Ostendo Update Notes from 21 October 2009 – What’s New

Ostendo Update Notes from 21 October 2009 – What’s New

User Defined Constants (New Screen: File-System Configuration-User defined Constants)

We have added a new screen that allows the creation of user defined constants; that can then be used in reports, inquiries, views and scripts. Often there are values that shouldn’t be either hard coded in a script, or prompted for the user to enter every time they run say a report or inquiry. To illustrate this, we have added 2 constants (in this update), which are referred to in one of the new Inquiries (Days of Inventory). One of the constants is used to determine the historical horizon for calculating average usage, the other for flagging whether or not the reorder level is included in the calculations.

Inquiry Screens (Enhanced):

Now all Inquiry screens will save column positions, column widths and any filtered conditions, subtotalling or sorting against each column by user.

Customer Financial Statistics – New Standard Inquiry Screen

This new standard inquiry displays the average actual payment days (as compared to the average planned payment days) and customer outstanding balances aged by periods (periods determined by your setting in ‘Financial Configuration-Aging Periods’). This inquiry is ideal for a ready reference to customer balances and how they have been tracking historically with paying on time. There are 2 additional detail tabs, which display the following by customer:

1)       Outstanding Invoices

2)       Un-Applied Payments

Days of Inventory – New Standard Inquiry Screen

This new standard inquiry is a must for companies managing inventory. It basically provides a snapshot of how many days of stock you currently have (based on user defined historical usage – Number of Days in the new ‘User Defined Constants’ screen), and then calculates your overstocking value by factoring in each items lead-time, and, if included (switchable in the new ‘User Defined Constants’ screen), the reorder level (minimum stock). In essence it allows the following information to be looked at:

1)       Whether there has been any usage for each item in the user defined historical period (The number of days set will be dependent on the nature of the business)

2)       The Current Inventory Value and Quantity by Item

3)       The average daily usage and value for each Item

4)       The re-order level converted in a number of days

5)       The overstocked days and value  – this assumes lead times are accurate and that the re-order level effectively provides a buffer.

Understanding the importance of accurately defining lead-times we have developed a lead-time inquiry for Items (see below).

Item Lead times – New Standard Inquiry Screen

This new standard inquiry screen provides each item’s default lead-time; the average purchased lead-time (only if Purchase Orders are used); whether an item has a Bill of Material (BOM), and if so, the lead time held against that BOM; and finally the average manufactured lead-time.

Multi-Item Information – New Standard Inquiry Screen

This new standard inquiry displays the following tabs by Item:

a.      Inventory levels

b.      Transaction History

c.      Sales Trends – This displays 7 periods of Sales Values & Quantities for Daily, Weekly and Monthly periods – showing an average for those periods and then indicating whether the last period has either Increased, Decreased or Equalled the Average

d.      Sell Prices – Displays all the Price Levels for that Item and calculates the Sell Price based on the Pricing Method

e.      Buy Prices – Displays all the Supplier specific pricing

Job Calendar Rules (New Screen: Jobs-Settings-Job Calendar Rules)

This new screen sets the following properties for the Job Calendar:

1)       Calendar Days Back – Defines the default number of days for which the Calendar displays allocations/bookings. This can be changed while in the Job Calendar

2)       Calendar Days Forward – Defines the default number of days for which the Calendar displays allocations/bookings. This can be changed while in the Job Calendar

3)       Display Allocation Inquiry – This turns on an Inquiry Panel at the bottom of the Job Calendar. The Inquiry panel displays 1 of 2 Inquiries:

a.      Allocation Inquiry – If the user clicks on an allocation/booking then the Allocation Inquiry SQL is displayed

b.      Calendar Inquiry – If the user hasn’t selected a specific allocation/booking then the Calendar Inquiry SQL is displayed

4)        Allocation Inquiry SQL – The actual SQL for the Inquiry (there is a default)

5)       Calendar Inquiry SQL – The actual SQL for the Inquiry (there is a default)

Job Calendar (Enhanced):

We have significantly enhanced the overall functionality of the Job Calendar, focussing more on resource scheduling. Following are some of the key changes:

1)       The calendar now displays allocations by resource, rather than the tasks the resources are linked too. This basically means that resources can be allocated to the task many times (previously you would have to create new tasks for each separate allocation).

2)       You can now drag and drop on the calendar from the Jobs (not Booked-In) sitting in the grid (bottom right of calendar)

3)       You are able to set the forward and backward horizon days to determine what’s displayed on the calendar (in Job Rules)

4)       There is now a non-allocated employee defined for any job booked in but not as yet allocated to specific resources (previously displayed across all)

5)       You are able to set the Resource Status (eg: Assigned, Sent, Accepted, Declined or Finished) – remember you can link this to MS Outlook via appointments (using a custom script – an example is available)

6)       A planned Labour Code can be linked to the Allocation (and specific notes can be entered).

7)       A new Inquiry Panel appears at the bottom of the Calendar if the ‘Display Allocation Inquiry’ is set to true in the new Job Calendar Rules screen.

8)       Scripts can be linked to the Job Calendar via Order Scripts. You link a script to either the allocation (right click popup menu), or to the toolbar at the top of the calendar (ideal for say creating Timesheets from the calendar).

Job Rules (Enhanced)

There are 2 new fields defined in this screen:

a.      ‘Create PO Receipts from Job Issues’ – This allows the Job Order Issues screen to automatically create Purchase Receipts. See the new feature ‘Job Order Issues (Enhanced to Create PO Receipts from this screen)’

b.      ‘Use Line Notes for Purchase’ – This, if checked, will copy the Job Line notes across to the Line Notes of the purchase order line.

System Settings – New Email Option (Enhanced):

We have added a new email client setting in the System Settings screen. This dropdown allows the selection of either ‘Other’ or ‘Outlook’:

a.      Other – This is the default option and based on the existing logic. In other words it will work with any MAPI compliant email client (including MS Outlook).

b.      Outlook – This new option only works with MS Outlook, and allows for the users auto signature to be included with emails being sent from Ostendo. This would be the recommended method if MS Outlook is used as the default email software.

CRM Rules (Enhanced):

We have added a new field called ‘Default Job Type for Service Jobs’ which allows the selection of a Customer Asset style of Job Type. This is then used when creating Job Orders/Quotes from the Call Centre screen – when the user has selected a Customer Asset in the ‘Who is It’ panel.

Item Site Settings (New screen – Items [Related Menu] For default Warehouses and Locations):

We have added the ability to define specific Warehouses and Locations by Item, by Module and by Site. As an example, you could define a different Issue Location for Assembly Picking than for Sales Picking. If no Site settings are defined for the Item – the standard defaults are used.

Order Header Warehouse & Location Overrides (New Feature):

We have added the ability to override the Warehouse and Location at an Order Header level. By default the warehouse and locations either come from the new Item Site Settings or from the main Item settings.

Override Price Level for Customers (New Feature):

We have added a second Price Level held against the Customer called ‘Override Price Level’. This is designed for where the customer might be, say on Trade Pricing, but for a specific number of Items there are exceptions. In other words if a price is found in the Override Price Level for that Item, then it is used, otherwise the price derived from the customers standard price level is used.

Display Decimals (extra to existing Decimals in System Settings):

We have added an additional decimal precision setting for defining the number of decimals to display (you may wish to enter 4 – but when displaying only see 2).

Exclude Deposits from Aging (Enhanced):

We have now added the ability to exclude deposits from the Aging report (it actually excludes them by default). Note: For ad-hoc Customer Aging see the new ‘Customer Financial Statistics’ inquiry.

Reporting Period Definitions (with new Sales Inquires to demonstrate these):

We have been asked on a number of occasions how to run reports based on non-consecutive date periods (eg: Month To Date verses Year to Date). There is now a new screen found under the Reporting Configuration menu called ‘Reporting Periods’; this allows you to define up to 4 periods per period code and then use these definitions in reports, views and inquires. To demonstrate this there are a number of new Inquiry screens in the Sales Inquires menu:

1)       Customer MTD and YTD Sales (This is based on the Calendar Year)

2)       Customer Financial MTD and YTD Sales (This is based on the Fiscal Year – defined in the System Configuration-System Settings screen)

3)       Cust Type MTD and YTD Sales (This is based on the Calendar Year)

4)       Cust Type Financial MTD and YTD Sales (This is based on the Fiscal Year – defined in the System Configuration-System Settings screen)

5)       Category MTD and YTD Sales (This is based on the Calendar Year)

6)       Category Financial MTD and YTD Sales (This is based on the Fiscal Year – defined in the System Configuration-System Settings screen)

7)       Item MTD and YTD Sales

8)       Item Last 4 Weeks Sales

9)       Item Last 4 Months Sales

10)   Site MTD and YTD Sales

11)   Site Financial MTD and YTD Sales

12)   Item Sales Trends (In Daily, Weekly, Monthly buckets for 7 periods – Both Sales & Quantities)

Configured BOM (Enhanced):

We have enhanced the manually configured BOM screens found in Sales and Job Orders. Previously you could only adjust a markup % against the header of the BOM, now you can define mark-ups, margins and prices at a line level within the BOM Lines (see also the Configured Mark-up’s screen to define default mark-ups by analysis group). This improves the ability for companies that assemble custom products to create estimates.

Configured Markups (New screen – Assembly-Settings):

We have added a new settings screen to allow the definition of default mark-ups per analysis group – specifically for Configured BOM’s.

Job Order Issues (Enhanced to Create PO Receipts from this screen):

We have added the ability to create Purchase Receipts for Items and Descriptors directly from the Job Issues screen (this assumes the Job line is linked to a Purchase Order). To activate this option, you’ll need to set the flag called ‘Create PO receipts From Job Issues’ in the Job Rules screen.

There is also another 2 options when pre-filling lines in this screen:

1)       ‘Pre-fill for all lines with zero qty’ – This has been added for companies that wish to issue everything to the Job upfront, and then when the Job is completed return any unused materials.

2)       ‘Pre-fill planned usage for all lines including purchased lines’ – This basically pre-fills all remaining Job Lines with the remaining qty, whether they are purchased or not.

User Customised Lookup screens (Enhanced):

We have added the ability to customise the standard Ostendo lookups by user. We are often asked for the ability to display extra fields, or in some cases to hide fields, by user. Rather than hard coding this, you can now customise the lookup’s; in the same manner as the opening lists for standard screens (so long as the user has List Customising turned on in User Security). You need to be logged on as that user and then while using the Lookup screen – right click as you would for an opening list.

Recognising that companies may not wish for users to then re-customise after the appropriate fields have been either shown or hidden, you can then turn-off the list customisation and what ever has been set will stay for that user (didn’t previously work that way for standard opening lists).

System Screen Conditions (Enhanced – Now includes Lookups):

We have added the ability to enter conditions for lookup’s by user (eg: there maybe someone in the company who only looks after purchasing, and you may wish to restrict their Item/ Descriptor Lookups based on that logic – or it maybe that Ostendo is used across multiple branches and Customers/Suppliers need to be restricted for specific users).

Save Grid Filter and Disable Grid Print & Export (Enhancements – File-System Configuration-User Security & Options):

You can now set at a user level whether the Grid conditions are saved when exiting screens; and also whether that user can print or export the contents of a list.

Archive Prefix can now include merged fields (Enhanced):

You can now include merged fields in your archive prefix for reports (eg: lets say for readability when archiving invoices you wish to have the Invoice Number as part of the archive file name, then the prefix definition might be something like:

Invoice [INVOICENUMBER] – now the resultant file name would look like this: Invoice12345-###### (where the #’s are a unique sequential number that is appended to all archived files)

Supplier Catalogues – Contents Not Purchased (Enhanced):

We have added an additional checkbox held against Supplier Catalogues called ‘Contents Not Purchased’. The idea of this is for where you wish to use the catalogue, but will not be creating purchase orders for any of the contents when used in Jobs or Sales Orders.

Cost Centre Mapping (extra option for Assembly receipt Standard Cost Variance):

We have added an extra cost centre type in the Cost Mapping screen (and in the warehouse screen) for Assembly Receipts Standard Cost Variance. Previously any Assembly Receipt Standard Cost variances were posted to the same cost centre as variances from Purchase Receipts.

Job Orders – (Enhanced – History Notes included in Notes section of the Job Header):

You are now able to view and edit History Notes within the Job Header screen (previously only via the related menu).

New table designed for Integration with Phone systems (for creating Call Centre Calls):

We have added a new table called ‘INCOMINGCALLS’ into the Ostendo database. The idea of this table is so that incoming calls can be inserted as records, which then immediately pops-up a notification message to the appropriate user (based on the physical computer name – which indicates their physical extension). This then allows the option to automatically create a Call Ticket.

Ostendo Script Scheduler (New Application):

We have developed a new application that allows scripts to be run based on predetermined frequencies and times. This application (oss.exe) is automatically installed into the standard Ostendo directory (via the Update) and should be executed on the server. The idea of this scheduler is to regularly run scripts to do things like:

1)       Email KPI’s or Notification Alerts out based on specific rules

2)       Automatically pick up emails and create things like Timesheets and Orders

Ostendo Database Utility (New Application):

We have developed a new application that allows the Backup, Restore and Validation (and if necessary, repair), of Ostendo Databases. This application (dbutils.exe) is automatically installed into the standard Ostendo directory (via the Update) and should be executed on the server. This application has its own built-in help.

Various Small Fixes & Improvements

Various other smaller issues and enhancements that have been reported to us have also been fixed in this update.

Ostendo Update Notes from 10 February 2009 – What’s New

Ostendo Update Notes from 10 February 2009 – What’s New

Inquiry Screen Drill Downs

We have added the ability to define drill downs (File-Reporting Configuration-Inquiry Drill-Down) to Inquiry Screens (remember Inquiries can be created through the ‘Report & View Developer’ screen). The idea of this is to provide the ability to link to either a specific screen or another Inquiry. As an example you may wish to inquire on all invoices for a customer, and then when you’ve selected a specific invoice, open the actual invoice screen (drill downs are activated by right clicking in the inquiry grid). As mentioned you can also drill down (or chain) to other Inquiry screens. An example of this might be where you’re got a Customer Inquiry and then wish to see all open Sales Orders against that Customer; and from there show all lines for a particular Sales Order; and then display the complete transaction history for that item.

Therefore with this facility; the ability to define any inquiry screens, and with the new Multi-Tab Inquiry (as is outlined in the next paragraph); any type of inquiry is possible. Please see the Tutorial Help for more information.

Multi-Tab Inquires

We have enhanced the Inquiry style of screen to include multiple sub-inquires (or tabs). What we mean by this is the ability to define an Inquiry screen with up-to 6 child type sub queries. The standard ‘Customer Statistics’ screen is laid out in a similar manner. In essence the Inquiry screen detects how many detail queries have been defined (Report & View Developer) and displays the screen accordingly:

1)       If a master query only has been defined, the Inquiry screen will appear with 2 tabs (List & Detail)

2)       If a master and 1 detail query are defined, then the Inquiry screen will appear with 3 tab (List, Detail & Lines)

3)       If a master and 2-6 detail queries have been defined, then the Inquiry screen will appear with 2 main tabs and 2-6 sub tabs within the detail tab (like the ‘Customer Statistics’ Screen).

Every one of the detail queries can have their own drill-downs. There are 2 examples of this new Multi-Tab inquiry (Multi Inquiry – Customer Information & Multi Inquiry – Supplier Information). Please see the Tutorial Help for more information.

Multi-Dimensional Order Entry

We have added the ability to capture dimensional information (including pack sizes) at Sales & Job Order Lines. What we mean by this, is that against Items (new tab called ‘Order Dims’ in the ‘Items’ screen) you can define the following to be available at order entry time:

1)       Use Length, and also whether there is a fixed length. Products that might use length would be timber or steel, where the base unit of measure is ‘Metres’, but the customer orders in the number of certain size lengths. Fixed would only be defined if the product had to be sold in full lengths.

2)       Use Width, and also whether there is a fixed width. This works exactly like Length, and would commonly be used in conjunction with length. An example would be in the tile industry where the customer would provide the length and width of the room/s and by keying this in, the number of tiles would automatically be calculated. For tiles you would also use the Fixed Length & Width feature, thereby calculating the number of full tiles.

3)       Use Depth, and also whether there is a fixed depth. Works as above but for products that require a volumetric calculation.

4)       Use Pack Size, and the ability to define the pack sizes with their own conversion factors. This would be used in industries where the customer orders in packs of a certain size but the stock and pricing might be in say kilograms. This pack size feature can also be used for comments against any of the above dimensions.

5)       Conversion Factor allows a fixed factor to be automatically applied when calculating the quantity of product. An example of this might be for paint, where the surface area is entered, and then based on a conversion factor the amount of paint can automatically be calculated.

Cost Centre Transactions

We have added a new screen called ‘Cost Centre Transactions’ (General-Cost Centre Transactions). This allows the user to enter parameters and then generates a report for cost centre transactions (not unlike a Financial Trial Balance Report).

Purchase Receipts Undo Feature

We have added the ability to undo an Updated Purchase Receipt. This will create reversing financial transactions and allow the receipt to be edited before posting again. Any Purchase invoices that have been matched to that receipt will need to be deleted before undoing the posting.

POS Quotations

We have added the ability to create POS Quotations from within the Point of Sale screen. There is a new field called ‘Sales Style’ which has 2 options (‘Order’, Quote’), if the ‘Quote’ option is selected the user will be able to print a Quotation sheet using ‘Alt-P’. Once a Quote has been created it is then put On-Hold until it is either converted to an Order (by changing the Style) or by clicking the ‘alt-No Sale’ button.

The main difference between a Quote and an Order is that a Quote doesn’t book stock out and a Quote can’t be paid for.

POS Blind End of Day Cash-up

We have added the ability for the POS End of Day to be carried out without displaying what the system thinks is in the cash drawer. This option can be turned on in the File-System Configuration-User Security & Options screen.

Inventory Label Printing Enhancement

We have added the ability to print barcode labels for Items that are not necessarily in stock, via the ‘Inventory Labels’ screen. There is a new drop-down list allowing the user to select ‘Items’ which will then change the contents of the grid to all Items with all pre-defined characteristics (eg: Colour, Size & Grade) and for units of measure. The other enhancement is the ‘Item Barcodes’ screen now allows for barcodes to be defined as ‘Internal’; which basically means that the barcode will be printed on the labels, and that there can’t be more than 1 Internal barcode for every unique combination of Item, Unit of Measure and characteristics.

Various Small Fixes & Improvements

Various other smaller issues and enhancements that have been reported to us have also been fixed in this update.

Ostendo Update Notes from 25 November 2008 – What’s New

Ostendo Update Notes from 25 November 2008 – What’s New

Inquiry Screens

We have added a new style of view called ‘Inquiry’. This enables information to be displayed and inquired on, via the standard screen interface. In other words, Inquiry screens have an Opening List, Detail Tab, and optionally a Lines tab. These screens are found at the bottom of the main module menus in their own sub-menu called ‘Inquiries’. As with Reports, Analysis Views, Charts and Pivot Views, these new Inquiry screens can be developed or modified to suit the specific company or user requirements.

In this update we have included 46 new Inquiry Screens. Following are a few examples:

• Warehouse Inventory – This Inquiry screen displays the value of stock per warehouse with the ability to drill down and display the actual inventory
• Price Level List for Items – This Inquiry screen displays the number of Items defined for that Price Level with a drill down showing all items with their calculated prices
• Overdue Purchases by Supplier – This Inquiry screen displays the total outstanding value of purchases by supplier with a drill down to the actual purchase lines
• Bills of Material Stock – This Inquiry screen displays for each Bill of Material the on hand stock quantity and the maximum quantity that could be manufactured based on the component on hand stock quantities
• Outstanding Invoices by Customer – This Inquiry screen displays each Customer with their outstanding balances

The above is just a small sample of what comes with Ostendo. Development and modification of these Inquiry Screens is achieved through the Report and View Developer.

Additional Fields at Line Level

We have added additional fields to Order and Invoice lines throughout the system, along with a number of other screens that didn’t previously have additional fields. For a full list of screens and lines that have additional fields please refer to the ‘Additional Fields’ screen.

Note: When defining additional fields, if the name and field type of the field is the same, and where one is derived from the other (eg: an Item and the Job Line), the value held in that additional field for the Item will be automatically copied to the Job Line (assuming the Job Line is for that Item).

Price Level Override for Sales & Jobs

We have added the ability to override the Price Level for Jobs and Sales Orders. The idea behind this is to allow a different Price Level (and Rate Level if Jobs) to be used rather than the default for the Customer. The next update will allow for Pricing and Rate Level Matrixes to be defined for a combination of Customer and Job or Sales Type.

Purchase Invoice Enhancements

We have added a number features focussed primarily on speed. These are as follows:

Speed Entry for Invoice Only: If Purchase invoices are entered directly (i.e. Invoice Only) you have the ability to define the speed entry field for the invoice line. This works in the same manner as found in the: Purchase, Sales, Jobs and Assembly Order screens. Activation is in the Purchase Rules screen (Order Speed Entry)

Invoice Posting Tolerance: This allows Purchase Invoices to be posted if there is a difference between the Supplier Invoice amounts and the Ostendo calculated Amounts within that specified tolerance (defined in the Purchase Rules). Effectively Ostendo automatically creates the balancing values (either tax or net) to ensure a match.

Defaulting the Supplier Invoice Amounts to the Ostendo Amounts: This option automatically sets the Supplier Invoice amounts to the Ostendo calculated Batch amounts, as lines are either being entered or matched off. The flag to enable this can be found in the Purchase Rules screen, called ‘Default Supplier Invoice Values’.

Default Allocation Type: This allows a default allocation type to be defined in the Purchase Detail tab – thereby defaulting any lines created to that allocation type. Only applicable for the ‘Invoice Only’ style, and mainly relates to allocations to Job Orders.

Creating Items or Descriptors on the Fly in Purchasing

We have added the ability to create an Item or Descriptors on the fly when creating new Purchase Lines. This option is on by default but can be disabled via the Purchase Rules screen.

POS Enhancements

We have added some more rules for the POS operation. These are as follows:

Customer Required For Value: The value assigned to the field determines whether an actual Customer is required for the Sale if the sale value exceeds that value. In other words the default Cash Sale customer can’t be used.

Default Payment Style: This allows the default ‘Payment Style’ to be changed to ‘On Account’, rather than ‘Cash Sale’.

New Sale Sign In: This option prompts the operator to sign-in on every sale.

Service Enhancements

We have added the Service Zone to the Customer Assets screen and allowed for this field, and any additional fields that have been defined, to be used when filtering the Orders Required in the ‘Service Orders Required’ screen.

Inventory & WIP Value Reporting

We have changed the Inventory & WIP reporting outputs to include the detail of the inventory and orders as at the required valuation date (previously these figures where summary amounts).

Daily Statistics automatically emailed from Ostendo

When managing a business it can be extremely useful keep a track on key business statistics at a daily level. Having these turn up in your inbox each morning, is probably the most convenient method of delivery, bypassing having to be in the office or logged into Ostendo.

The script is one of the more useful examples included in the new scripting help, and can, with little effort be tailored to suit the requirements of any business.

There are 2 main configurable options within the script (assuming the email host name and sender address are defined also):

1)       The recipients of the Daily Statistics (email addresses)

2)       The Daily Statistics sent to each recipient:

a.       Job Order Statistics

b.      Sales Orders Statistics

c.       POS Statistics

d.      Invoice Statistics

e.       Debtor Statistics

f.        Inventory and WIP Statistics

Beyond just using the script as is, it can be modified to suit any business type. Ostendo scripts can be run via a simple scheduler, allowing them to be run at predetermined times, and at predetermined days (i.e. 1 am each morning). Please see the new scripting help file for more information on all of the above.

Scripting Help & Examples

Ostendo has a comprehensive custom scripting facility to enable everything from importing supplier catalogues to validating data keyed into screens. We have now released a Scripting Help file that covers the basics of scripting, where it can be applied, built-in Ostendo functions, and working examples.

Various Small Fixes & Improvements

Various other smaller issues and enhancements that have been reported to us have also been fixed in this update.