How Do I Order Parts from an Invoice?

One of the benefits of ESC's inventory tracking system is the ability to order parts from anywhere parts are used, including invoices.  To get started, recall the invoice in the Sales Invoicing screen.  This can be done by going to the Invoice List and double-clicking on the invoice in the list.  Make sure that all of the items you are going to need for this project have been added.  It is possible to add items to an invoice and remove the price and Print check box so they don't show to the customer.  

If you wish to track the costs of this particular project or service, now would be a good time to create a Job and add it to the invoice.  This will help to keep everything tied together and ensure that your estimated and actual figures appear on the Job Sales Report properly.  View our article, How Do I Setup Jobs in ESC, for more information.

Next, click the Activities button on the top toolbar and select Order Parts.

The resulting window shows the status of the parts needed for this invoice.  Parts shaded in gray are available in your warehouse and do not need to be ordered.  These will be unchecked for you, but you can still place a check next to them in order to force ESC to place them on a Purchase Order.

• The Total Quantity field shows how many of each item you have in stock.
• The Warehouse (WH) Quantity shows how many items of that type are in the currently selected warehouse.
• Then verify the Vendor you want to order the part from. Although the Preferred or Default Vendor for that part is shown it can easily be changed if needed.
• The PO field allows you to add the item to an open purchase order for the same vendor if one exists or create a new purchase order if one does not. This field must be filled out for every checked item before continuing.
• Once everything is set to your satisfaction, click the Create and Edit button to generate the purchase orders and open them for additional editing; or the Create All button to create the purchase orders for editing and printing later.

Reviewing Your Order

ESC not only allows you to order parts directly from an invoice, but you can also go back at any time and see what parts have been ordered.  This can be especially handy if more than one person is managing invoices or inventory.

To view what has been ordered for this invoice, open it in the Sales Invoicing screen and then head to the Activities menu.  Click on View Ordered Parts.  The screen that appears will show you what parts have been ordered from this invoice, who they were ordered from and which parts have already been received.  You can click Open next to any item to view the Purchase Order it was ordered on.