Module Overview
The Inventory Control Module is used to control consumable inventory, such as office supplies, raw materials for production, parts for maintenance and so on. With perpetual inventory levels at your fingertips, you can effectively eliminate stock-outs, reduce inventory carrying costs and simplify the re-ordering process.
This is not the same as the Asset Management Module, which is used to manage fixed asset inventory.
In addition to providing tools to help keep stock levels to a minimum, the Inventory Module improves inventory status visibility and reporting. Popular reports include the Inventory Reorder Report, the Inventory Valuation Report, and the Excess Inventory Report, to name a few.
Key Features
•Integrated Barcode Module simplifies inventory transactions.
•Perpetual inventory levels are updated instantly upon receipt and when items are taken out of stock (usages).
•Inventory usages instantly update Cost Center budgets and history.
•Reorder Report shows items low in stock and you can auto-build Purchase Orders, Requisitions or RFQs for items that need to be replenished.
•Inventory Valuation Report based on First-In-First-Out (FIFO) or standard value.
•Multiple inventory locations with stock visibility and reporting by location.
Items in the Item Master File can be stock OR non-stock items. You can define an item as stock or non-stock in the [INVENTORY/LOCATIONS] Folder of the Item Master File.
Even if you don’t keep an item in stock, you may choose to add it to the Item Master File if you purchase the item often (i.e. so that the description, pricing, etc. defaults onto POs and other documents) and/or if you want to track the history of the item.
For non-stock items, the in-stock balance will always be zero, the items will not show on inventory-related reports (e.g. Reorder Report, etc.) and you will not be able to perform inventory-related transactions (e.g. inventory usages, etc.)
Perpetual Inventory for Stock Items
As stock items are added and removed from inventory (e.g. when items are received, when inventory usages are posted, etc.), the inventory levels in SpendMap will be updated automatically, so the system knows exactly what’s in stock for each item at any point in time. Therefore, you don’t have to do a physical inventory count to determine what’s in stock for things like re-ordering, calculating your inventory value for your financial statements, etc.
However, even if you keep stock of an item, from time-to-time you may purchase the item to be used immediately rather than purchasing the item to replenish stock. SpendMap will know whether or not to update inventory levels when the item is received, based on the cost center specified. For full details, see The Use of the Stock Cost Center.
