Anchor

	top
	top

Inventory management is used to handle stock of physical goods and to supervise the movement of products that enter and leave a company's warehouses.

In CRM.COM, a warehouse represents the physical location where sold or rented hardware is stored. A separate warehouse can be set up for each location from which hardware is retrieved. Additional warehouses can be set up to represent locations where hardware is returned, in order to distinguish them from unused goods.

Inventory management functionality

Import new goods into warehouses.
Move multiple items in and out of warehouses or between warehouses at the same time.
Handle the sale of goods.
Keep a balance of goods in each warehouse.
Identify individual traceable physical goods (installed items) through a serial number.
Identify the supplier of goods.
Track physical goods installed at a customer's location.
Track the movement of installed items between warehouses and customers.

Setting Up Inventory Management

...

Installed Item Categories

Categories are used to classify installed items based on common attributes.

Anchor
definition
definition
Inventory definitions

...

Provide the type of the warehouse to be used in each event (such as 'For Adding' or 'For Removing') and assign a classification to determine whether the goods are rented or sold.

Rentals: Installed items added to subscriptions and not purchased by the customers; the goods must be returned when the subscription is terminated.
Sales: Installed items sold through jobs or direct sales; the goods do not have to be returned. If the good is extracted from a proprietary warehouse, the customer is billed through CRM.COM; if the good is extracted from a warehouse that belongs to a partner, the customer is not billed through CRM.COM.

...

Mandatory Configurable

Allowed Warehouses

For Adding

Define the Warehouse Types from which physical goods can be added to subscriptions or jobs.

Specify the classification ('Rented', 'Sales') of each warehouse type.

For Adding During Replacement

Define the Warehouse Types from which physical goods can be added to subscriptions or jobs during a replacement (i.e., when using the 'Swap Installed Item' action).

Specify the classification ('Rented', 'Sales') of each warehouse type.

For Removing

Define the Warehouse Types to which physical goods can be returned when removed from subscriptions or jobs.

Specify the classification ('Rented', 'Sales') of each warehouse type and define a default for each classification.

Note

title	System process for determining return warehouse

Check whether the returned item was rented or sold (i.e., the classification of the warehouse the good was originally taken from).
Retrieve the default warehouse type of the established classification from the inventory management definition.
Retrieve warehouses of the established warehouse type, from the pool of available warehouses.
Match the group that the user is currently logged in under, to one of the retrieved warehouses' 'Owned By Group', to identify the warehouse the good should be returned to.
If no match is found in the default warehouse type (in step 2), then check other warehouse types of the same classification and return to step 3.

For Removing During Replacement

Define the Warehouse Types to which physical goods can be returned when removed from subscriptions or jobs during a replacement (i.e., when using the 'Swap Installed Item' action).

Specify the classification ('Rented', 'Sales') of each warehouse type and define a default for each classification.

Note

title	System process for determining return warehouse

Check whether the returned item was rented or sold (i.e., the classification of the warehouse the good was originally taken from).
Retrieve the default warehouse type of the established classification from the inventory management definition.
Retrieve warehouses of the established warehouse type, from the pool of available warehouses.
Match the group that the user is currently logged in under, to one of the retrieved warehouses' 'Owned By Group', to identify the warehouse the good should be returned to.
If no match is found in the default warehouse type (in step 2), then check other warehouse types of the same classification and return to step 3.

Allowed Price Plans

Define the price plans that will be used when selling physical goods to customers through the Quick Sales process (available through the accounts receivable). Multiple plans can be specified. Set a default to be used automatically for Quick Sales.

Select Applicable Account Receivable Classifications for each selected price plan.

Back to top

Anchor
warehouse
warehouse
Warehouses

...

Mandatory Configurable

Main Information

Type

Owned By Group: The group that owns the warehouse automatically defaults to that of the logged-in user (can be changed). Only users with access to the specific group can view and move products in and out of the warehouse.

Note

The combination of the Warehouse Type and Owned By Group must be unique.

When a physical good is returned from a customer, the system uses the combination of these two fields to determine which warehouse the good should be placed in.

Refer to Inventory Definition for more information.

Allow Negative Stock: Enable to allow the removal of non-traceable physical goods from a warehouse when the stock's quantity is not measurable.

E.g., if you have a non-traceable good in the system, such as milk, so that it can be added to an order of (traceable) coffee.

Negative stock is not allowed when moving goods between warehouses.

Balances

The running balance of stock kept in the warehouse.

Click on the Quantity of each product to view the warehouse transactions that resulted in this balance.

Click on the Included In Bundles of each product to view the total quantity of the product that is included in bundles (as a component product).

Related configuration areas

The following modules are related to inventory management and may be configured for the inventory management module to operate at its full capacity.

Manual Link	Area	Description
Products	Products	Create the products that will be stocked in the warehouses or used to create installed Items (traceable physical goods).

...

Back to top

Using Inventory Management

...

Table filter

column	Applies to Product
id	155239730964218ad608616a8dcc23844c3882dd7fd7b

Applies to Product

All

Main Information

All

Product: The installed item (only traceable physical goods can be selected).

Serial Number: Unique identifier for the product.

Alternative code

The State of the item is updated through dedicated actions and can be 'Effective' (default) or 'Not Effective'. 'Non-Effective' Installed Items cannot be provided to customers.

All

Components

All

Physical goods that are grouped together into one product also constitute installed items (bundle) and can be managed as such by the processes for individual standalone items.

Info
The Components section is available where the Composition Method of the product is set to Bundle.

All

Ownership Information

(Information generated by the system on the location of an installed item used on a subscription or stored in a warehouse)

Ownership Status

All

Ownership Status: Whether the company or customer owns the installed item, depending on the business transaction that was registered. The available values are:

Sold to Customer (owned by the customer)
Rented to Customer (owned by the company)
Not in Warehouse (not located in any warehouse)
In Internal Warehouse (located in one of your company's warehouses)
In External Warehouse (located in a partner warehouse)
Owned by Customer (bought and owned by the customer).

Ownership Status:

Sold to Customer

Owner Account: The accounts receivable of the customer that bought the item.

Delivered by Job (through which the item was sold)

Sales Method: Whether the sale took place through the company (Direct Sale) or a partner (Indirect Sale).

Invoice number of invoiced physical goods with a 'Direct Sale' method.

Stock Out Warehouse Transaction number.

Performed Date: The date on which the job was registered and the item sold.

Performed By: The user who registered the job and sold the item.

Ownership Status: Rented to Customer

Used by Subscription number

Ownership Status: In Internal Warehouse or
In External Warehouse

Located in Warehouse

Warehouse Owned By Group

All

Change History

All

Information on modifications to the following fields including the user and date.

Serial Number
State
Location (transfer between warehouse and subscription or job)
Warranty (for items removed from the customer).

Installed Items with Warranty

Warranty Policy

Installed Items with Warranty

Warranty Policy

Warranty Expiration Date

Warehouse Issue Date (on which the item was removed from the warehouse).

Installed Items of product types with meter reading

Meter Reading

Installed Items of product types with meter reading

Details of meter readings recorded for the installed item. The respective UDR and a total for all the readings are provided.

Note
Meter readings can only be added to an installed item through WEB API.

Installed Item is provisioned by Nagra Media Live

Nagra Media Live Platform Parameters

Installed Item is provisioned by Nagra Media Live

The Nagra Unique Identifier (NUID) of the item as specified in installed item provisioning parameters. Maximum number of characters: 256.

Note

Available if the product is specified as provisioned (i.e., defined in the allowed physical goods of the provider) by Nagra Media Live.

Additional parameters can be added in this section.

This information cannot be provided when creating items through Warehouse Transactions or /wiki/spaces/WIP/pages/10008286.

Installed Item is provisioned by Nagra Media Live

NagraVision SMSgw Parameters

Paired Installed Item
NUID (Nagra Unique Identifier): This parameter is applicable only for items mapped as Cardless STBs.
VUA: A parameter provided by Nagra and applicable for items mapped as Cardless STBs (always read-only).

Note

Available if the product is specified as provisioned (i.e., defined in the allowed physical goods of the provider) by NagraVision SMSgw.

This information cannot be provided when creating installed items through Warehouse Transactions or /wiki/spaces/WIP/pages/10008286.

Installed Item is provisioned by VCAS OMI

VCAS OMI Parameters

Installed Item is provisioned by VCAS OMI

DVB SMS Device ID (used to identify the item on the VCAS OMI DVB network)

Note

Available if the product is specified as provisioned (i.e., defined in the allowed physical goods of the provider) by VCAS OMI (DVB).

This information cannot be provided when creating installed items through Warehouse Transactions or /wiki/spaces/WIP/pages/10008286.

...

Mandatory Configurable

Main Information
Life Cycle State indicates whether the items were successfully moved and the warehouse balance updated (Posted) or whether the movement is still pending (Draft). Click on SAVE to post the transaction or SAVE AS DRAFT to save without affecting stock balance until goods are physically received and accounted for. Warehouse that stock will be moved to or from. Batch Number: Used to keep track of multiple warehouse transactions made for the same batch. Supplier: A contact that provided the stock. Posted date
Items to Stock In / Items to Stock Out / Items to Move The physical goods that will be added, removed or transferred between warehouses. Refer to 'Adding items to warehouse transactions' for more information on adding physical goods to a transaction through the Data Entry page.
Product: The physical good to be added. Serial Number (for traceable physical goods only, refer to 'Installed Items') Alternative Code (for traceable physical goods only, refer to 'Installed Items') Quantity to be added to the stock (always '1' for traceable physical goods) Unit Cost Amount Total Cost Amount (Unit Cost * Quantity) Components: The constituent products of bundle goods.
Transaction Totals
An aggregated quantity and total cost for each physical good included in the transaction. If a product bundle is added the constituent components are counted as separate products. E.g., if an 'Installation Kit' is added, which has 2 Modems and 1 Decoder as components, then the transaction totals will display: 1 Installation Kit 2 Modems 1 Decoder

Back to top

Posting a warehouse transaction

...

Select the Product Type and the Product from the drop-down lists.
Serial Number: Provide the unique identifier of the new item.
Use Enter to add the items.
The item is added to the list and an alternative code and unit cost can be provided.
If an alternative code is not provided, then it is set equal to the serial number.

...

Adding physical good bundles to a warehouse transaction

...

Mandatory Configurable

Input Settings

Warehouse in which the installed items will be imported.

Warehouse Transaction Life Cycle State: The state of the stock in warehouse transaction that will be created once the run is executed, which can be 'Posted' or 'Draft'.

Note
When a run is executed, a warehouse transaction is created and assigned the selected life cycle state. If the state is 'Draft', then the imported items cannot be rented or sold.

Supplier: The contact information of the supplier that provided the stock.

Installed Item Product: Select between USE SPECIFIC PRODUCT (traceable physical good) and USE PRODUCTS SPECIFIED IN IMPORT FILE.

Installed Item Category: Select between USE SPECIFIC CATEGORY and USE CATEGORIES SPECIFIED IN IMPORT FILE.

Process Runs

Displays the Runs that were executed for the specific definition. Each run includes the items that were processed. In the case of an error, its code and description are displayed.

...

Back to top

Anchor
file
file
Preparing the import file

...

Warning
If a bundle product is being imported, then the bundle installed item must be defined in the file before its components.

...

Import File Templates

Anchor
EXCEL
EXCEL
Excel

...

Note
If the product is offered as stand-alone and in a bundle, a total balance, and a balance for items included in bundles, is displayed.

...

Applying business flows on inventory management

...

A warranty policy printout displays detailed information on an installed item's warranty policy coverage in terms of duration and coverage reasoning. The printout is available through Installed Items Data Entry page and unlike other printouts, it is not available for sending by email.

Back to top

Inventory Management Business Examples

Setting up warehouses

Panel

name	green
id	3

Scenario 1

Company ZX warehouse is used to control the location and quantity of all physical goods related to ZX subscriptions such as TV boxes, routers, and remote controls. Different warehouses are used for hardware sold by ZX partners.

All hardware is initially imported into ZX's Main Warehouse and distributed to other warehouses from there.

Warehouse Types

Configure warehouse types as explained in the table below

Name	Information
Sales WT	Warehouses that belong to Company ZX or partners and from where installed items will be sold. (Items from partner warehouses are not billed from CRM.COM).
Rentals WT	Warehouses that belong to Company ZX and from where installed items will be rented (not billed).
Returns of Sales WT	Warehouses that belong to Company ZX or partners and where installed items that were sold and are being replaced for free (through Warranties) will be returned.
Returns of Rentals WT	Warehouses that belong to Company ZX and where rented installed items will be returned.

Inventory Management Definitions

Configure the inventory management business definition as explained in the table below.

For Adding		For Adding During Replacement		For Removing		For Removing during Replacement
Warehouse Type	Classification	Warehouse Type	Classification	Warehouse Type	Classification	Warehouse Type	Classification
Sales WT	Sales	Sales WT	Sales	Returns of Sales WT	Sales	Returns of Sales WT	Sales
Rentals WT	Rentals	Rentals WT	Rentals	Returns of Rentals WT	Rentals	Returns of Rentals WT	Rentals

Warehouses

Create warehouses as explained in the table below, providing the respective group and warehouse type for each.

Warehouse Name	Warehouse Type	Group (Sales Branch or Partner)
Sales	Sales WT	Sales (Company ZX)
Partner Sales	Sales WT	Sales Partner
Rentals	Rentals WT	Sales (Company ZX)
SBA Direct Sales Returns	Returns of Sales WT	Sales (Company ZX)
PBA Indirect Sales Returns	Returns of Sales WT	Sales Partner
SBA Rentals Returns	Returns of Rentals WT	Sales (Company ZX)

Configuration

Create the following Products, classified as traceable physical goods:
1. TV Boxes
2. Routers
Create the following Products, classified as non-traceable physical goods:
1. Remote control

Import installed items

Create a new import for the installed items.

In the import installed items definition provide the following information:
1. Warehouse: Sales
2. Warehouse transaction life cycle state: 'Posted'
3. Installed item product: Use products specified in the import file (Check that the import file has the correct product codes).
4. Schedule to 'Run Now' / run immediately.
Save the definition and click Submit from the Actions menu.
1. Create a file by downloading the import template and updating it and 'Add' it in the modal window.
Once the import is complete all the items will be available in the Sales Warehouse.

Create transaction to create Remote Controls

Create a stock in warehouse transaction to 'create' the remote controls (non-traceable physical goods can only be 'created' through stock in warehouse transactions)

Navigate to Direct Sales Warehouse and from the Actions menu select 'New Stock in transaction'
Select Product Type 'Non-traceable physical good' and Product 'Company ZX Remote Control'.
Input '10' as the Quantity and press 'Enter'.
Save the transaction.

Distribute boxes routers and remote controls to partner warehouse

Create a stock movement warehouse transaction to move physical goods from the Company ZX warehouse to the partner's warehouse.

Navigate to Direct Sales Warehouse and from the Actions menu select 'New Stock Movement Transaction'
Define the 'To Warehouse' as 'Partner Sales'.
Select Product Type 'Non-traceable physical good' and Product 'Company ZX Remote Control'.
Input '10' as the Quantity and press 'Enter'.
Click on 'Add Multiple Installed Items' and search for the items that were just imported.
Select 3 boxes and 3 routers from the modal.
Save the transaction.

Creating installed items

Panel

name	blue
id	0
title	Set up and create installed items

Scenario 2

Company ZX wants to set up smartcards and decoders as traceable physical goods (installed items) in order to track them with a unique identifier, and cables and remote controls as non-traceable physical goods, to only track their quantity. They need to be able to manually create single installed items, in order to correct errors that may be caused by importing all items together in one flow.

CRM.COM Solution

Configuration

Create the following Products classified as traceable physical goods:
1. Smartcards
2. Decoders
Create the following Products classified as non-traceable physical goods:
1. Cable
2. Remote control

User actions

Create an installed item:
1. Navigate to the Manage Installed Items page and create new installed items for smartcards and decoders by specifying their serial numbers.
Move the items to a warehouse:
1. Once the items are created, go to Manage Warehouse Transactions.
2. Create a new 'stock in' warehouse transaction.
  1. Select the warehouse the items should be moved to.
  2. Search for the installed items created in Step 1.
  3. Save the transaction.

Using stock in transactions to import new cards and boxes in the system

Panel

name	blue
id	0
title	Stock in Warehouse Transactions

Scenario 3

Company ZX wants to add a new batch of smartcards and set-top boxes that it received, into the system. They don't want to import them as there are only a few units and the agent must check each one individually as it is entered. A barcode scanner could also be used to obtain the serial number.

Solution

Navigate to Manage Warehouse Transactions.
Click on NEW > STOCK IN TRANSACTION.
1. Enter the warehouse where the items should be placed.
2. Provide the product type and the product.
3. Provide the serial number of each card and set-top box (a barcode scanner can be used).
4. Save the warehouse transaction.
Navigate to the Stock Balance screen and confirm that the balance of each product in the warehouse has been updated accordingly.

Moving items between warehouses

Panel

name	blue
id	0
title	Stock Movement Warehouse Transaction

Scenario 4

Company ZX imports all new physical goods into a central warehouse for initial stocktaking and then distributes them to the other warehouses.

Solution

Use 'stock in' warehouse transactions (for non-traceable physical goods) and the 'import installed items utility' (for traceable physical goods) to import all goods in the central warehouse. Use 'stock movement' warehouse transactions to distribute the goods other warehouses.

1. Import all installed items into the temporary warehouse using the import utility.
2. Import all non-traceable physical goods into the temporary warehouse using a stock in warehouse transaction.
3. Navigate to the temporary warehouse.
4. Click on ACTIONS > NEW STOCK MOVEMENT TRANSACTION.
  1. Specify the target warehouse that goods will be moved to.
  2. Specify the product type and the product of the installed items that are being moved.
    1. Type or scan the installed items.
  3. Specify the product type and the product of the non-traceable physical goods that are being moved.
    1. Specify the quantity of the non-traceable physical goods.
  4. Save the warehouse transaction.
5. Check the stock balance to ensure that the correct traceable physical goods and quantities of non-traceable physical goods have been moved.

Note

title	Notes

If you are using a previous release, view CRM.COM Release ChangesChanges.
Use the API to create and manage inventory from an external system, such as a customer portal. Refer to Warehouses and Warehouse Transactions WEB API for a comprehensive list of available actions.

Back to top

Glossary

CRM.COM Term	Definition
Accounts Receivable	A ledger of the financial transactions carried out between a company and its customers, such as invoices and payments. The accounts receivable keeps a running balance of debits and credits and displays the amount a company is owed in exchange for goods supplied and services rendered.
Job	A small project initiated by the operator for customers, involving the delivery and billing of services, products, and activities. Customer requests and orders, such as that for a new subscription, can be initiated and registered through a job.
Product bundle	A combination of component products offered for sale as one product. Flexible product bundles have a variable selection of constituent products as components. Fixed product bundles have a fixed selection.
Subscription	A selection of customer services billed on a recurring, usage or one-time basis.

Panel

name	grey
id	1

Versions Compared

Old Version 7

New Version Current

Key

Inventory management functionality

Setting Up Inventory Management

Installed Item Categories

Anchor
definition
definition
Inventory definitions

Anchor
warehouse
warehouse
Warehouses

Related configuration areas

Using Inventory Management

Posting a warehouse transaction

Adding physical good bundles to a warehouse transaction

Anchor
file
file
Preparing the import file

Import File Templates

Anchor
EXCEL
EXCEL
Excel

Applying business flows on inventory management

Inventory Management Business Examples

Setting up warehouses

Creating installed items

Using stock in transactions to import new cards and boxes in the system

Moving items between warehouses

Glossary

Related Links

Page Comparison

Versions Compared

Old Version 7

New Version Current

Key

Inventory management functionality

Setting Up Inventory Management

Installed Item Categories

AnchordefinitiondefinitionInventory definitions

AnchorwarehousewarehouseWarehouses

Related configuration areas

Using Inventory Management

Posting a warehouse transaction

Adding physical good bundles to a warehouse transaction

AnchorfilefilePreparing the import file

Import File Templates

AnchorEXCELEXCELExcel

Applying business flows on inventory management

Inventory Management Business Examples

Setting up warehouses

Creating installed items

Using stock in transactions to import new cards and boxes in the system

Moving items between warehouses

Glossary

Related Links

Anchor
definition
definition
Inventory definitions

Anchor
warehouse
warehouse
Warehouses

Anchor
file
file
Preparing the import file

Anchor
EXCEL
EXCEL
Excel