Point of sale function in an inventory system

If you sale your goods in a retail store the best way to track sold products is using the Point of Sale form. Of course, this is not a complete point of sale station with a cash register and a receipt printer but it is more cost-effective solution when you already have some sort of computer and printer. You need only install software and begin to work with your customers.

Sales orders,Packing slips and Invoices.

We can use different documents for inventory management.Сonsider how to organize the working process of selling goods from the warehouse.If your client has decided to buy your product you will create for him a Sales Order.You enter in it a clients name , the name of your company and list of items with prices and quantity.Usually inventory software has a special function for this. Then, the customer should pay for these products. After that, you will create invoice with same products for your customer and packing slip with these products for warehouse staff. You have to send the packing slip to warehouse and your personal will ship goods to the customer.Usually you will only create an invoice and print it in the form of packing slip and invoice.Finally, you will send invoice to the customer. If you use any perpetual inventory system you will know anytime how many items you have in the warehouse.

Reorder points in your inventory system

If you have many products in stock, it is very difficult to keep track of all. Do you have important items in sufficient quantity?Golden inventory system will help you to manage this issue.You'll be able to define a reorder point for each item in your warehouse.
You should avoid reducing of quantity for important in your business goods below a certain level.
You can open open the Items list form and double click on any item. Fill out the Minimal Qty and Target Qty fields. Click the button Save and close.Now your system monitors the critical balance of goods.If the inventory of goods will be less than the minimum level the inventory system will show them at the Overview form in the Inventory to Reorder panel.You should just click on the Create PO button and the inventory system automatically creates a new purchase order with needed items.

Why we use the adjustment orders in inventory systems.

When we use an inventory system, we mean that we record all operations with the goods by our warehouse. But it is not always true. Sometimes we make mistakes, sometimes we do not receive all ordered goods. Sometimes the goods are stolen or spoiled.Usually we find out the problem after physical counting of the goods in our wrehouses. What should we do in this case? We have to create a new adjustment order and enter in it all problem items. The inventory system will recalculate quantity on hand. And we will have a document showing the gap in the stock. Adjusting is the same transaction as receiving or shipping.Or rather it is sending of goods in nowhere.

Multi location inventory accounting

.You can store your goods in different locations in warehouses,store rooms and shelves. However, you should always know where they are.Can your inventory system help you? Sure.
First,you have to add storage locations to your inventory system at the Company&Locations form.
Select in the left menu the item Lists-Company&Locations and click on the toolbar button New. Enter a name of your location and click on the OK button.You can add several locations and even add child storage location in the warehouse. You should define such locations as sublocation of the big warehouse.
You can use these locations in item receipts or invoices. If you are receiving goods to the Warehouse#1 you have to select it in the drop down Location list at the Item Receipt Form. If you shipped goods from the Warehouse#2 you have to define this location at the Invoice Edit form. The inventory program wiil increase or decrease quantity on hand in in the corresponding stock.At any point you can open the Item form and click on the On Hand button to get distribution of your product by locations.You can read more about How to create an inventory system here.

Using barcode scanner in an inventory system

In order to benefit from using of barcode labels you need to buy a barcode scanner.This device converts the image of a barcode to a combination of letters and numbers and transmits them to a computer. How to use the barcode scanner in the Golden Inventory system.First, you should connect the barcode scanner to your computer. The scanner connects to the computer's USB or keyboard ports.Then, click on the button Create New:Invoice and turn on the option Scan bar code. You'll see the small window for entering barcodes. Take any barcode label and scan it by the scanner.The program will searche for the product that will match this barcode and automatically enters it into the invoice. This will speed up the creation of shipping documents in your company a few times.

Bar code labels and inventory system

Bar code labels are widely used in modern inventory systems. They help reduce the amount of manual data entry and simplify the search for goods in warehouses.
Why do we need a barcode ? It's a combination of numbers and letters uniquely identifies the goods lying in your warehouse.There are many types of barcodes UPC,EAN,Code39,Code93,Code128.
In order for your company to print own UPC barcode symbols, you will need to become a member of GS1 US Partner Connections. Your company will be assigned an identification number -company prefix. You will use this number to create your own UPCs. But you can create own barcodes using Code39 within the company. You can select any system for your barcodes. For example, you have computer hardware and furniture in your warehouse. You can define the 123 prefix for hardware and the 125 prefix for furniture and you can decide to use for numbering of items 6-digit numbers. So you set for a monitor the barcode 123000001 and the barcode 125000001 for a chair.If you receive a keyboard to your warehouse you define it to the code 123000002 and if you get an office table then assign the code 125000002 to it. And so on.
What should we do with these codes? We have to eneter your codes in the field Barcode at the Item Edit form.

How to get started with the inventory systems.

Usually you already have goods in your warehouse and you should enter your inventory system physical quantity of goods in stock.Any system begins in the initial quantity of goods in stock. You can go to the warehouse and write items names and quantities on paper. Or you can install the inventory program on laptop and enter items directly in computer. In any case, you should create the initial item receipt or receiving order with all items.For example, if you work with Golden Inentory system you should do next:

• Click the button Receiving
  
• Enter a name,description,quantity and price of the first item.
  
• Enter a name,description,quantity and price of the second item.
  
• Enter names,descriptions,quantities and prices of other items in warehouse.
  
• Click the button Save and close the Item Receipt form.
  

After that, the system will add all your goods to the item list. You will use this list in all system's forms.From this point, you have to track in the inventory system any your operation with inventory (receiving,shipping,moving between locations)

How inventory systems track inventory operations

Usually, an inventory system tracks all receiving and all shipping operations. Then, the system calculates an on hand quantity for each item in your warehouse as difference between received and shipped amounts.
(Qantity On Hand)=(RECEIVED - SHIPPED)
Therefore we should track all receiving and shipping operations and the inventory system will calculate actual on hand quantities for all items.What does it mean? When you receive goods in the warehouse you should enter items in the inventory system.The inventory system uses for this item receipts or receiving orders. When you send goods to customers you should enter all shipped items in the invoices or shipping orders. The system calculates sums for all received and shipped items and calculate quantity on hand for each item.It allows to have real time information about any product in the warehouse.You can print all these documents and you'll be able to send invoices to customers or check accuracy of the inventory system.

How to create a simplest inventory system using only pen and paper

I read recently in the book "Inventory accounting: a comprehensive guide" by Steven M.Bragg that :"Inventory is a difficult asset to control-it arrives and departs company premises daily, is scattered throughout the warehouse and production areas (and possibly offsite storage locations),may contain obsolete or scrap items ,can involve thousands of part numbers,can include items owned by suppliers or customers, and may be valued using a variety of techniques for both direct and overhead costs."
It's really true.But what should you do if you don't like computers but want to solve problems with you inventory? There's an old and true pen and paper solution.Take a few sheets of paper and draw the table as shown in Figure.

You have to create inventory cards for all items in your warehouse. Put them in a box and begin tracking of your inventory. You should do phisical count of your warehouse and enter current on hand quantity in the column IN for each good. You will enter any shipped quantity in the column OUT and received quantity in the column IN. Then,you should calculate BALANCE in mind or using any hand calculator. You will have a very simple but the real working inventory system. Of course, if you have a computer you can use a more convenient solutions for inventory accounting.