Multiple Warehouse Stocking Locations –
The system provides for the tracking of inventory quantities for either a single warehouse, or for multiple warehouse locations.  The following types of data are kept for each item, for each location:
  • Quantity On-Hand, Committed, Back Ordered and On-Order
  • Average and Last Landed Costs, Supplier Cost, and Estimated Landed Cost
  • Forecasted Usage Control options and computed Forecasted usage
  • Last Purchase Order information
  • Accumulated Usage and Sales Statistics Last-Year, Year-to-Date, Period-to-Date
  • Last Activity Usage Dates and Quantity
  • Last 12 Period Sales figures
 

Matrix Inventory Management –
The system provides for support for Matrix Set defined Inventory Items. These are items that are available in assorted variations of color, material, style or size, (or whatever).  Some features associated to Matrix Inventory as as follows::
  • Variations of inventory items are defined by a Matrix Set. A given Matrix set may be applied to more than one inventory item
  • For each Matrix Set, you may define up to 3 Dimensions. In other words have three different kinds of variant attributes per item. For example blue jeans have a waist size, a inseam length and a style. These each would be be called a Dimension.
  • For each Dimension you may define up to 35 attributes. For blue jeans you might have 10 different waist sizes, and these are Attributes.
  • When a Matrix Set is assigned to an Inventory Item, all variations are automatically created as separate Inventory/Location records. Quantity-on-Hand, Quantity-on-Order, Quantity-Committed, and Forecasting Controls, and Statistics are kept separately for each item at each warehouse.
  • The Inventory Receiving and Physical Count Processing operations offer a matrix grid display screen from which associated Quantity fields may be edited directly on the matrix.
  • The Customer Order Processing system's Order entry offers a matrix grid display screen from which associated Quantity fields may be edited directly on the matrix.
  • The Purchasing system's PO Entry and Warehouse Receivings functions offer a matrix grid display screen from which associated Quantity fields may be edited directly on the matrix.
 

Track Issued or Checked-Out Inventory

Inventory items may be Issued or Checked-Out to specified Users, and/or Locations. Issued items may be scheduled to be replaced, and Checked-Out items scheduled to be returned. “Scheduled to be Replaced” and “Items to be Returned” reports are available; and an Inquiry function is available by Inventory Item, Useage Code, Useage Location and User.
 

Inventory Items "Lookup" –
Every inventory item is assigned a unique Item Code.  As an option, you may choose to use either a 12 or 20 character code as either numeric or alpha-numeric.  Each item also has four 60 character description lines available.  Whenever an Inventory Item needs to be entered into a screen, there is a "Lookup" function that may by invoked.  Inventory may be displayed, sorted by Item Code, Description, UPC Code, Supplier, Product Category, Product Family, Cross Selling Code, or individual keywords derived from the item Description fields.
 

Purchasing Advice Interface to Purchasing –
The system provides a Purchasing Advice Report/Processing function.  Based on re-order levels and forecasted usage parameters, the system generates recommended quantities to be ordered. When used with the Series 5 Purchasing system, posting these "Advice" records will automatically generate PO Requisitions. For each Requisition either Request-for-Quotes (RFQs), and/or Candidate POs are created for the inventory items to be purchased.
 

Inventory Usage Forecasting –
The system provides a Usage Forecasting module.  The forecasting application makes an intrinsic forecast predicting the usage of an item in the next period by examining past sales trends.  Based on the item’s usage history, an exponential smoothing is used to calculate the next period’s expected usage.
 

Bill-of-Materials Products –
The system provides for the definition of BOMP Products.  This Product is made up of Components.  Both the Product and the Components are actually Inventory Items that are stocked by the I/M system.  BOMP Products, as an Inventory Item, may be sold through the Customer Order Processing system.  Depending on the Inventory Item's Stock Status Code property, if a BOMP Product is sold, it may or may not be exploded into it’s components, when printed on the Picking Tickets.
 

Physical Count Processing –
A method for managing the tedious task of performing a Physical Inventory Count of stock on hand is provided.  You may choose to make it as simple as just having a Cycle Count Worksheet printed, divide it up among the warehouse personnel, and having them go count product on the shelf.  You may also decide on a more formal approach, where Inventory Tags Transaction records are generated along with a printed Tag that may be attached to the bin locations;  Then two sets of teams go through the warehouse to perform two independent counts, and their results are entered into the system for comparison.  In either case, these functions offer attempts to make the process more controlled.
 

User Defined Inventory Attributes –
The I/M system allows you to define your own "Inventory Attributes" codes.  These are informational type fields about your inventory that you may like to define, depending on the type of your business.  Once defined, you can enter those codes that are valid for the particular code.  There is also a Code "Lookup" utility, and you can define multiple values for any type of code to each inventory item.  Most of the reporting functions that are inventory driven in all of the Series 5 systems provide for selection filters based on the Item Attribute codes.
 

Spreadsheet Import/Export Capabilities –
The Series 5 system provides for the loading or dumping of data from or to your favorite spreadsheet.  Data can be read or written directly to Microsoft's Excel, or tab-delimited text files.
Data Export is offered for the following transactions, master records or analysis:
  • Inventory Master record properties
  • Inventory Receipt or Transfer Transactions
  • Physical Count Processing Tags & Totals data