also integrated with:

• Product and Service Type Items‍
• New Workflow Approval

Prerequisites to using Purchase Ordering

Ensure the following are set up correctly:

• Supplier Master Record‍ 
• Product and Service Type Items‍ 
• Code tables including General Ledger Codes, Taxes, and Currencies‍ 

Purchase Ordering and Security

Using Purchase Ordering offers a further level of security to your purchasing process. Note the following:

• If desired, process low-value Items such as stationery or refreshments using Batch Invoicing‍, which does not require a preceding Purchase Order. However, for the greatest security, remove the Batch Invoicing option as a menu option‍, or severely restrict its usage. This means that all purchases will need to have Purchase Item Invoices, giving the option of using a preceding Purchase Order.
• Enforce Order Entry against most Suppliers. In the Account Settings tab of the Supplier record, check Order Required. This means that once orders are received, they can be invoiced automatically without having to re-enter data. Only authorised personnel should have access to Supplier Master Records.
• Use Workflow Approval, either for Purchase Orders, or for both Purchase Orders and the resulting Purchase Invoice.

See:

Purchase Orders Overview (17.0) - AIQ Academy

Purchase Order Entry - Pre-requisites (17.1) - AIQ Academy

Purchase Order Entry (17.2) - AIQ Academy

Purchase Deliveries (17.3) - AIQ Academy

Purchase Orders /Delivery Queries (17.4) - AIQ Academy 

 

New Workflow Approval - New Look UI‍ 

Creating Batch Purchase Invoices‍ 

Setting Up System Users‍ 

Go to AP > Purchase Orders > New Order. This opens the Purchase Order screen.

Purchase Order Details

In the header:

• Purchase Order No: This is controlled in Company Details and Settings. If auto-numbering is on, then the PO Number will auto-generate. Otherwise, supply a unique Order No.
• Supplier: Select from the dropdown provided. This populates the Supplier details on the Order Header. 

• Order Date: This defaults to today’s date, but you can change it using the dropdown. Note that this date will place this order into the correct financial period. This is done automatically to ensure that the transactions go to the correct period.
• External Ref: This is your own reference number to help you keep track of your Orders. It could, for example, be the Supplier’s Inventory Code.
• Expected Delivery Date: This defaults to today’s date, but you can change it using the dropdown. This is the date you expected this order to be delivered (i.e. received). This can be used to track orders that are due or overdue using the filter options in the Orders Listing grid.
• Use ACC VAT (Tax) Code: Checking this box means that any items entered will use the supplier account's default tax code instead of the product's tax code. For example, if a particular product has a default tax code of 21%, but a particular Supplier is an overseas Supplier and is exempt from tax. This field can be modified to allow you to account for the difference.
• Dimension Tag: This is an optional field. If the Supplier Master Record has a Dimension Tag set on it, that will appear here but can be overridden on a per line basis. Dimension Tags can be used to represent the company department associated with an order, making them useful in reporting and workflow approval. See New Workflow Approval for more information.
• Supplier Area: This defaults from the Supplier Master Record but you can override it here.
• Requester: This is an optional field. It is the individual that raised this Purchase Order. This person, along with the approver, will be notified by email after this Purchase Order is processed and will receive an attached copy of this order for their information.
• Billing Address: This is the address of the Supplier that this order relates to. This address is read from the Supplier record and can be changed at order level.
• Supplier Contact: This is the Primary Contact from the Supplier Master Record. This can be modified for a specific order.

For lines, click Display Lines Only to hide the Supplier Detail in the upper half of the screen. Click again to restore. Similarly, click the arrow icon at the start of each Order Line to display/hide details from the Inventory file for the Product nominated on that Line.

Complete the following:

• Item: This comes from the Inventory Product file. Use the dropdown together with its Description and default GL Posting Code which you can change if required.
• GL Account Code: This comes from the Supplier Master record (if any) and then the GL Account Code from the Product file overrides it. You can override it using the dropdown or by keying in a GL Code.
• Dimension Tag: If you are using Extended Business Analysis then supply a Dimension Tag. If you entered a Dimension Tag in the header, it will automatically appear for all lines but can be changed if needed. 
• Qty: Enter the Quantity of Items required from the Supplier.
• Unit Price: This comes from the Last Cost field on the Inventory Master Record, but you can override it here.
• VAT (Tax): This either comes from the Order Header (which in turn comes from the Supplier Master record) or from the VAT (Tax) Rate associated with this Item on the Inventory file. In both cases, it is a default rate, but you can override it here.
• Disc. Rate, Disc. Amount: If there is a Discount Percentage on the Supplier Record, then this will apply. You can either accept this Rate and Calculation or you can put in a fixed amount in the Disc. Amount field and the system will work out the percentage. 
• Line Note: You can add a Note to each Order Line.
• Exchange Rate: If the Supplier is a Foreign Currency Supplier, this field displays the default exchange rate currently associated with the chosen Supplier. This can be overwritten if necessary and will be used when posting the order to calculate the base currency value of the order.
• Status: The status of the order is displayed here. An order can be 'Reserved' when initially recorded and the items have a reserved quantity against them, 'Partial Delivery' when part of it has been delivered, 'Full Delivery' when all of it is delivered, 'Complete' when it has been delivered and invoiced and finally 'Closed' if the user has decided to close it and not deliver.

Additional Details (Optional)

In this tab, you can modify the Delivery Details inherited from the Supplier’s Master Record such as:

• Discount: This displays the default discount associated with the Supplier. This can be overwritten for the specific order and will update any lines entered. If you update the default in the supplier record, any prices and quantities recorded prior to modification would need to be re-entered to include the modification.
• Payment Method: This specifies how this order will be settled by your company. If you select a payment method that has been set up as an 'online' payment method in codes maintenance, then related orders will be available to pay through the Online Batch Payments function.
• Note Printed on Purchase Order: Here you can also add a Note to appear on the Supplier Order for them to see.

Notes (Optional)

The Notes tab allows you to add internal Notes to the Order. 

1. Click Add New Note.
2. Enter your note.
3. Click Save.

Saving the Purchase Order

Once you have completed all order details, you can:

• Save: This will immediately update the order status from New to Reserved and, if using, send the PO for approval.
• Save as Draft: This will save the PO as a draft which can be freely edited and will not initiate the workflow approval process. It will have an order status of Reserved and an approval status of Pending.
• Save and Print Order: This has the same affect as saving with the option to print the PO.

For full details on setting up our new workflow approval, see New Workflow Approval and Workflow Scenarios.‍ ‍

Workflow Approval Statuses (New and Legacy Workflow)

If you enable approval:

• The initial delivery Status will be "Reserved." 
• The relevant Approval Status will appear. See New Workflow Approval for full details of legacy vs new workflow statuses.
• In the Actions dropdown, Receive All & Invoice will NOT be available until the order has been approved.

If you disable approval:

• The initial delivery Status will be "Reserved".
• The Approval Status will be “Approval Not Required” if the PO is excluded from approval. If the entity does not use approval, there will be no Approval Status column.
• In the Actions dropdown, Receive All & Invoice will be available immediately.

Disabling Workflow Approval (Legacy Workflow only)

These options are only relevant if you use either Supplier based Purchase Approval - Legacy or Purchase Approval for Budget Holders - Legacy. 

After saving, the Order will bypass approval if:

• Untick Purchase Approval Enabled Company Details & Settings.
• If you tick Exclude from Approval in Supplier Accounts.

The Orders Listing Grid 

The Orders listing grid includes the following columns:

• Status: Orders can have a status of Reserved (initial), Full Delivery, Partial Delivery, Cancelled, Complete (invoiced).
• Print: Print orders to a range of formats including PDF Order.
• Email: Email orders to your suppliers.
• Actions:
  • Cancel Orders: Alternatively open the order and click on Cancel Order. This will update the status of the order to Cancelled.
  • Duplicate:  Alternatively open the order and click on Duplicate Order. Both open and closed orders can be duplicated. Add a new External Ref and modify it as required, including adding new Order Lines, as you require. Click Save. The original Order will remain in the system as it was.

Editing Orders

Orders can be amended at any time before full delivery.

1. Go to Purchases and open the Purchase Order. 
   • If the Order delivery is complete, all fields will be greyed out meaning you cannot edit them. 
   • If they are not greyed out, make any required changes. You can delete lines, add new lines, change Quantities and Prices, Vat Rates, add Line Notes, and amend GL Codes and Dimension Tags. Click the arrow or the Item Code dropdown to make any edits.
   • If you use New Workflow Approval, updating a posted order may cause it to go for reapproval, depending on how the associated workflow was configured. See Amending Transactions for more details.
2. Click Save.

View deliveries in either the Orders or Deliveries listing grids.

Purchase Orders Listing Grid

1. Go to Purchases > Orders.
2. Open the relevant Purchase Order. Use the filter to view those that are ‘Delivered, Not Yet Invoiced’.
3. Click on View Deliveries.

Deliveries Listing Grid

1. Go to Purchases > Deliveries .
2. In the relevant Actions dropdown, select View Deliveries.

When you obtain services or non stock deliveries from a Supplier (with approval where relevant), you can receive and invoice them in full.

1. In the Purchase Orders listing grid, find the relevant transaction.
2. In the Actions dropdown, select Receive All & Invoice. This creates a Purchase Invoice with the current date and the status of Full Delivery.
3. Make any updates to the invoice if needed. For a partial delivery, change the quantities. See Creating Purchase Invoices (Non PO Process) for more details. 
4. Click Save. The status will update to Complete.

When your Supplier delivers goods, you need to receive and invoice them (in full or partial).  

Step One: Receive Orders

1. In the Purchase Orders listing grid, find the relevant transaction.
2. In the Actions dropdown, select Receive. This opens the Purchase Deliveries screen.
   
3. In the This Delivery column, enter the appropriate quantity or click Receive All. To undo the Delivery Quantities, click Reset.
4. Click Save or from the Save dropdown, select Save and Print to produce a Goods Receipt Note for your records. 

Step Two: Create Matching Invoices

1. Go to Purchases > Deliveries and find your delivery.
2. For the relevant delivery, go to Actions > Invoice.
    
3. A new invoice will open. Check if its details agree with your Delivery Records. See Creating Purchase Item Invoices for more details:
   • If quantities differ, change the Quantity on this Invoice to match your quantities.
   • If there are price differences and you’re willing to accept them, adjust the Unit Price.
   • If there are additional charges against a Line, add a new line with the same Item Code, a quantity of 0.00, and put the extra charge in the Net column. This additional cost will be used in the calculation of the overall Average Cost for the Item.
   • If you receive more than you ordered, then you cannot increase the quantity. You must go back to the Order first and increase the quantity there and then deliver it.
4. Click Save. If the saved Invoice now matches the Delivered Order, then the Order will be fulfilled and disappear from the system. You can Cancel an Order at any time. If there are partial Deliveries in the system, you can still cancel the remainder of the Order.

To view complete details, you can run a "Goods Received Listing" Report in the Report Manager‍. This gives a full view of the status of the originating Purchase Order through to the Purchase Invoice stage.