The LubeSoft® inventory function is one of the most flexible and easy-to-customize parts of LubeSoft®. This article helps you understand how inventory works and how it relates to the rest of the system so you can take full advantage of LubeSoft’s® flexibility.
In LubeSoft®, the word “inventory” has a much broader meaning. Normally, inventory refers only to those tangible items that are sold, received, and counted periodically. In LubeSoft®, the word “inventory” includes all of these things, but much more as well.
Besides including parts and supplies, LubeSoft® inventory includes jobs, checkpoints, and a number of “special” items that allow the system to perform some of its more complex (and convenient) functions. Basically, any item that you might show in the invoicing portion of the customer’s printed invoice (see below) should be considered an inventory item.
| DESCRIPTION | QTY. | PRICE |
|---|---|---|
| FULL SERVICE OIL CHANGE | 1.00 | 25.99 |
| 14 POINT CHECK | 1.00 | 0.00 |
| OIL FILTER #111 | 1.00 | 0.00 |
| 10/40 MOTOR OIL | 5.00 | 0.00 |
These items include any products that are used during servicing, and items that are descriptions rather than parts. You’ll find a more detailed description of items in the Setting Up Inventory Items article.
Any activity in LubeSoft® that affects the inventory records is constantly updated. This real-time inventory system ensures that your on-hand balances are accurate at any given time during the day. Every night during the closing procedures, LubeSoft® automatically runs an inventory update process that calculates all sales, receipts, transfers, and adjustments that have happened during the day. This update process provides LubeSoft® with the ability to give you current dollar valuations of your total inventory.
Although part of the inventory process is automated, there are some procedures that you must follow closely to make sure your inventory is correct. As you learn and use the Inventory system, make sure you follow these procedures, which are detailed in other articles.
Before you get started, you must know the following terms, which will help you understand the inventory concepts:
agreed cost
The cost at which an inventory item is to be purchased from the vendor. This number may be a fixed cost, but more often it is an estimate. Although this is the default cost for receiving, all receipts are not necessarily at this cost.
average cost
A method used to determine the cost of a store’s inventory. The average cost of an inventory item is the total cost of the items currently in stock divided by the number of items.
cost
What you pay your supplier for an item.
inventory item
Each inventory item is grouped under a unique inventory identifier, such as PH8A or 1030.
inventory value
The dollar value of the entire inventory. It can be calculated by taking the sum of the values for each item, which in turn is derived from the average cost of the item times the number of items.
last cost
The cost at which an item was last received or adjusted.
price
The dollar value at which a given item will be sold to the customer.
receipt cost
The cost at which a new group of items was received. It can be viewed on the adjust receipts screen when the popup is used, or on the Receive Inventory Report.
standard cost
The last cost to which an inventory item has been adjusted. All quantities on hand have this cost until the next time the cost is adjusted by the user. This is used with the Standard inventory cost method only.
current cost
In the Standard costing method, this is the standard cost. For all other inventory calculation methods, this is the average cost.
