The Option Level in the Bill of Materials

Owned by Stephanie Pepper (e-manage|ONE)
Last updated: Sept 11, 2023 by Maresa Rojas
6 min read

Managing the Estimate/Quote Window: Options, Phases, and Bill of Materials (BOM)

Let's dive into the organization of the Estimate/Quote window by exploring the use of Options, Phases, and Bill of Materials (BOMs).

Working with Options

In e-manage|ONE, Options are essentially your Quotes. When you create a new Option, you are essentially generating a unique Quote ID. You can include multiple Options within a single quote, but it's important to understand that each new Option equates to a new quote, simplifying the Bill of Materials (BOM) process.

Options serve as the top level of this data structure and contain Phases, which, in turn, house the Bill of Materials. Each level is distinguishable by the "name" column: Options have "Option Name," Phases have "Phase Name," and BOMs have "BOM Name." Incorporating multiple Options into one quote allows you to categorize and organize your quote into major sections.

To initiate any estimating process within e-manage|ONE, you must begin with an Option. Before creating a new Option, ensure the following for accuracy:

  1. Tax Rate: Check the tax rate in the toolbar just above the Option grid. If it displays 0%, it may indicate a tax exemption or an issue with the zip code tax rate. In the latter case, contact your administrator to update the tax rate to the correct value.

  1. Pricing Type: Verify the Pricing Type in the toolbar. While your administrator sets the default pricing type, you can override it by changing the dropdown list value. Each pricing type affects how you price items within Options, Phases, BOMs, and parts. Here's a breakdown of the pricing types and how they work:

  • Lump Sum Sale: Uses profit margin against the cost to determine the sale price, with "Use Tax" on the cost instead of "Sales Tax" on the Pre Tax Sell.

  • Lump Sum Sale + Tax: Calculates the sale price using profit margin and applies tax to the Pre Tax Sell.

  • Discount From List: Uses the List Price with a discount to compute the sale price, with sales tax applied to the resulting Pre Tax Sale.

  • Markup: Multiplies the cost by 1 + your specified markup percent to reach the Pre-Tax Sell, which is then taxed at the given rate.

Modifying customer discounts, margins, markups, or sale prices within an Option row impacts every Adjustable item (regardless of the phase or BOM), aligning each with the specified value. When altering the pre-tax sell of the Option level, e-manage will analyze all Adjustable items to achieve the provided price by setting them to the same margin, markup, or customer discount (based on your pricing type).

Editable cells within Option Rows allow for customization. Although the column names may vary due to user customization, you can right-click any column header to see the original name. When changing a cell's value, press the TAB key to save it since there's no dedicated save button.

  • Option Name: Sets the name of the Option on a quote. A name other than "New Option" is necessary for it to appear on the quote. Use numerical prefixes (e.g., 01), 02), 03)) to control the order in which multiple Options appear on the quote.

  • New Margin, New Markup, and New Customer Discount: Allows you to adjust margin, discount, or markup, based on your pricing type.

  • Pre-Tax Sell: Alters the overall customer price of the Option, factoring in tax as per the pricing type.

  • Not Current: Marks an Option with a strike-through font to indicate it should not be used.

  • Optional Item: Activating this option provides a sign-off section on each Option. Useful when customers must choose between Options or select some but not all.

To create a new Option, access the "Tools" menu within the BOM Window and select "New Option." You can also create Options by importing from external sources. Auto-Part templates can be utilized through the "Choose Auto-Part Templates" tab in the lower part of the BOM window, as explored in a later section.

When you add a new Option, it automatically includes the entire structure for one phase, with the BOM level ready to receive parts (BOM is the only level for adding items; Options and Phases serve for organization, quoting, and pricing).

You'll notice that the Option includes the pricing type supplied in the dropdown list box in the toolbar at the top of the window. The Phase will initially be named "Default Phase." Changing it to something else is necessary for the phase name to appear on the quote.

The Right-Click Context Menu for Options

Right-clicking on an Option provides additional functionality beyond the grid. To affect changes across multiple selected Options, highlight them in the grid before right-clicking. Here's what each menu element does:

  • New Option: Adds a new Option to the grid, equivalent to using the "Tools" menu.

  • New Phase: Generates a new Phase within the currently highlighted Option. You can create multiple phases to comprehensively describe or plan an Option. Creating a "New Phase" automatically generates a new BOM for adding parts.

  • New BOM: Greyed out in this menu since a BOM is a child of a Phase, not an Option.

  • Copy: Copies the currently selected Option(s) for pasting elsewhere in this BOM Window or in another project's BOM window.

  • Paste: Pasts options from the clipboard into the current Bill of Materials Window.

  • Delete Selected: The only method to delete an Option, permanently removing it from the database. Confirmation is required, and recovery is only possible through backup restoration.

  • Add/Modify Option Picture: Allows you to designate a .jpg image to represent the Option on the quote. This image should capture the entirety of the Option's features. The image dimensions on the quote are 764 x 702 pixels, and while it stretches to fit, adhering to these dimensions minimizes distortion.

The option picture will show on the entire first page of the quote option with the name of the option as shown below. The exact dimensions of the image on the quote are 764 x 702 pixels. The image will stretch to fit, but the closer you get to these dimensions, the less distorted the picture will look.

  • Change Name: Edits the name of the currently highlighted Option (best done directly in the grid).

  • Change Pricing Type: Alters the Pricing Type for the selected Option(s), recalculating margin, markup, or customer discount accordingly.

  • Optional: Adjusts the Optional Status for all selected Options.

  • Select: Changes the Select checkbox status for all selected Options.

  • Not Current: Modifies the Not Current checkbox status for all selected Options.

  • Move to Another Project: Allows you to move the BOM from the current project to another by typing in the target project number.