Auto Part Templates allow you to make the Bill of Materials process easier by automatically adding multiple items without having to search for them. Beyond that, auto parts contained within these templates can be setup to automatically calculate values based on the other items that are contained within the Bill of Materials. While adding items to the BOM using auto-parts you can specify whether to create a phase for the parts being added and specify the name and description for the phase. Auto-parts can also use a factor, meaning that whatever value is calculated can have a factor applied to it, like a factor of 1.5 would multiply the calculated value by 1.5, a factor of .3 would take 30% of the calculated value.
To begin, click on the "Tools" menu and then on the "Configure BOM/Quick Quote Auto Parts" menu item.
Any existing templates will be shown in the middle grid in this window. The top area is where you will name the template, keeping in mind that the name and description should give the end user of the templates a clear idea of what they will be automatically adding to the BOM when they choose the template.
In this first example we will make an auto part template that has a part called "Design Fees" with set values (specified quantities) and an overhead part that will add 8% onto our entire cost to cover internal cost of doing business. This
In the Name and Description we will enter "Design Fees and 8% Overhead" in the description we will add "$425 design charge and 8% added to entire cost of product". You can choose to add this template with a category to further help the end user find the right template to use on the BOM (this is a drop down list managed by your administrator so if you think there might be some missing, please see your administrator). Choose a Corporate Division (or check the "Available to All Divisions" check box). Click the "Save" button.
Now click on the new template showing in the grid just under the entry portion of the window. This will tell e-manage that this is the template we will be working with for now.
Now that we have our template highlighted, we will add parts. At the bottom of the window are tabs. You can add parts from the "Part Search" tab or if you have made parts into favorite parts, you can use the "Favorite Parts" tab. We will use the "Part Search" tab for this example. When you click on the "Part Search" tab, you can find parts by one or more criteria in the boxes on the right. We will use part number for this example. Type in "design" into the Part # box and press the "Search" button. Any items with any part of the part number matching your criteria will appear in the grid to the left of the search boxes.
Next, double click on the part you want to add to the selected template. The "Configure Auto Part" window will pop-up.
This is where you will choose how this auto-part will interact with the template. The first section is how to add the item, either to a phase (type in a phase name and description or choose from an existing item by choosing it from the "Default Phase Name" drop down list box) or to a BOM on every phase created. The difference between these is how the item performs its calculations. Adding auto-parts to a BOM and not a phase will calculated the part only on the items that match the product type criteria (shown later in this document) that are in the phase where the BOM exists. Since this option will create a BOM for every phase, the auto-parts will become part of the items for every phase created (either by importing or manually creating them). Since our items for this example should not duplicate between phases, we will add them into a phase called "Project Services". First check the box that says "Automatically Create a New Phase and BOM Every Time I Create an Option Using This Template" then type "Project Services" in the "Default Phase" drop down list box, and give the description of "Design and Project Management Fees". If you do not want to show the individual parts from this phase to the customer, but just the phase name and description with one price, then enter a Phase QTY of "1" and choose a Phase UOM of "Each" then click the "Save" button in that section of the window. Since we do not want our customer to see that we are charging them 8% overhead to cover internal costs, we will use the Phase QTY and Phase UOM in this example. Next type a "1" in the "Use This QTY" text box, and click the "Save" button in that section.
Tip: Placing a number, the close parenthesis and a space will place this number in the “sort” of the Phase
Example: “96)_Design and Project Management Services“ as shown below will place this phase automatically 96th in the Option added so towards the bottom of your quote.
Since this is not a part that will calculate off of any other parts, we will ignore the Product Types grid in the bottom section of this window.
Close this window and you will be back at the search where we will now type in "Overhead" in the Part Number text box and press the ENTER key on your keyboard (or click the "Search" button). Double click on the "Overhead" Part and check the "Automatically Create a New Phase" checkbox and choose the "Project Services" item out of the "Default Phase Name" drop down list box, enter a Phase Qty of 1 and a UOM of "EA" (or "Each" depending on your drop down list choices) and click the "Save" button in that section.
Configure the first part as you did on the Design part. In the Auto-Calculation section, choose the Calculate the Qty of this part by the Sum of the Cost of the selected product types, then click the "Save" button in that section.
Next we will choose the product types that the 8% (.08) will be applied to. Since this is an overhead part, you will choose to calculate on every product type, so you can click the "Check All" button. Close the Window when all the product types you want to calculate on are checked.
You can have the part calculate the Qty from ONE of the following:
Calculate from Cost - Sums up the cost of the other items on the BOM that match the product types checked in the Product Type grid.
Calculate from List - Sums up the List Price of the other items in the BOM that match the product types checked in the Product Type grid.
Calculate from Weight - Sums up the Weight of the other items in the BOM that match the product types checked in the Product Type grid.
Calculate from Manhours - Sums up the Manhours of the other items in the BOM that match the product types checked in the Product Type grid.
Calculate from QTY - Sums up the Qty of the other items in the BOM that match the product types checked in the
Product Type grid.
Calculate from Customer Price - Sums up the Sale Price (before tax, except in "Lump Sum Sale" pricing type where "Use Tax" becomes part of your cost) of the other items in the BOM that match the product types checked in the Product Type grid.
Calculate from Cubes - Sums up the Cubes of the other items in the BOM that match the product types checked in the Product Type grid.
Other Options
Specified QTY - inserts the part at the specified Qty supplied - no calculations are performed
Use This Factor - multiplies the Qty by the factor. For example a factor of .8 would take 80% of the summed up calculated Qty and apply it to the part. A factor of 3 would multiply the calculated Qty by 3. This can be especially useful when anticipating shortages.
Allow Sales Price to be Adjusted - When changing the sale price of an Option, Phase or BOM, this part will adjust its margin, markup or customer discount (depending on the pricing type) when checked or will be a fixed price that cannot be changed if this is not checked.
Calculate on Other Auto Part Values - By default auto-parts do not calculate off of other auto calculated parts because it would cause a circular reference or never ending loop. Therefore, only one part per set of auto-parts can be set to calculate on other Auto Part values. This can be useful when using an "Overhead" part that you also have an auto calculated Qty for installation and want to apply the overhead to the installation as well.
Auto-Parts are an integral part of the e-manage vision to make your quoting process not only more accurate, but also give your customers a faster turnaround time on quotes. If you have any questions about how to set-up auto-parts for your company, please contact support.