Overview
The Procurement Template Manager offers the ability to create, edit, delete or print procurement templates from one place. Templates created in the Procurement Template Manager have the capability of being used in any procurement function of the FOOD-TRAK system. This eliminates the need to create the same list of sequenced items multiple times for use in different procurement functions; thus making the time spent creating and maintaining templates more productive. To use this function, expand Data Entry, select Procurement and then select the option entitled Procurement Template Manager. Procurement templates are available to be used in any of the following procurement forms:
Bid Sheet Forms, Invoice Forms, Purchase Order Forms, Purchase Request Forms and, Shopping Lists Receivers (with Enterprise Procurement Module only)
Procurement Template Manager Selection Screen
All procurement templates are available to be modified in the Procurement Template Manager as long as you have access to the Profit Center(s) included in the template.
The first screen displays a list of existing procurement templates in the Site.
The Filter option allows the user to filter by the following template values: Name, Profit Center, Description, Created Date and Modified Date.
The Search field allows the user to search for templates on the list by Name, Profit Center, Description or Vendor.
There are four actions possible from this screen: New which is used to create a new template from scratch;
Copy which allows the user to create a new template populated by items from one of three types of source documents; and Print and Delete options which are greyed out until a template is selected.
In the column header bar, the All button allows the user to select all the templates on that page of the list.
Each of the columns may be used to sort the list of existing procurement templates by clicking any column header. The default display order of the templates is alphabetical by Template Name. This action will re-sort the list by that column in A to Z order. By selecting it twice, the column sort order is reversed. When the list is being sorted, a small green indicator appears to the right of the column header name.
You may scroll through the list one page at a time using the slider bar to the far right. In the event more than one page exists, move to the next page using the directional arrows located below the list.
Editing/Deleting/Printing a Template
In order to edit a template, select the template name link on the list. This will open the template for editing. Press the Finish button to permanently save the changes.
In order to print or delete a template, place a mark in the box to the left of the Template name and select one of these options. Any requests to Print are scheduled and can be retrieved from the Tasks list.
New Template
Selecting the New option from the Procurement Template Manager Selection screen opens a new window. Enter a Template Name and optionally, a Description. Select a specific profit center or All Profit Centers (only available if the current user has access to all Profit Centers). The template name must be unique among all existing procurement templates listed in the Procurement Template Manager.
A set of check boxes in the header box allows you to select the types of procurement forms for which the template will be available. One, several or all may be selected when creating or editing a template.
Select one of four options by which to view and select the set of items to be included. The options include View by Profit Center (the default), View by Report Group, View by Vendor and Blank.
• View by Profit Center/Location - If this option is selected, the existing profit centers and locations are shown in the view box with a checkbox to the left of each name. One or many profit centers and their locations below each of them may be selected by clicking the checkbox. All items associated with the selected profit centers and locations will populate on detail page of the template.
• View by Report Group - If this option is selected, the existing report groups will be shown in the view box with a checkbox to the left of each report group name. All items associated with the selected report groups will populate on the item detail page of the template.
• View by Vendor - If this option is selected, the existing vendors will be shown in the view box in alphabetical order with a checkbox to the left of each name. One or more can be selected from the list by clicking the checkbox. All items purchased from the selected vendor will populate on the item detail page of the template.
• Blank - If this option is selected, the user will have the opportunity to start with a clean slate and add items to the item detail page of the template by selecting them from the Item Selection List.
Once a choice has been made, select the Next button to move forward. Optionally, you may choose to go Back or simply Cancel. On the Template Detail Screen. The Sort Order drop-down includes three options: Shelf Order, Alphabetical by Report Group and Alphabetical.
• Shelf Order allows your to create a template with items in the order that you specify. This sort order is displayed by default though the list is initially shown alphabetical by item name and can be modified as necessary. This is done by using the Move Up, Move Down and Remove buttons. Click on an item so it is highlighted (grey) then select the action to use until the item is in the correct position.
• Alphabetical by Report Group will place all your items in alphabetical order by your defined report groups.
• Alphabetical will automatically place all your items in alphabetical order. When new items are added to the template they will fall into the correct spot alphabetically.
The Vendor drop-down selection allows the user to select a specific vendor to associate with this template prior to finishing. The items displayed on the details screen are populated from the selections made on the previous screen and default to an alphabetical order.
The columns in the list vary according to the type of forms to which the user is making the template available. For example, a selection of Invoice, Purchase Order, Purchase Request or Receiver will display columns for Quantity, Unit and Purchase Location whereas a choice of Bid Sheet or Shopping List might only display one or two columns.
The first line of that list is used to add a new item into the list. When the “Click here to Insert” line is selected, a column with a search feature appears on the left so that the user can either add a new item from the database or create a new database item to incorporate into the list. The user can search by using any of the criteria listed in the “Select item to Insert” drop-down along with the searchable value (which supports wild card searches). The results are displayed and the user selects Insert. The Add New button allows users to add items directly into the database if authorized. The item added will be placed directly under any selected item on the list. The search option on the screen also opens this window. In order to delete an item on the list, the user simply selects that line and the Remove button.
Copy Template
Selecting the Copy button from the Procurement Template Manager Selection screen opens a new window which allows the user to create a new template using an existing source document to populate the list.
The user may select from an available inventory template, existing procurement template or existing completed form to use to create a new procurement template. The system will maintain the source template or form in its original state and populate the new template with the list and sequence of items from the source document.
For example, this function can be used to make a shopping list template from an existing inventory template that could then be used to create a shopping list form.
The list of available templates has a Filter button available. The filter allows the user to utilize advanced filter criteria to find a specific template or form. The advanced filter criteria allow the user to filter by: name, description, created date range and modified date range. If the user selects to see the list of existing completed forms, the advanced filter criteria will allow the user to filter by form type, form ID (number), created date range or modified date range in addition to sorting by column header or searching the list. Once a source document is selected, the template detail screen is populated with the items from the source.