A job runs better when you know what it's going to pull from your shelves and what you still need to buy, before you start building. The Purchasing tab gives every Project order one place to handle both.
In this article- What the Purchasing tab is for
- What you'll need
- Add supplies to a Project order
- Allocate and use supplies
- Read the Available column
- Order from a vendor
- How this compares to Resource Allocation
What the Purchasing tab is for
Project orders don't run on catalog products, so Allmoxy can't calculate your materials for you the way it does on a catalog order. You know what the job needs, whether that's a cut list from your design software or your own takeoff. The Purchasing tab is where that list lives, so it's tracked against your real inventory instead of a spreadsheet.
It's also where you order what you don't make yourself. If you buy doors, drawer boxes, or other components from a manufacturer who also uses Allmoxy, you can connect to them as a vendor and order right from the job.
You'll find it in the steps along the top of any Project order, between Proposal and Order Documents. The tab has two sections: your supplies for the order, and Outsourcing.
The Purchasing tab holds your supply list and your vendor orders for the job.
What you'll need
A couple of things make this tab work smoothly:
- Your supplies set up in inventory. The supplies table pulls from the same inventory records the rest of Allmoxy uses, so anything you want to track needs to exist there first.
- Resource Allocation permission. If someone on your team can't see the Purchasing tab, check their user permissions. The tab follows the same permission as Resource Allocation.
Add supplies to a Project order
Let's build the supply list. Your supplies sit in the section at the top of the tab, titled with the order number and name (for example, "Supplies for Order #1988: Kitchen Remodel").
- Open the Project order and click Purchasing.
- Click Add New at the bottom of the supplies table.
- Choose the Location, then the Item.
- Allmoxy fills in Piece Size, On hand, and Available for you, straight from inventory.
- Repeat for each supply the job needs.
Added something by mistake? Click the trash icon at the end of that row to remove it.
You can sort the table by any column, the same way you'd sort Resource Allocation.
Allocate and use supplies
Each supply row has two quantity fields, with an "Or" between them:
- Allocated is what you're setting aside for this job. It's reserved, but it hasn't been used yet.
- Used is what's actually been consumed.
Most of the time you'll enter what you're reserving in Allocated while you quote and confirm the job, then record it as Used once it's actually been pulled (In Production status). If you're logging material that's already gone, you can go straight to Used.
Read the Available column
On hand is what's physically in inventory. Available is what's left after everything already allocated across your orders.
So if Available shows a negative number, don't panic. It just means your jobs have spoken for more of that item than you have on the shelf. That's exactly the heads-up this column is for: it's your cue to order more before the job gets into production. Using the "Checkout/Order" page (under the Supplies menu in the top nav) allows you to go see what needs to be ordered to get your numbers back up!
Order from a vendor
Not everything on a job comes off your own shelves. The Outsourcing section, below your supplies, is where you connect with the companies you buy from and order from them without leaving the job.
Any company that runs its business on Allmoxy and has made itself available to purchase from can be your vendor. So if the manufacturer you already buy doors or drawer boxes from is on Allmoxy, you can connect to them here.
Connect a vendor
- In the Vendors area, click Add vendor.
- Find the company you want to purchase from and add them.
- They'll appear as a card in the Vendors area, with their logo, their name, and an Order Now button.
Changed your mind about a vendor? Click the trash icon in the corner of their card to remove them.
Place an order
When the job needs something from a vendor, click Order Now on their card to start an order with them.
Click Order Now on a vendor's card to order from them for this job.
Track your outsource orders
Orders you place with your vendors show up in the Outsource Orders table, with the order number, vendor, name, total, ordered date, ship date, and status. That way you can see what's coming in for the job, and when, right next to your supply list.
How this compares to Resource Allocation
If you already run catalog orders in Allmoxy, the supplies table will look familiar. It's the same table as Resource Allocation, pulling from the same inventory, with one difference: there's no Needed column.
On a catalog order, Needed is calculated from your products' supply formulas. Project orders don't have products behind them, so there's nothing to calculate from. You're the one telling Allmoxy what the job needs, and you do that by building the list yourself.