A guide to getting stock control up and running: what each section does, the order to set it up in, and how material moves. Every screen also has its own detailed document, linked throughout the text.
The idea in one picture
Inventory is a set of scales: what you buy comes in, what you produce goes out, and what is left is your stock.
The key point: nothing has to be recorded twice. If you register your purchases and invoice your sales, the balance looks after itself.
The full circuit, from purchase to replenishment
The circuit closes: replenishment creates a new order and the cycle starts again. The dotted line from the catalogue shows that substrates do not move stock on their own — they only define which items exist.
Which section do I use for what
| If you want to… | Go to | Document |
|---|---|---|
| Define a new material, its cost and its unit | Substrates (/soporte) | Print substrates |
| See how much material you have and what is missing | Purchasing → Purchase stock | Purchase stock |
| Order material from a supplier | Purchasing → Orders | Purchase Orders |
| Record the invoice your supplier sends you | Purchases (/ggpCompra) | Purchases — Purchase Invoices |
| Decide when material is deducted | Settings → Customisation → Purchasing Settings | Purchasing Settings |
| Correct a stock figure that does not add up | Purchase stock → action Adjust stock | Purchase stock |
| Work out what minimum stock to set | Purchase stock → Minimum stock report | Purchase stock |
The 7 steps to get it running
Step 1 · Get the catalogue ready
In Print substrates, for each material you want to control:
- Check that the substrate exists and that its type is correct: sheet, roll or item.
- Review its sizes (sheet/roll) or its colours / sizes / variants (item). Inventory is kept at that level, not for the substrate as a whole.
- Set the Cost and the unit (Unit, m², kg, lm). The cost is what drives the Valuation.
- Assign the Supplier or its supplier price lists: that is where the suggested supplier comes from when replenishing.
Inventory is not kept by substrate, but at the level below. Here is how it looks:
Start small. You do not have to inventory the whole catalogue on day one: take the 10–20 materials you use most. The rest can be added whenever you like.
Step 2 · Decide when material is deducted
In Purchasing Settings, field "Consumption module is calculated from:". This is the decision that causes most confusion, so here it is in a picture:
| Choice | Stock drops when… | When it suits you |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice (default) | you issue the invoice | The most prudent: only invoiced work is deducted |
| Delivery note | you issue the delivery note | If material leaves the warehouse on delivery |
| Work order | the quote becomes an order / work order | If you want to reserve material when the job is accepted |
| Quote | the quote is accepted | Only if almost everything quoted goes ahead |
Press Save.
Step 3 · Load the opening stock (stock count)
Count what is physically in the warehouse. In Purchasing → Purchase stock, on each item: action Adjust stock → reason Set balance with the quantity counted.
It is recorded as a movement with its reason, so the history explains where that balance comes from. With a lot of items you can spread it over several days: each item is independent.
Step 4 · Set the minimum stock
Minimum stock is what makes the system warn you. Without it there are no alerts.
Two ways to set it:
- By hand: action Minimum stock on the item's row.
- Calculated: button Minimum stock report. It suggests a Recommended figure based on your real consumption and is applied row by row (Apply) or all at once (Apply all).
The report needs history, so set them by hand in the first month and use the report after a few weeks.
Step 5 · Record stock in when you buy
Three routes, and all three add to the Balance:
| How you buy | What you do | Where |
|---|---|---|
| With a formal supplier order | You create the order, send it and press Receive when it arrives (full or partial) | Purchase Orders |
| No order, just the invoice | You record the invoice (by hand or by uploading the PDF for the AI to read) and link its lines to catalogue items | Purchase Invoices |
| One-off purchase or correction | Adjust stock → Stock in (+) with a reason | Purchase stock |
Step 6 · Work as usual: stock out is recorded automatically
There is no need to note consumption down. When you quote, the system works out the material the job needs and deducts it once it reaches the document chosen in Step 2.
That is why stock does not drop when you quote: it is the correct behaviour, not a fault.
Step 7 · Replenish
In Purchasing → Purchase stock, use the Below minimum only toggle to see what is missing, and the Generate order button: it creates a purchase order in Draft per supplier, with the quantity needed to reach the minimum and discounting whatever is already Incoming. You then send it from Purchase Orders.
A full worked example
Coated paper 130 gsm, size 70×100, at €0.18 per sheet:
| # | What happens | Movement | Balance | Valuation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Opening count: you count 500 sheets | Adjustment · Set balance | 500 | €90.00 |
| 2 | You set the minimum stock at 300 | — | 500 | €90.00 |
| 3 | You invoice a job that used 260 sheets | Consumption −260 | 240 | €43.20 |
| 4 | ⚠️ 240 < 300 → Below minimum appears | — | 240 | €43.20 |
| 5 | Generate order: you order 1,000 from the supplier | Incoming +1,000 | 240 | €43.20 |
| 6 | The goods arrive and you press Receive | Purchase +1,000 | 1,240 | €223.20 |
| 7 | 15 sheets get soaked and are ruined | Adjustment · Stock out −15 | 1,225 | €220.50 |
At step 5 the balance does not change: what has been ordered has not arrived yet. It shows in the Incoming column, and the expected availability is 240 + 1,000.
Routine, once it is up and running
| When | What you do | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Every purchase | Receive the order or record the supplier invoice | Orders / Purchase Invoices |
| Weekly | Review Below minimum only and Generate order | Purchase stock |
| Monthly | Count your fastest-moving items; correct with Adjust stock | Purchase stock |
| Quarterly | Minimum stock report to realign the minimums with real consumption | Purchase stock |
Vocabulary you will see on screen
- Balance: current stock = purchase stock in − confirmed consumption stock out.
- Valuation: financial value of the stock = Balance × Cost.
- Level: what a row refers to — Size (sheet/roll) or Colour / Size / Variant (item).
- Theoretical consumption: material a quote would need. A forecast; it does not deduct.
- Confirmed consumption: the consumption that does subtract from the Balance, when the Step 2 document is issued.
- Incoming: quantity ordered from the supplier and not yet received. It does not add to the Balance; expected availability = Balance + Incoming.
- Minimum stock: the level below which you should replenish; it triggers the "Below minimum" warning. At 0 it never warns.
- Adjust stock: manual stock in, stock out or balance setting, always with a reason (stock count, breakage, spoilage, correction).
- Movements / History: stock in and stock out for an item with date, type, signed quantity, source and running balance.
- Replenishment: buying more of whatever is below minimum. Generate order automates it.
If something does not add up
| Symptom | Usual cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Stock does not drop when quoting | That is expected: a quote only creates theoretical consumption | Check which document deducts in Purchasing Settings |
| Stock never drops | The configured document is never issued, or the product has no substrate linked to it | Check Step 2 and that the product has its substrates linked |
| Stock does not go up when buying | The invoice line is not linked to a catalogue item | Link the line in Purchase Invoices, or use Adjust stock |
| The balance does not match the warehouse | Spoilage, breakage or consumption outside the system | Stock count + Adjust stock → Set balance with a reason |
| No replenishment warning | Minimum stock is set to 0 | Set it by hand or with the Minimum stock report |
| An item appears twice | Movements with the unit written in different ways | They are merged automatically; check the unit on its record |
Which plan you need
| Section | Plan |
|---|---|
| Print substrates | All |
| Purchasing Settings | All |
| Purchase Invoices | Full, or the Purchasing and Inventory module with any plan |
| Purchase stock · Minimum stock report | Full, or the Purchasing and Inventory module with any plan |
| Purchase Orders | Full, or the Purchasing and Inventory module with any plan |
Without the module the screen shows its overview with the Subscribe to Purchasing and Inventory button: it is included in the Full plan and, on any other plan, it can be added separately without changing plan.
Frequently asked questions
Q: How does inventory work and how do I roll it out?
A: Inventory is a set of scales: Balance = purchases − consumption. To roll it out: (1) set up the Substrates catalogue with sizes/variants, cost, unit and supplier; (2) choose in Purchasing Settings which document deducts material; (3) load the opening stock with Adjust stock → Set balance in Purchasing → Purchase stock; (4) set the Minimum stock; (5) record your purchases; (6) work as usual — stock out is deducted automatically; (7) replenish with Generate order.
Q: Where do I start? / I do not know which section to use.
A: Start with the Substrates catalogue: define the materials with their unit and cost. After that, Purchasing → Purchase stock is the day-to-day screen (stock levels, warnings, adjustments, replenishment); Purchase Orders for what you order from suppliers and Purchase Invoices for what they bill you.
Q: What is the difference between Substrates and Purchase stock?
A: Substrates is the catalogue: which materials exist, with their cost and unit. Purchase stock is the inventory: how much of each is left, what it is worth and what needs replenishing.
Q: What is the difference between a Purchase order and a Purchase invoice?
A: The order is what you request from the supplier, and it adds stock when you receive the goods. The invoice is the cost they pass on to you, and it adds stock if you link its lines to catalogue items. An order can be invoiced from the order itself.
Q: When is material deducted?
A: When the document chosen in "Consumption module is calculated from:" (Purchasing Settings) is issued: Invoice, Delivery note, Work order or Quote. Before that, consumption is a forecast and does not lower the Balance.
Q: Why does my stock not drop when I produce a quote?
A: That is correct. A quote creates theoretical consumption (a forecast). The real deduction happens when the document configured in Step 2 is issued, usually the invoice.
Q: How do I load the opening inventory?
A: Count the warehouse and, in Purchasing → Purchase stock, use Adjust stock → reason Set balance on each item with the quantity counted. It stays in the history with its reason.
Q: Do I have to note down every consumption by hand?
A: No. The system calculates consumption from what each quoted job needs and deducts it when the configured document is issued. Manual adjustments are only for spoilage, breakage or stock count corrections.
Q: Is stock kept by substrate or by size?
A: At the level below: by size for sheet and roll substrates, and by colour, size or variant for item substrates. Each one has its own balance, minimum stock and valuation.
Q: Do I need to inventory the whole catalogue?
A: No. Start with the materials you use most; the rest can stay at minimum stock 0 (no alert) and be added whenever you like.
Q: Which plan do I need?
A: Purchase stock, Purchase Orders and Purchase Invoices require the Full plan. The Substrates catalogue and Purchasing Settings are available on every plan.