Overview

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.

Through the inventory management module you can set up warranty and return policies which will define the company's policies with regard to the replacement and return of goods respectively. Moreover, implementation of IOT business model and inventory management is also possible. 

Setting Up Inventory Management 

The Inventory Management entity consists of an organisation's Warehouses, Warehouse Transactions and Transfer of Ownership of Physical Goods.

Inventory management provides an accurate stock position of physical goods across multiple warehouses. Items are initially added to warehouse via 'stock in' warehouse transactions, and are subsequently transferred to the ownership of customers via 'sales invoices'. There is also a special process of transferring ownership to a customer via a designated standalone; transfer ownership' process and this is used in the case of a 'customer bringing their own device' and 'partner sales'.

Before you start using Inventory Management you must set up the system to reflect your own business needs.

Traceable Physical Good State Classifications

Define the reasons that a traceable physical good is set as 'Not Effective' (e.g. faulty, broken, stolen). Multiple traceable physical good classifications can be configured in the system. A traceable physical good can also be set as 'not effective' automatically through its applied warranty (if applicable) and based on the coverage reason. Refer to Warranty Policies for more information.

Warranty Coverage Reasons

Warranty Coverage Reasons are user-defined and provide a justification for the replacement of a physical good (e.g lost, stolen, faulty). Once coverage reasons are configured, they must be added to warranty policies to determine whether the replacement item will be free of charge or not. A coverage reason may cover the free replacement of a physical good when selected for one warranty policy, but not for another. 

It is possible to Set a traceable physical good as Not Effective when the replacement is made, if the specific Coverage Reason is selected through it's warranty. It's also possible to define the Not Effective classification to be applied to the Traceable Physical Good once it's automatically set as 'Not Effective'. For set up information refer to the Traceable Physical Good State Classification. 

Warranty Policies  

A warranty policy defines how physical goods bought by customers can be replaced within a specific period after the purchase, multiple warranty policies can be set up. The warranty policy (subject to conditions defined in the policy) is 62570643 (based on the user's business unit) when a good is sold or swapped. A policy must have an 'Effective' life cycle state to be applied. The life cycle state of a policy can be toggled between 'Effective' and 'Not Effective' using the Actions menu option. 

The Warranty Duration of each policy defines the coverage period. Each policy has a Warranty Validity Period which is the period during which the warranty policy is available. The Valid from date is always mandatory, while the Valid to date can be left blank if the period is open-ended. The validity period is used to determine which policy should be applied to goods when more than one policy is applicable. The policy with the most recent Valid from date is applied and has priority over 'Always Valid' policies (i.e. open-ended policies).

In each policy you can define the Physical Goods covered by this policy and the Allowed Coverage Reasons. For each reason you can select the Coverage Policy for Replacement Product which will determine what will happen to the warranty once the physical good is replaced. The available options are:

• Carry Over Remaining Duration: The remaining warranty is transferred to the new physical good.
• Apply New Warranty: The replacement physical good is issued a new warranty.
  
• No Warranty: The new physical good is not issued a warranty. 

 Additionally, for each reason you have to define whether it will Provide Coverage. If enabled then the item can be swapped free of charge.

Return Coverage Reasons

Return Coverage Reasons are used to provide reasoning during the return of traceable physicals goods (e.g. power problems, overheating, blank screen etc.). Once return coverage reasons are configured, they must be added to return policies to determine whether the return is refundable.

A return coverage reason may refund the return of a physical good when selected for one return policy but not for another.

Return Policies  

Return Policies define if and when a customer is allowed to return purchased traceable physical goods. The Return Policy is automatically used and applied (subject to conditions defined in the policy) depending on the logged-in user's Business Unit.

A policy must have an 'Effective' life cycle state to be applied. The life cycle state of a policy can be toggled between 'Effective' and 'Not Effective' using the Actions menu option. A policy can only be updated if its not effective or it has not yet been applied to a traceable physical good. 

The Return Policy Duration of each policy defines the eligible return period.

Each policy has a Return validity period which is the period during which the return policy is available, defined by a From and To date. The From date is always mandatory, while the To date can be left blank if the period is open-ended. The validity period is used to determine which policy should be applied to goods when more than one policy is applicable. The policy with the most recent Valid from date is applied and has priority over 'Always Valid' policies (i.e. open-ended policies).

In each policy you can define the Physical Goods Covered by this Policy and the Allowed Coverage Reasons. For each reason you can select whether Credit will be provided, which means that the item will be refunded if it's returned.

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Using Inventory Management

Use Inventory Management to manage your company's physical goods (traceable and non traceable) which can either be rented or sold to customers and partners. Before you proceed to using inventory management, it is important to understand the various terms used.

Physical Goods

Physical Goods is a tangible commodity which is offered to customers (e.g. decoders, smartcards, cameras etc.) and can either be a traceable or non traceable item. Physical Goods can be provided as a standalone product or a bundle of products, and are Sold or Rented to customers or partners, giving them the exclusive ownership of the good.

Traceable Physical Goods 

Physical goods which can be uniquely identified by their serial numbers are referred to as traceable physical goods. For example, Set top box, modem etc.

Non Traceable Physical Goods

Physical goods which are not traced to a single instance and are measured based on their quantity. For example, remote control, antenna, coffee etc.

Physical Goods Bundles

Physical Goods can be created as bundles, representing a package of components (traceable or non-traceable). Two classifications of bundles are available:

• Fixed Bundles: A fixed bundle of products which contains specific components which are provided as a package (available for both traceable and non traceable physical goods).
• Flexible Bundles: A flexible bundle of products which contains specific components of which some of them can be provided based on the customer's needs (available only for non traceable physical goods).

Manage Warehouse Transactions

Warehouse Transactions are used to move stock in, out or between the warehouses. They can either be created by the user or by the system following a user action and there are four types of warehouse transactions:

• Stock In Transaction: For adding stock to the warehouse.
• Stock Out Transaction: For removing stock from the warehouse.
• Stock Movement Transaction: For moving stock between the warehouses.
• Stock Adjustment Transaction: Used to adjust the stock of a warehouse for non-traceable physical goods.

Warehouses

A warehouse represents a storage place where physical goods (traceable and non traceable) are stored and can be retrieved and transferred to customers, other internal warehouses, or to partners' warehouses; increasing or decreasing the affected physical goods stock. From such warehouses, physical goods will be able to be sold and rented to customers, as well as to be returned back from the customer.

Manage Warehouses

Use Manage Warehouses to create the necessary warehouses for your business needs. Each warehouse has an Owned By Business Unit, the business unit represents the owner of the warehouse and automatically defaults to that of the logged-in user (can be changed). Only users with access to the business unit can view and move products in and out of the warehouse. When a customer returns a physical good, it is returned to the warehouse from which it originated. 

It is possible for each warehouse to Allow Negative Stock. This will allow the removal of non-traceable physical goods from a warehouse when the stocks quantity is not measurable. E.g., if you have a non-traceable good in the system, such as milk, negative stock is allowed so that it can be added to an order of (traceable) coffee. Note that negative stock is not allowed when moving goods between warehouses.

The following Stock transaction actions can be performed from the warehouse screen:

• Stock In Transaction
• Stock Movement Transaction
• Adjust Stock in Warehouse

Goods are always available to agents for stock out transactions but must be posted to be available for 'stock in' and 'stock movement' transactions. In either case, the stock balance remains unmodified. Goods can be added or removed from the transaction as long as it is in a 'Draft' state. Once all physical goods have been accounted for and the modifications finalised, the transaction can be closed (Posted) and the stock balance updated. Use SAVE from the Actions menu to post the transaction or SAVE AS DRAFT to keep it editable. To post the finalised (draft) transaction, go to Manage Warehouse Transactions, select the transaction and click Post from the Actions menu. Once a Stock Warehouse Transaction is Posted then the Stock Balance of the affected warehouse will be affected.

Selecting the Stock Balance option through the Actions menu option on the summary screen will provide the stock balance for a selected product across all warehouses. 

Refer to Managing Stock for more information on adding, moving and adjusting stock from warehouses. 

Manage Warehouse Transactions

From this screen you can provide search criteria to view transactions. The only actions permitted are to Post or Cancel a warehouse transactions which is in 'Draft' life cycle state. 

Warehouse transactions cannot be created from here by the user, you need to use the Manage Warehouses option to do this, and only after selecting the relevant warehouse.

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Traceable Goods Ownership 

Traceable Physical Goods are instances of physical goods which are classified as 'traceable'. Each Traceable Physical Good is a unique instance of a product with a unique serial number.

The Traceable Goods Ownership menu option can be used to locate a traceable physical good in order to view ownership details. Use the search criteria to locate one or more traceable physical goods, select to VIEW or EDIT a physical good entry. The editable details are limited based on the ownership status.  

All traceable physical goods have an Ownership Status which provides information as to who owns the item. Possible values are:

• Owned by Customer: Determines that a product was sold or brought by the customer and is owned by the customer.
• Owned By Company: Determines that a product is owned by the company and is located in one of the company's warehouses.
• Rented to Customer: The item has been rented to the customer and is owned by the company or partner (depending on the warehouse it belongs to).

Used by Subscription specifies the subscription which is using the physical good (only visible if it's assigned to a subscription).

Physical goods have a State which can be Effective (default) or Not Effective, Not Effective physical goods cannot be provided to customers. Manually set an item as Not Effective through Actions > Set as Not Effective. When physical goods are declared as Not Effective they have a State Classification which states the reason why the physical good was set as Not Effective. The State can be automatically set to Not Effective and the State Classifications can also be automatically set by other processes in the system, such as a return from a warranty policy where the coverage reason was set as 'Broken'.

Use the Metadata section to provide device specific characteristics when editing a physical goods entry. Metadata attributes are defined on the Product Type definition (see Configuration > Finance > Set up Product Settings).

Managing Stock

Adding stock to a warehouse

In order to be able to sell or rent products they must initially belong to a warehouse, except in the case where a product will be imported to a customer's account directly if they already own the product and want to use it. 

Methods for adding stock to a warehouse are explained below.

Stock In warehouse transactions

'Stock in' warehouse transactions add stock to a warehouse and is the only way through which you can add non-traceable physical goods to your warehouses.

1. Navigate to Foundation > Inventory Management > Warehouses > Manage Warehouses.
2. Select a warehouse from the summary screen.
3. Click on Actions > Stock in Transaction.
4. Provide a Batch number, Supplier, Description (optional)
5. Refer to the table below on how to add physical goods to the transaction depending on of what you wish to do.

Import Traceable Physical Goods

The fastest way to add stock to a warehouse is by using the Traceable Physical Goods utility and an external file. The import method cannot be used for non-traceable goods.

1. Navigate to Foundation > Utilities > Imports > Traceable Physical Goods > View Import Definition.
2. Use an existing import definition or define a new one providing the import settings in the utility definition.
3. To prepare the import file click on Actions > Download Template (selecting the one of the available file format templates: XML, XLS, XLSX, CSV).
4. The import file must be prepared according to the downloaded template.
5. Click on Submit from the Actions menu and select the file with the items to be imported.
   
   

Import customer assets

Customers can register their own items into the system in order to use them. Note however that imported items cannot be returned or have their ownership transferred. 

You can import a customer's traceable good through their account via Finance > Accounts > locate and View the customer account > Actions > Manage Assets you will see a list of the customer's assets, then select Actions > Import Asset > complete the details and Save.

Removing stock from a warehouse

You cannot manually remove stock from a warehouse. A stock-out warehouse transaction can only take place if the stock item is going to a customer or being moved to another warehouse.  

Stock adjustment 

Used to adjust the stock of a warehouse for non-traceable physical goods.

1. Navigate to Foundation > Inventory Management > Warehouses > Manage Warehouses.
2. Select a warehouse to View.
3. Click on Actions > Adjust Stock in Warehouse.
4. Complete the warehouse transaction information. 
5. In the Items to Stock Adjust section use the Add Product option to add the products to be adjusted. After selecting the product you will see the Current Balance, specify the Adjusted Quantity (give a positive number to add to the stock balance, or a negative number to deduct from the stock balance. Counted Balance will provide the new total based on the adjustment. 
6. Select Save to proceed with your adjustments.

Moving stock between warehouses 

Once stock has been added to a warehouse it can then be moved between warehouses. This is particularly useful in logistics, where all imported goods initially go to a main warehouse and are then transferred to other warehouses.

1. Navigate to Foundation > Inventory Management > Warehouses > Manage Warehouses.
2. Select a warehouse to View.
3. Click on Actions > Stock Movement Transaction.
4. Select the To Warehouse.
5. Provide the Batch number, Description and Supplier (optional).
6. Follow the table below on how to add the physical goods to the transaction depending on of what you wish to do.

Viewing available stock

It is possible to view the available stock in each warehouse through the Stock Balance section on the warehouse screen. 

If you would like to view the total stock quantity of a product across all warehouses then you can use the Actions > Stock Balance option available from the Manage Warehouses summary page.

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Sales, Rentals and Returns

Selling physical goods

Customers can buy physical goods, once a physical good is bought, it is considered a customer asset and it is available through the customer's account assets. Goods can be bought either directly through the company or from partners. Additionally, goods can be transferred from one customer to another.

Sold goods may be subject to warranty or return policies if they have been configured accordingly. For more information refer to62570643 and 62570643.

Selling to customers

Physical goods can be sold to customers through an invoice (Financial Transaction) by adding the individual goods to be sold to the invoice. Goods sold to the customer are invoiced by CRM.COM and the relevant customer account will be invoiced accordingly.

Physical goods sold by partners are provided to customers through Subscriptions. The system will identify that the physical good belongs to a partner through the warehouse it will be removed from. (e.g. a warehouse that belongs to a partner). Goods sold through partners are not invoiced by CRM.COM.

Selling to partners

Goods can be sold to partners (in bulk) by creating an invoice (Financial Transaction), and adding the goods to be sold and the warehouse where the goods will be moved to. Goods sold to partners will be transferred to the specified warehouse (if one is provided) of the partner, and a warehouse transaction will be created to handle the transfer of the items. The goods are available through the partner’s account’s assets and the partner's account will be invoiced accordingly.

Transferring ownership of sold physical goods

Sold physical goods can be transferred from their owner Account to a different account without affecting their billing or their warranty. Imported physical goods are excluded from the transferring ownership process. Navigate to Finance > Accounts > locate and View account >Actions > Manage Assets > Actions > Transfer Ownership > specify the 'receiving' account > Submit to complete the transaction. Transfer of ownership can also be performed via the Subscriptions screen using the Move Traceable Physical Goods to another Subscription option.   

Renting physical goods

Traceable physical goods are rented to the customer through Subscriptions (free of charge by default). Rented goods are not invoiced by CRM.COM as the goods are returned to the company when a subscription is cancelled.

Returning physical goods

Sold physical goods can be returned back to the company by issuing a Credit Note to the Customer who previously owned them (if they had been invoiced), through the customer Account or by issuing a Service Request. Such physical goods will be returned back to the warehouse from where they originated performing a 'stock in' warehouse transaction. 

If the item was subject to a Return Policy then the amount paid may be refunded. Refer to 62570643for more information.

In cases where the physical good was sold and the customer wishes to return it (for any reason) it can be returned through Finance > Accounts > locate and view the customer account > Actions > Manage Assets > Actions > Return Physical Goods.

In case that the physical good was rented, then the return is done through the Amend Subscription action, then selecting the item to be removed from the 'Traceable Physical Goods to be remove' section. In this case the installed item will be returned to the designated company warehouse. 

Replacing physical goods

Physical goods (either rented or sold) may need to be replaced by new ones either because they are broken or lost. Replacing of goods is possible either through the subscription or a service request.

If you would like to replace a good through the subscription then you will need to use the Swap Traceable Physical Goods option. It is possible to swap with an item that belongs to a warehouse or a customer.

If the replaced physical good was subject to a warranty, then depending on the warranty policy applied the new physical good may or may not remain under warranty. For more information refer to 62570643.

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Applying Warranty Policies

A Warranty Policy is issued by a company in order to assure that physical goods bought by its customers can be repaired or replaced, free of charge, within a specific period after the purchase. A Warranty Policy holds information about the physical traceable goods or product types or brands or families which can be covered, and the period during which the physical goods will be covered after their purchase.

Issuing a warranty for sold goods

Warranties can be issued for traceable physical goods sold to customers based on warranty policies. The process is automatic and takes place when the goods are sold. When a good that is eligible for a warranty is sold, the system determines the warranty policy that should be issued. 

If the good is eligible for more than one warranty policy, the policy with the most recent Valid from date is applied and has priority over other 'Always Valid' policies (i.e. open-ended policies). Only 'Effective', valid Warranty policies are taken into account.

Determining the warranty policy applied on replacement

When replacing an item through a service request or a subscription the system determines whether:

• The item is under coverage (will be replaced free of charge).
• The item's warranty policy will be transferred to the new physical good.
• A new warranty policy will be issued for the replacement item.

The system follows the Coverage Policy for Replacement Product defined on the selected warranty coverage reason when replacing the item, and uses it to determine which policy (if any) will be applied to the item. Coverage Policy for Replacement Product has three possible values:

• Carry Over Remaining Duration: The remaining warranty period is calculated and applied to the new item.
• Apply New Warranty: A new warranty policy is issued as if a new traceable physical good was sold.
• No Warranty:The new physical good is not issued a warranty. 

 The diagram below displays how the warranty policy on an existing item affects the warranty on the new item, during a replacement.  

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Identifying from which warehouse the item will be removed

When a physical good is to be swapped, the system must determine the warehouse that should be used to perform the swap. Firstly, the warehouse where the item was originally located will be identified, and then checked to see if the user (performing the swap) has access to the Warehouse based on the 'owned by business unit'. As displayed in the following diagrams: 

Warehouse transaction movements when the replacement physical good is provided free of charge

Warehouse transaction movements when the replacement physical good is not covered by a warranty

A physical good may not be covered by warranty for the following reasons:

• Coverage reason does not include coverage (i.e. replacement is not free of charge).
• Warranty on the existing item has expired.
• No Warranty exists.

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Applying Return Policies

A Return Policy is issued by the company in order to define its business rules and policies in terms of returning physical goods which were sold to customers. The Return Policy determines when and which purchased physical goods can be returned by the customers and whether the customer is allowed a refund for the returned physical goods or not.

Applying Return Policy on selling physical goods

Return Policies are applied automatically during the sale of a physical good. When a good that is eligible for a return policy is sold, the system determines the return policy that should be issued for the good. If the good is eligible for more than one return policy, then the policy with the most recent Valid from date is applied and has priority over other 'Always Valid' policies (i.e. open-ended policies). Only 'Effective' valid return policies are taken into account.

Returning a physical good with a return policy

Customers may request to return a physical good for various reasons (e.g., due to a technical issue, or to upgrade it, or because it was stolen). If the good has a valid return policy which has not expired yet, the system will check whether the return is refundable based on the return coverage reason set by the user. The 'return date' must not exceed the 'return allowed period' from the 'date of issue'.  

The return of physical goods can be done through Accounts (Manage Assets action) or Service Requests.

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Additional Processes

Measuring usage of traceable physical goods 

The meter reading of a device is used to measure consumption and therefore might create usage, on which customers can be billed. An example of a device's meter readings are the energy metering devices that are installed in houses and used to collect electric consumption, the homeowners are then billed based on their overall usage. A device's meter reading is classified through the Meter Reading Types. These types define how the device is used (what readings are actually measured) by defining its unit of measurement (pound, litre, mile, kilometre, gallon, etc) 

 To use the meter reading feature:

1. Navigate to Configuration > Finance > Set up Product Settings > Meter Reading Types and set up the meter reading types.
2. Navigate to Configuration > Finance > Set up Product Settings > Product Types and create a product type of 'traceable' physical good and select the applicable meter reading.
3. Navigate to Finance > Products & Pricing > Manage Products and create a product of the specific product type'.
4. Create a traceable physical good of the specific product.
5. Add the traceable physical good to a subscription.
6. Navigate to Billing > Subscription, select the customer subscription and use the Add Usage action from the menu list to add and bill the usage through the specific product.

Internet of Things (IOT) in CRM.COM