alphatruck Warehouse Application Introduction The Warehouse menu choice: Select the warehouse model that you wish to use. There are four models to choose from. Standard Public, US Customs General Order W/H, US Customs Warehouse Entry and Container Freight Station Model (some programs are currently under development.) Select Warehouse Standard Public Model 163
Receive Inventory Control Number To receive Inventory by a receiving control number, select menu choice 1. The receiving control number is called a "Key Rec" Number. Selecting this menu choice will run the main receive inventory program the screen to which is shown below. Before any inventory can be received however, a warehouse customer must be set up. This setup procedure is outlined as follows: A. Add records to the Warehouse Charge type database. B. Add the warehouse customer to the Master Customer file. C. Setup the warehouse rates for the customer (W/H Rates by Customer file). Warehouse Charge Type File The Warehouse Charge Type file contains information on what types of charges are billed to a customer, when they are billed and how the charge amount is calculated (method). From the Standard Public Warehouse Model Menu, select item 8, Application OW Utilities. This will display the utilities menu as shown on the following page. Select menu choice 3 from this menu, Warehouse Charge Types SFMP. (See Standard File Maintenance Program document for instructions on how to use a SFMP). 164
The Warehouse Charges Type Screen is shown below. 165
Some of the fields in this database are reserved for future use. The fields that require data at this time are as follows: Charge Type Code: Description: F/B Line Type Code: When Charged Code: How Charged Code: Applies Only to this: A two character code that defines this charge type Description to show on invoice to customer Link to type charge code on invoice (see FB- DSC) Code used to determine WHEN the charge applies Code used to determine HOW the charge applies Allows package type specific codes All charge types that are going to be used in your warehousing operation should be entered into this database. The next setup step is to add the customer to the Master Customer File. This is accomplished by selecting Menu Choice 5 of the Utilities Menu, Add Customer to Master. The method used throughout the alphatruck package to add a customer name/address to the master file is consistent. The program run by this menu choice provides an identical customer entry method as does the alphatruck Freight Bill enter program. For more information on entering a customer, see the Input Freight Bills Tutorial. Customer Warehouse Rate Info File Once a customer is added to the master customer file a record can now be added to the Warehouse Rates by Customer. This file links some of the Warehouse Charge Types that were setup earlier to a specific customer. In this way, you can have different charge types for different customers or the same charge types for different customers but with different rates. Select menu choice number 2 to execute this program. In addition to defining the rates for a warehouse customer, this file also sets up some of the rules and defaults that are used to process a customer s inventory. See the screen example on the following page. 166
Add a record to this file for the customer you are setting up. Enter all of the charge types that are valid for this customer, the rate and the minimum charges. In fields 46 to 50, enter the names of any special labels that may have been setup for this customer. If you have a question on the labels or the label names, contact DPS Software Systems Software Support. Fields 51 and 52 define an associated customer code and the next order number. This next order number is only used based on an option setting. Fields 53 to 62 define some of the rules and methods that apply to this customer. Use the TAB key with all fields that are marked with an asterisk (*) to see the choices that are available for that field. All of these fields should be setup. The only other setup item that you might want to consider before you actually start adding inventory is to pre-define your warehouse locations. This can be done by using the Warehouse Location SFMP, menu choice 4. Locations codes should be added based on the layout of your particular warehouse. 167
Receive Inventory Data Entry At this point, we are ready to begin receiving inventory. Select menu choice number 1 from the Standard Public Warehouse Model menu, Receive Inventory by Key Rec. The screen is shown below. The cursor begins on the serial number control option field. The receive date defaults to the current date but can be changed by pressing the up arrow. Generally, the serial number control option will be set by the system based on the customer s setting in the Customer Warehouse Rates file. Next, enter the customer code for the warehouse customer. If the customer has not been properly setup, an error message is displayed. In the KR No. field, enter the key rec number of an existing receiving record if you wish to edit it or press the ENTER key to get the next key rec number. Next the cursor moves to the PO, B/L, Bond? and SCAC code fields. All of these fields are optional. If entered, they can provide useful reference information. The SCAC code would be for the carrier that brought the products to the warehouse. Once all of the "header" information has been entered, the cursor moves to the "Rcv SKU Info" section of the screen. Enter the quantity and SKU of the product being received. Depending on the serial number option selected, you may also be required to enter serial number information. The location in the warehouse and a lot number may also be entered at this time. The location can be entered later via a RF scanner used by warehouse personnel out in the warehouse 168
during a "put-a-way" operation. Depending on systems options, you may be prompted to enter PO information by Serial Number. If the SKU is not found in the customers SKU file, it can be added at this point. The system will prompt the user for information on the specific SKU. After a specific line of information is entered, the cursor returns to the Units field for the next SKU being received. This process is continued until all product has been entered. A list of all items entered can be viewed at any time by pressing the F2 key in the Units field. When all entry is complete, press the F1 key to see the "Finish Options" Menu. This is shown below. Finish option 1 will create a freight bill for the pickup charges for the product brought into the warehouse. This should only be used if your trucking operation was the carrier that made the pickup. Option 2 will create an invoice for any "Into the warehouse" charges that have been setup for this customer. Option 3 will print an inventory received report. Option 4 will print unit bar code labels. Option 5 will print storage unit labels. These are only available if certain options have been turned on. 169
To return to the customer field and enter a new key rec, press the ESC key. To exit the program, press the ESC key from the Customer Code field. Entering Shipping Orders To enter shipping orders, select menu choice number 2 from the Standard Public Warehouse Model Menu. The screen shown below will be displayed. This program works in a manner similar to the Receive Inventory program. The main difference is that it requires four customers as follows: Main Warehouse Customer Ship To Customer Sold To Customer Bill To Customer Each of these customer types will be requested when entering a new order. The order number can be driven by a system wide series of numbers or by number series that are customer specific. Press the ENTER key to get the next order number. The fields for PO, B/L and Dept. are optional and serve as reference numbers. Enter the number of units of the SKU that are being shipped. An option allows for the entry of pieces instead of units. This option can be turned on or off by pressing the F4 key. 170
Next enter the SKU number of the product to ship. The system will verify if there is sufficient product to ship. A fist-in, first-out (FIFO) method is used to make this determination. If serial number control is on, the system will allow you to override FIFO by selecting the product to ship by individual serial numbers. When all product ordered has been entered, press the F1 key to view the order finish option screen. This is shown in the figure below. Option 1 will create a freight bill for the delivery of the shipped product via your trucking company. This should not be used if the product will be given to a third party carrier. Option 2 creates the "Out of Warehouse" invoice and finalizes the order. Finalizing the order moves the product out of inventory. This is the last option that should be completed on an order. A security feature allows for the restriction of options 1 and 2 to specific personnel. If an order is finalized in error or changes are required after it is finalized, a "un-finalize" option is available. This is executed by pressing the F7 key (see status line). Option 3 prints an Inventory Pick list and can be used by W/H personnel to pick the product. Option 4 provides for the printing of shipping labels via the Datamax series of label printers. 171
Option 5 will print a bill of lading that can be used if the product is being shipped via a third party carrier. To exit the finalize option menu, press ESC. This returns the cursor to the header information of the enter order main screen. To exit the program, press ESC again. Other Warehouse functions Information Display The information display is designed to provide a single source for checking on the status of customer and product specific inventory levels. Various options allow for the selection and display of information on this screen. A "customer specific" version is also available for use by your customer via a dialup or Internet connection to your server. Invoice Processing The menu shown below provides access to all of the customer invoicing functions that are performed on a demand basis. This includes the creation of additional invoices for special work performed and also the actual printing of the regular batch of invoices to be mailed to the customer. Value Add Processing This features is not currently available but is scheduled to be included in a future release. 172
Reports/Labels Menu Shown below is the reports/labels menu. This menu is still under development as new customer requirements are defined. It currently contains eight reports and two types of labels. More options are planned for this menu to add additional flexibility in re-printing various required reports and label sets. Scanner Options 173
There are various options that are available with the Intermec Trakker RF scanning device. These options are listed in the above menus. Pre-Scan Mfg. If a manufacturer requires that you maintain their product via the specific serial number of an item, and if the inventory units (cartons) containing that item have labels on them with the required serial numbers, this function can be used. It will load a file with all of the serial numbers and then allow them to be loaded during the receive inventory process. Locate Product The locate product function is used to "put away" product in the warehouse. Scanning the bar code label of the unit and then the bar code label of the bin location immediately updates the location in the system for this product. Pick by S/N If serial number control is being used, this function allows for the picking of specific units by serial number. Generally an order, with serial number control, will specify which serial numbers must be picked. This process ensures that the correct ones are actually shipped. Other Jobs This selection calls the menu OWMBA2. Pallet Ops This function provides for the building and emptying of pallets. Once a pallet has been built, the product on the pallet can be selected by scanning just the pallet number. Info Display This function allows an operator to scan a unit in the warehouse and view information regarding that unit. Do Inventory This function is designed to facilitate the taking of a physical inventory. This inventory may be a complete inventory or a part of a cycle count process (under development as of Rel. 6.01.) To log out while in the Trakker menu, select 9. 174
This concludes the Introduction to the alphatruck Warehousing Package. For more information, contact DPS Software Systems, Inc. or attend one of the classes offered on this subject. 175