TSS Event Hire Software

Transcription

1 TSS Event Hire Software Software Solutions designed specifically for the Event Hire Industry all Hire will give you the information you need to run your hire company T S Solutions Limited

2 T S Solutions Limited Tel: info@tssweb.net Website: TSS Software Copyright TSS Rental Software Solutions

3 all Hire Software Event Hire Software all Hire is flexible, easy to use and ideal for any size of hire company Introduction all Hire Software gives you all the information you need to run your hire company. From stock availability, client history, quotation and contract to delivery and resource scheduling to invoice information and management reporting. From taking the first call from a customer and entering the details into all Hire, a full history of the job is built up. You will know instantly when quoting for items whether or not they are available and can quickly see what alternatives can be offered if not. Once the job is entered, the hard work is done. You can follow it up, change it to a booking and produce all the necessary paperwork, including deposit and main invoices, without having to re-enter any of the information. This also forms the basis of the picking list and delivery/collection notes. When alterations need to be made, they can be done quickly, stock checked automatically and revised paperwork/ confirmation sent effortlessly. Any alterations are stored against the job so that it is clear when and who made the changes. The will guide through the basics of the all Hire software from an overview of the Active Jobs Chart and existing orders to creating a new enquiry, checking stock availability, producing documentation, confirming the order and invoicing the job. If you have any queries, require any assistance, or would like to arrange a demonstration, please don t hesitate to contact us. all Hire will save you time and support all of your hire business needs TSS Rental Software Solutions 3

4 1. Initial Log On Summary Screen Active Jobs Chart Creating a New Job a. General Details Tab b. Contact Details c. Event d. Job Dates e. Optional Information f. Venue/ Delivery Information g. Site / Deleivery Information h. Optional Marketing Information i. Main Items j. Availability k. Invoicing Information l. Produce Quotation m. Reports n. Quotation o. Export the Quotation p. Close / Save the Job Confirming a Job a. Make Amendments b. Create Purchase Order c. Create a Deposit Invoice d. Contract / Order Confirmation e. Load List / Delivery Note f. Main Hire Invoice Stock Availability a. Stock Groups b. All Overbooked Items c. Custom Groups d. Single Stock Reports Stock Items a. Creating a Stock Item b. Stock Pricing c. Stock Turn d. Stock Transactions Purchase Orders TSS Rental Software Solutions

5 Initial Log On Open the program by clicking the icon on your desktop or through your start menu, program files, TSS, then TSSV8.exe. This gives you the log on screen where the User Name and Password should be preset. If they are not, please give us a call. The data will automatically point to where the demonstration data is. Should you decide to purchase, we will help you set this up to point to your data as part of the installation. Press the to log in. TSS Rental Software Solutions 5

6 Summary Screen When you log in the summary screen will appear. This screen is where you will access any other screens you may want to see, whether it is to create a job, alter a stock item or view scheduling or reports. We will work through some of the buttons in this tutorial and you can look the others up in the main manual, (or simply click on them to see what they bring up), at your leisure. The company name (in this case Marquee Demo) will be displayed at the top left of the screen. It is possible to have more than one company and you would alternate between them here. You also set which one you would like to open as default by selecting that company then pressing the icon to the right. To the right of the EXIT button is the name of the user who is logged on. All changes are recorded under this user name, so, if you decide to go ahead, it is a good idea to set up user names for all of the people who will work on the system so you know who has done what, but we ll stick with SYSDBA for now. It is worth noting that all of the main programs (represented by the buttons on the summary screen), run as separate windows. This means that you can have the stock availability screen open while you are in a job booking it, or be looking up all of the jobs at an event while creating a new one. 6 TSS Rental Software Solutions

7 You will see this displayed on the windows toolbar as a series of different programs. This is particularly advantageous if you are using dual monitors as you can constantly keep a screen you use a lot, such as the stock availability, open on one screen and be working on something else on the other. Also the majority of the screens used within the program are fully customisable. This means that if there are any fields that you do not use on the default screens they can be removed. Or alternatively if you want to add a different field in that you feel is relevant then you can do so. (This is explained in the full manual). TSS Rental Software Solutions 7

8 Active Jobs Chart The active jobs chart gives an overall picture of what is happening in a particular period. It is useful to get a quick overview of what jobs are going out / coming back in a period. It may also be useful to give your warehouse staff access to this for planning purposes. It gives you a colour coded view of what jobs will be going out / returning within a date range. This can be particularly useful when planning as it gives a clear, visual representation of what is happening over any given period, where jobs clash, and whether they can be moved. It can be accessed by pressing the tab which is to the right of the Search under the tab on the summary screen. Build / Delivery Finish of build but before customer use In Use Finish of use but before start of clear Clear / Return Enquiry Customer to collect and return Expiry date set on job (pink border) By default you will see today s date and the next 31 days filled in at the top. (You may have to scroll right to see all of the days.) If you want to change the dates use the drop down arrows next to the date and day fields and then press the 8 TSS Rental Software Solutions

9 button. The arrows below this button will move the data displayed forward or backwards by 1 week. You can also select a specific month by pressing the ones listed above the graph. This will automatically process the data for that month. By default, only the jobs which are firm bookings and start to build / clear or are delivered / collected within the period are shown on the chart. If you wish to see the jobs that are in use as well press the button. The buttons that show as orange are the criteria that are currently selected, so if you should want to see enquiries on the chart press the button. The same applies to cross hires / purchase orders and out of service jobs. The information shown on the left of the chart, (Customer Name and Job Reference by default), is customisable depending on what you find it useful to see. For example, some companies like to see the Event Information here whereas others might use the delivery post code. TSS Rental Software Solutions 9

10 Creating a New Job When a customer calls, you will want to record their details in order to be able to send them a Quotation / Order Confirmation or other relevant paperwork. You will also need to check Stock Availability. All of this can be done by creating a New Job. (There are other ways of checking availability before creating a job, but we will look at these later.) Go to the button. tab on the summary screen and click on the (This screen is also the one you use to find existing jobs which we will again look at later.) 10 TSS Rental Software Solutions

11 You will now be on the summary screen of a new job. The summary on the left of the screen will be automatically filled in after you put the information into the job and save it. As with the job chart, the information that is shown on the summary screen can be changed to show any that you feel relevant, such as Event Information or perhaps you want to see the address. The screens can be accessed in any order to fill in information, but logically we re going to start by clicking on the on the second level. tab. You will now see a new set of Tabs We will not go through all of these tabs in this tutorial as most of them will be configured and personalised, or even removed, during setup/training. Feel free to click through them on your own. TSS Rental Software Solutions 11

12 General Details Tab The tab is the usual place to start as this contains most of the information about the job such as Job Reference, Customer Details, Dates and Delivery Information. The first area of note is: The Reference will automatically pick the next sequential number and give it a TMP prefix (temporary). The Reference will follow the job from start to finish and is usually quoted on ALL paperwork. You have several options regarding this reference. 1) Use the TMP number that has been issued 2) Press the button to issue the next proper sequential number 3) Overtype it with a reference of your own. In this case, press practice. to issue the next number as this is the normal 12 TSS Rental Software Solutions

13 The job type will usually be ENQUIRY (Quotation) or FIRM BOOKING, but can be changed using the drop down arrow to any of the following. The normal uses for these types are: Enquiry: Used for the initial contact with the customer, through the quotation to the point the job is booked. (Stock is checked against other Bookings at this stage.) Firm Booking: Used when the job is confirmed as this also books the stock so that any over bookings will be flagged up for action. Cross Hire: Used when you have sub contracted stock in from a third party. Any items booked by this type will show as a negative figure on the availability chart, thus artificially increasing your stock for that time period. Out of Service: Used to temporarily remove stock from your available equipment. You can create a job of this type if you have some equipment that is being cleaned. altered / repaired that you do not want anyone to be able to book until it is serviceable again. As we are creating a Quotation, leave it set to ENQUIRY. TSS Rental Software Solutions 13

14 Contact Information The next area to fill in is the contact details. It is important here to get the details correct as this will be the information used on the majority of your paper work. If you do not have the details of this customer previously stored and you do not wish to create them as a new customer yet, you can just fill in the boxes by free typing in them. HOWEVER, if you do not create a contact then you will not be able to track all the enquiries, invoices, etc that are linked to the specific client, so we wouldn t recommend this. Best practice is always to assign a contact, creating a new one if necessary. If you prefer, you can create the contact as an Enquiry and not a Customer until they have entered into a contract with you. These are simply different categories of customer that can be used for reporting, and you may not feel that you need to distinguish between them at all. We are not going to go into this too deeply at this point - creating a new contact is covered in the main manual. If this is a previous client then you can retrieve the details by pressing the button, typing in all or part of their name, address, contact name etc., pressing SEARCH and then double clicking on the one you wish to select. You can also click the 123 ab cd etc. buttons to the right of the screen to show you a list of the first 100 contacts beginning with the selected letter. For this example, click on the ab to the right of the screen and double click on Adams, Mrs M. This will take you back to the General Details screen of the job with most of the contact information filled in for you. 14 TSS Rental Software Solutions

15 The Name field should be used for the customer s surname or the company name. The Initials field should be used for the customer s initials AND title, (e.g. Mrs M), first name if you are on such terms with them (e.g. Margaret) or left blank if a company name has been used. The Address and Post Code fields are the normal correspondence address - the invoice and delivery addresses are entered in different areas. Telephone No, Fax No, Mobile No, and are entered in the relevant fields. Contact Name is usually the person you are liaising with. Salutation would be entered as Mr Smith, Mrs Adams, Margaret, being the person to whom you would address any correspondence (ie the part after Dear in a letter). TSS Rental Software Solutions 15

16 Event Information The event information can be used to link multiple jobs to one event, (e.g. a Show or exhibition where you have multiple customers). It means that you can run various reports from the system to see information like revenue by event or to print all load lists for jobs linked to that event. It also allows you to look back and use the information for marketing for the next show. To link a job to an existing event or creating a new one then you can search for it by clicking on the button. Double clicking on an event will select it and return you to the previous job details screen or you can click on the button to create a new one. If the event link is not relevant then you can just type information about the job in the box below, e.g. 40 th birthday party for John Mills, or Wedding Reception for 100 guests at Mill Cottage on Saturday 15 th July This can then be shown on your client paper work such as the quotation, contract, invoice, etc. (Many companies that deal with a caterer who may have multiple jobs on at one time like to use the reference provided by the caterer here for quick reference and ease of finding the job.) For the purposes of this example you should just type some details in the Event Title box. 16 TSS Rental Software Solutions

17 Job Dates The Job dates are some of the most important things on the screen as they are what govern when the stock is booked from and to. They also are used to generate multiple reports to do with load items, invoicing, scheduling etc. Even if you only have rough dates at the moment enter those in; the greater the accuracy of the dates the more accurate your stock check. Most marquee companies assume delivery the Wednesday prior to the weekend of the event and collection the Tuesday after to cover the longest likely period. If the client decides to go ahead then you can worry about more accurate dates. Catering Equipment / Furniture hirers may find the delivery and first date of use and the Last date of use and start of clear/end date are the same. That s fine, as is a single date delivery, event & collection all in one day. The dates will be automatically set to today s date. To alter these dates use the drop down arrow at the right of the relevant box to give you the calendar. You can alter the month or year by using the arrows at the top. Select the date you require and the calendar will close and fill in the date field for you. TSS Rental Software Solutions 17

18 The dates are used as follows: Delivery Type Start Date End of Build Delivery Time First Use Last Use Collection Type Start of Clear End Date You have the option of selecting either Delivery (by you) or Collection (by the customer) by using the drop down arrow. The date you will deliver / start building on site or that the customer will collect from you. The date you will have all the equipment on site and ready to use. Set this the same as the start date if the customer is collecting. Enter any information you wish. E.g. AFTER 10AM or BY 6PM. The first date that the customer wants to use the equipment. The last date that the customer wants to use the equipment. You have the option of selecting either Collection (by you) or Return (by the customer) by using the drop down arrow. The date you will start to remove the equipment from site. Set this the same as the end date if the customer is returning. The date you will have all the equipment removed from site or that the customer will return it to you. Collection Time Enter any information you wish. E.g. BEFORE 1PM or 12 4PM. Fill in some dates for this job using a weekend within the next month. 18 TSS Rental Software Solutions

19 Optional Information Contact information can be entered on the top right hand side of the screen, but only if required. The entered by and contact are drop down selections to show who initially entered the details and which person will be handling the contract. These sorts of details again can be used to filter reports if needed. (You can alter the names in the list if you go ahead with the software.) Order no. and Order Date are the reference from the client used to book the job if they supplied one and the date they placed the order. As this is still a Quotation, there s no need to fill this in at the moment. First contact date will be entered automatically as today s date although it can be changed if required. Expiry date is usually used if you have requested a deposit and are waiting for this before finally confirming the job. This will change the colour on the Hire Jobs Chart, be added as a reminder in the Summary Screen and show when you check Availability. NB You must make the job a Firm Booking for this to take effect. TSS Rental Software Solutions 19

20 Venue / Delivery Information Venue information is used in the same way as the Event information, except that this links all jobs done at one site and is not restricted by dates. For example, if you deliver to a particular hotel, gallery, exhibition hall, etc. several times a year for different clients, you can store the basic information about the venue for use again later. By pressing the venue button you can create a new venue or pick an existing one from your previous sites. We won t use the Venue button in this example. Next you need to enter the Delivery Information (or Site Address if you prefer). Pressing the button will bring up a list of any available addresses already associated with the job or with the customer you can double click on the Type (e.g. Job Address) to select one. 20 TSS Rental Software Solutions

21 Alternatively, you can type a different address in manually. Do whichever you prefer now. There is also a free type box at the bottom Instructions to store any useful information or instructions about this delivery. This is usually printed on the Delivery Note, so it s worth remembering that the customer WILL see this!! Delivery and collection charges can also be entered here if you use them. (There is no need to separate them as they are usually combined on the paperwork. However, if you would like to show them separately you can.) Optional Marketing Information At the bottom of the page are two additional fields that you can fill in if you will find them useful. Source is the Source of Enquiry and gives you a drop down list (you can set what is in here) to choose from. Event Type categorises into Private Party, Wedding, Corporate, etc., but again, you can amend the options. If these are not useful to you, you can change them to include information that is relevant or they can be removed should you decide to go ahead with the software. TSS Rental Software Solutions 21

22 Main Items Having filled in all of the relevant information on this screen, we need to move to the Main Items Tab. This is where the stock that is required on the job is booked. As well as being used for availability checking, it also provides the basis for quotes, confirmations, invoice and delivery notes, so presentation is important. To help you enter the items you require you have a choice of tabs in the bottom left corner, each with a different set of items on. These can be set up to suit your stock, but there are some demonstration ones here you can use. The simplest way to select an item is to click on the button relating to it. Some of these may ask questions when you press them just fill in the required information. If you choose a marquee and it asks for length type in the number but with NO m or ft symbols. Pricing can be automatic or manual or a mixture of both. If you pick an item but want to change the price, simply overtype it. If it doesn t have a price and you need it to then fill it in, or if it has a price but you would prefer to give an overall price then set the price to 0 and you can add a line for the total at the end. Pick a selection of items using the buttons. If you know what you are looking for and can t see it, you can press the button to the right of the toolbars. This will then open the stock find screen and allow you to search for an item. Once you ve found the one you want, double click on the line to select it. If you want to add a heading or overtype some / all of an items description, simply click into the Description box and change it. Once you have selected the item it will automatically assign a quantity of one; if you wish to change this you can do so at any time. 22 TSS Rental Software Solutions

23 If you have price bands set against your stock items then price will be automatically filled in at Price Band A. (You can alter this if there are other bands defined.). If you do not use the pricing against the stock, or you wish to alter it, then you can manually type in the price box. The VAT code is set as STD for all but you can alter it if required by selecting from the drop down box. The Discount column can be filled in as an amount or you can add a % sign to the end to give a percentage discount. This is a line discount and applies to the current item for this job only. You will then see the discount amount you have applied and the amended unit price displayed in the next two columns, also the total price for that line. Line Discount should not be confused with the Overall Discount which is more widely used, and applies to all items that have the Discountable box ticked. (The percentage is filled in on the net goods summary or the invoicing screen which we will look at shortly.) Most of the reports expect that the Overall Discount option will be used. The tick boxes for Dirty Wash, Insured and Discountable on each of the items determine whether Dirty Wash or Damage Waiver should be charged or Discount given on this item, but only if you apply any of these to the contract as a whole. These can be set by default for each stock item. For example, if you are sub-contracting an item, you may not want to offer discount on it, but you are discounting the contract. Simply make sure Discountable is not ticked for the sub-hire item. When altering information, make sure you tab out of the final box you edit as this works in the same way as an Excel sheet in that the information is not held until the edited box has been exited. If you wish to add a line into a booking you can use the buttons. The I+ will add a blank line above the currently selected line or the A+ will add one at the bottom of the screen. If you turn the button on then press one of button bar buttons you will insert that item above which ever line you are currently on. (Remember to turn it off when you have finished!) To delete a line, highlight it and press the button. If you want to undo the alterations you have made then you can use the button. This will undo a single transaction each time you press it and you can go right back to the point you last saved the job. TSS Rental Software Solutions 23

24 The drop down arrow at the end of the shows you the a summary of the job values and allows you to input such things as overall discount, dirty wash, delivery and collection. Simply fill in the percentage or actual amount in the box after symbol for discount or insurance / damage waiver. If you do NOT use a % sign, a fixed amount will be applied. Dirty wash can be entered as a percentage (next to Dirty Wash Nett) or price per item (Dirty Wash Units). You can also enter Delivery / Collection values on this screen. These fields can also be accessed from the invoicing screen and are explained in more detail in that part of the tutorial. 24 TSS Rental Software Solutions

25 Stock Availability Once you have entered all of the stock required it is important to check the availability of that stock as this will not be done automatically until you close the job. To check if the stock is available for the period click on the Availability Tab at the top then press the button. Any items that are overbooked will be displayed in a list, sorted by their Group. By default there are 1 lead days and 1 trailing days added to the check. These can be altered to whatever you require. They are there to show you if a job is clearing or building very close to your job dates but not overlapping it. By clicking on a + line at the left of an item you expand the section to show the jobs that item is booked on and by double clicking on a line you can open the single stock availability screen. This shows all of the BOOKED jobs that clash with your job so that you can see if you have any room to manoeuvre stock around, get it back earlier, deliver it later, whatever you need to do to make it work. The colours against each job reflect the Build, In use and Clear periods that we saw earlier on the chart. As the job you are working on is still a Quotation, we will not do any subcontracts at this stage, but we will come back to this screen if there is a problem on making the job a booking. If the required stock is available, or you are happy with the overbookings then you can carry on to check the invoicing information. If you need to change the stock for something that is available or make a note that you will need to order the stock in if the job is confirmed then do that now. TSS Rental Software Solutions 25

26 Invoicing Information Click on the Tab to the right of Main Items. All of these fields other than Invoice Name and Address are completely optional. The address information can be entered either manually or, by pressing the button. The button will bring up a list of any available addresses already associated with the job or with the customer. The Insurance Rate (Damage Waiver) can be entered here either as a percentage (of the total of the Job Items that have Insured ticked) by putting % after the figure, or as a fixed amount by entering a figure without a % sign. The VAT code can also be changed (if it is other than STD). 26 TSS Rental Software Solutions

27 The deposit required can be entered as a percentage or a fixed amount in exactly the same way and can be used on a Quotation to tell the customer what deposit is required. (This can be shown as a rate or an actual figure and is calculated on the job total.) The Revenue date can be used for reporting / accounting purposes to alter the month the revenue for the job falls in. The Discount can again be entered here either as a percentage (of the total of the Job Items that have Discountable ticked) by putting % after the figure, or as a fixed amount by entering a figure without a % sign. The VAT code can also be changed (if it is other than STD). If you charge for dirty return of crockery, cutlery, etc. you can set the charge as a Unit Rate or a Wash % Rate. This will be applied to all items ticked Dirty Wash. There is an option to set default values for all of these fields (except Revenue Date) in File Defaults. TSS Rental Software Solutions 27

28 Produce Quotation Having filled in all of the required information, the next step is to send the quotation to the client. NB all of the paperwork can be altered to suit your requirement and include logos etc. if you wish. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this. There are a number of ways you can deal with any report. 1) Print it and send it 2) it directly 3) Send it to Word /Excel, customise, and then print / it. 4) Export as a PDF & then via your preferred software In all cases you need to start by selecting a report (or reports) so click on the tab. The sections in the left hand column will already be expanded, and you will probably want Client Paperwork. Then click on the report(s) you want. (You will see a tick appear next to each one selected.) For now, choose Quotation. Once selected, you can preview the report by clicking on the screen icon to the right. You can then print as many copies as required directly to your default printer. (If you don t need to preview the report, simply select your printer.) 28 TSS Rental Software Solutions

29 Quotation NB This requires a desktop copy of Outlook If you wish to the quotation directly from this screen then select the report required as before then click on the tab for a choice of format to send. Click on the output type you wish to send the attachment as, (we recommend PDF). The quotation will then appear in the list of attachments on the right hand side. Click on the button (at the bottom). You will now be taken to the screen. The attachment(s) are shown on the right hand side. If you wish to add any other documents to the then you can find them by clicking on the icon at the top of the attachment column, you can also delete any attachments from this by highlighting them and then clicking on the icon. The To Copy and Blind Copy work in exactly the same way as your normal does in that you can free type an address in there. The main difference is that when you click on one of the buttons you get a selection of addresses TSS Rental Software Solutions 29

30 that are from all Hire as well as being able to select from outlook. (To make the process quicker the outlook contacts do not load automatically you need to click on the line to load them.) Select the job address by double clicking on it and it will be inserted in to the To box at the top. If you wish to find an address that is associated with another job or contact then click on the button and you will be given the option to look for another contact or another job that has the address that you wish to select. When you have finished click the screen. button to return to the previous Enter a subject for the and type any text you need to add at the bottom of the screen. You can change the signature from this screen as well if you have set the default location (see the main manual). By clicking the drop down next to your signature name you get access to the different signatures that you have set up. Once you have completed the click on then be sent via your default client.. The will All s sent are automatically stored under the doc s tab within the job, so the original can be deleted from sent items if needed. 30 TSS Rental Software Solutions

31 Export the Quotation If you would like to amend the quotation before you send it, perhaps to add a cover letter or some additional terms or just to personalise it a little, you can send it to Word or Excel. Click on the Tab and then choose where you would like to export the report by picking the appropriate logo, (usually Word or Excel). When you have finished editing the report, you can save it wherever you wish and then print / as required. Close / Save the Job Having created the job and sent the quotation you can close and save the job using at the top left of the screen. NB UNTIL YOU CLOSE THE JOB WILL NOT BE SAVED. IF YOU CANCEL OR PRESS THE TO CLOSE IT WILL BE DELETED. You can use the button at the top to do an interim save at any point. TSS Rental Software Solutions 31

32 Confirm a Job as a Booking Once the client confirms they wish to go ahead then you need to re-open the job, check the stock again and produce whatever paperwork you need to send with or without a deposit invoice. You can find the job by going to the icon on the main toolbar and entering either the Job Number or part of the Customer s name into the box. Make sure that you have pressed the ENQUIRY button as the job is still an Enquiry and press the TAB key on your keyboard. (There are tick boxes to allow you to search different pieces of information in order to find the job so if you ve forgotten their name and don t have the reference you can always search by something else!) The first thing you need to do is change the job type to FIRM BOOKING. Go into the Details tab and change it on the General Details screen by clicking on the drop down list and selecting. (You can also press the have recently worked on.) button to show any jobs that you Make Amendments Once this is done you need to make any adjustments to the dates or the stock as per the clients instructions. You can also change any other details that you may know need to amend. After making any alterations you should check the stock availability as described earlier. (Click on the Availability tab.) If the stock is available then you are ok to go ahead and produce your paperwork. If there is an overbooking you can print the overbooked information on the screen by pressing the button. 32 TSS Rental Software Solutions

33 Create Purchase Order Alternatively, if you want to use the purchase ordering system to order any overbooked items then you can drag the items from the overbooked screen to the bottom area and they will be marked as requiring attention. (You can skip this until later if you prefer.) By pressing the any of the items and the quantity. button you will see if you have already ordered Once you go to the Purchase Orders screen you will then see the items and can order them which will temporarily alter your stock balance for the duration of the dates on the order (covered in the purchase order section). On the job summary screen there is a tab which allows you to see the marked items and the whether you have ordered them. If you want to manually add a line to the items that require attention then click on the button and free type in the row that is created at the bottom of the list. This TSS Rental Software Solutions 33

34 could be used to remind you that you need to order something that is not a stock item. What you do next will depend a little on how you work. You may have asked for a deposit on the Quotation, which you will have now received. If so, you need to produce a Deposit Invoice as a receipt for this BEFORE you create an Order Confirmation as the deposit will not be deducted otherwise. You may want to produce and send a Deposit Invoice to ask for a Deposit. You may not take a deposit at all, or take a Non VAT or damage deposit, in which case skip the next section. 34 TSS Rental Software Solutions

35 Create a Deposit Invoice Click on the tab. If you want to raise an invoice for a percentage of the Job Value, click on the button and press the TAB key on your keyboard. The job total is then brought through and you can enter a percentage into the box. This will automatically be worked out then added to the Deposit Text box. You can overtype this if you wish, then press the TAB key to activate the button. If you have already received the deposit and want to raise the invoice for that amount, you can enter the full amount you have received into the box next to the button and then press it. The system will work out the Nett and VAT for you and add it to the Deposit Text box. Again, you can overtype this if you wish, then press the TAB key to activate the Press the wish. Now close the Preview screen and press the the invoice. button. button to have a look at the invoice and check it if you button to raise NB - this will issue a new invoice number and you will need to credit it if you duplicate it. This is not the place to get a copy of an invoice. TSS Rental Software Solutions 35

36 Any invoices raised can be re printed by going to the tab in the job, selecting the required invoice, selecting the invoice type from the list on the left, if not already selected, then clicking on the button. Once you produce the invoice you get the options of either printing directly to a selected printer, sending directly out via or a combination of both. Select the number of copies to be printed and select your printer from the list available. You should also tick the directly from here. box if you want to After making your selection press the button. The selected number of prints will be raised and if you selected then the box will open. Enter the address required or select from ones stored against the contact by clicking on the button. When finished press the button. A copy of the sent will be stored on the Docs tab within the job along with the attached invoice so anyone can open and see it from there. 36 TSS Rental Software Solutions

37 Contract / Booking Form / Order Confirmation Again, the way in which you operate will determine what other paperwork (if any) you want to produce at this time. If your customer has not yet signed anything you may want to send them a Contract or any Order Confirmation that required a signature. If you already have a signature, you may prefer just an order confirmation to send with the receipted Deposit Invoice. Alternatively, you may have a totally different type of document to send at this stage. Whatever you are sending, go to the reports screen, double click the report you require (probably from the General Section), and select whether you will print, or export. When you have produced whatever you need, close the job to save the changes. TSS Rental Software Solutions 37

38 Load List / Delivery Note When the job date is closer and the stock is ready to be loaded then you need to find the job, go to the Reports TAB and expand the Loadlists / Delivery Collection Notes section(s). There are several standard types of loadlist depending again on how you work. LoadSumG1 produces a summary of the job and then a breakdown to component level ordered by Stock Group. (Usually used by Marquee companies.) LoadSumS1 produces the same report but ordered by Sort Order. (Again, usually used by Marquee companies.) Loadlist simply gives a list of items to be loaded in Group order. Tick all 3 and have a look at which suits you best. Remember, as with all of the paperwork, the format of these can be changed. It is also possible to have a System Report which will run all loadlist / delivery notes for a particular date / period. 38 TSS Rental Software Solutions

39 Main Hire Invoice When you produce the Main Hire Invoice is entirely up to you. You may want to send it a few weeks before the job, you may take it with you or even send it after the job is completed. It is up to you. It is, however, worth remembering that an invoice CANNOT be changed. So, if you raise the Main Hire Invoice and then alter the job you will need to raise an Additional Invoice (or Credit Note) for the amended items. You can avoid this situation by sending amended Order Confirmations up until the date of the job. These will show the up to date balance. You can then send the Main Hire Invoice as a receipt or produce it the day before (or even the day of) the job. Go to the tab from the Invoicing Tab in a job. The main hire invoice will calculate the value automatically, adding Delivery & Insurance and deducting any Discounts or Deposits that have been previously raised. TSS Rental Software Solutions 39

40 You can preview the Invoice simply by clicking on the button. From here, you can also the invoice as a Pro Forma by clicking on the arrow on the right of the button and selecting as Pro Forma. To raise the invoice press the options as you did with the deposit invoice. button and you will get the same Again, if you press the button a 2 nd time you will get a new invoice with a new number. Any invoices raised can be re printed by going to the tab in the job, selecting the required invoice, selecting the invoice type from the list on the left, then clicking on the button. 40 TSS Rental Software Solutions

41 Stock Availability Chart We have looked at some of the information you can enter onto a job; now we re going to look at how that is used to give you more general information about Stock Availability. You can use any of the screens we re about to look at before, during or after you enter a job. You may want to check before you enter all the details that the stock is available, or you may want to look for an alternative while you re booking a job, or you may just need to know when you have shortages. The Stock Availability Chart can be found under the tab, it shows the availability of a whole group of items at once. You can also tailor it to show custom groups you have made. It s other function is to show all Overbookings for a period. To see the availability of an item, click on the group it is in on the left of the screen. By default the button is selected. This means that anything that does not have the on the individual stock item will not show up here. The date is set to today s date when you initially open the screen but you can change the start date and the number of days displayed on screen from here. Once you have selected your criteria press the results. button to display the Each cell in the graph depicts the amount of stock booked on that day against the total balance of that item. TSS Rental Software Solutions 41

42 If you take the first cell it shows full green meaning there is nothing booked and you have the full amount of 220 available. On the second cell the blue line is about 2/3 of the way up so you get an idea how many are available and the 70 on the cell tell you the exact number left. On the third to sixth cells the stock is over booked and showing red, on the seventh cell it is showing as within the buffer level on this item, and displaying that there are only 15 left (buffer level will only show if you set against the item). Next to each of the stock items is a + button. By clicking on this you can see all of the jobs/quotes that are using that item in the period. If you press the button, you will get a new screen showing the colours but with the remaining balance show in figures. The initial view will always be portrait and only fit about a week on the screen. To change this to landscape, and get about 2 weeks on screen, go to the FILE menu in the top left corner, choose Page Setup then Landscape and you will see more information. 42 TSS Rental Software Solutions

43 To get exact figures for availability on screen press the now displays the availability in numeric form. button. The graph Using the example above: The first figure shows the available amount for that day. The figure in brackets is the total stock balance. The figure after the brackets (if applicable) is the Buffer Level. If you want to see the j quotes for this period as well tick the box at the top of the screen and press the button again. The coloured graphical display will look as before but the numeric one has an extra figure in brackets at the end showing the amount quoted. TSS Rental Software Solutions 43

44 Overbooked Stock The next tab on the stock availability is the, again set your criteria at the top of the screen and press the button. This chart will show every item that is over booked within the time frame selected. The + next to the item will expand to show the individual jobs that item is booked on. Once again, you can get to figures in colour by pressing the button, in numeric format as previously shown by clicking on the open the single stock chart. button or you can double click to There is a drop down on the status column to allow you to see what items are into the buffer level as well but not overbooked. 44 TSS Rental Software Solutions

45 Custom Groups You can also define your own groups to view within the availability chart. If you wanted an overview of frame tents you could select just the rafters, floor and lining roofs as an example. Select the tab and click on the icon at the top left, type a name for the group and set the visible box depending on whether you want everyone to be able to see it or if it is just for you. Select the group that has the item in you require, click and hold the left mouse button on the code from the right hand column and drag it into the second column then release the mouse button. You will now see the item in that column, do this for as many items as you want in the new group. The order of the items within the group can be altered by selecting an item and then using the to move it within the list. Once you are happy then press the button, you now have a new group, which will be seen at the top of the list when you switch back to the group availability screen. You can create as many user defined groups as you need. TSS Rental Software Solutions 45

46 Single Stock Availability Chart If you want to look at a single item in more detail, this is the screen to use. It may be that you have several overbookings that need to be sorted out, or that you have items that you don t own and you need to place orders for them all. You can have more than one item open to view at a time so that you can look at alternative options for the jobs that are overbooked, for example perhaps you can give one customer 5 6 round tables instead of 5 for the same price to get you out of trouble. You can either get to the chart by clicking on the icon (in which case you will need to select the stock item to display), or by clicking on an item within the stock availability chart. The resulting screen is the same. The colours shown on the chart are: Build / Delivery Finish of build but before customer use In Use Finish of use but before start of clear Clear / Return Quote Dirty wash days Customer collect and return 46 TSS Rental Software Solutions

47 You can set what is shown by default by going to the icon and selecting your criteria. Press to refresh the screen. There is also a setting so you can view the results with decimal places if needed, use the arrows to increase or decrease the places shown. If you want to check another item you can either change the code on this screen by clicking on the to the right of the description box or, if you wanted to have multiple availability screens open at once, you can open another one by clicking another code. at the top left of the screen and then selecting Clicking on one of the coloured cells in the grid will open the job associated with it. The button will show any prices associated with that stock item. The that. will open the stock item itself if for any reason you need to do TSS Rental Software Solutions 47

48 System Reports By selecting the reports icon from the main screen you get access to all the reports you have on the system. These give you varying types of information from value / quantity of bookings, to what new quotes were entered last week, to delivery notes for a period, to marketing information to stock usage. The reports are broken down in sections on the left hand side depending on which area the reports apply to. Reports applicable to a job can be selected when you open a job but also can be selected here and the job reference selected from a job search screen. To select a report/reports first select the section from the left hand column then double click on each report you want from the middle column ( you will see a tick appear next to each one selected), If any criteria, i.e. date ranges, are needed on the reports then you will see that appear in the right hand column. At the top right when you select a report there is a description of what that report will show and if it uses dates what criteria those dates are based on. Once selected you can print/preview/ the report as before. 48 TSS Rental Software Solutions

49 Creating Stock Items & Transactions If you would like to create some of your own stock items or change the demo quantities of stock you can do so. Open the stock search screen from the summary screen using the button. Then press the displayed. button and the following screen is (You could also find an existing stock item here and open it to amend it.) All the information relating to stock items are found in this screen. The descriptive tabs show the headings of each section. The Code can be any Alphanumeric arrangement of up to 50 Characters, excluding the use of { } EXCEPT in a Top Level Code. It will default to ST##### to prevent you entering a blank code, but this should be overwritten with the Code you require. The Description field allows the use of as many lines of text as you require and these will be used on your customer & staff documentation. NB Only the first 5 lines (a new line is separated by a Return, not one which has wrapped around), can have pricing associated with them, so it is sensible to restrict your description to only 5 lines. TSS Rental Software Solutions 49

50 The Group field allows you to allocate your Stock Items to various groups both for reporting and searching purposes. Once you have entered a Group once, it is available in the drop down list to be selected again. System is an analysis field and might be used to identify items in a particular modular structure system, china manufacturer, furniture style. Flag is an analysis field of up to 10 characters which can be used in a variety of ways. Ask about the best option for your company. Vat Code is a 3-character field. The default is STD (Standard Rate); other pre-set rates are ZER (Zero Rates) and 5%. These rates and definitions can be altered as necessary in System Maintenance. Bin Location: This is an analysis field of up to 16 characters, usually used to identify an item s location. Sort Order: This determines the order of priority the item will have on the Loading Lists - 0 has the highest priority and will appear at the top of the loading list. (Hint: Do not start at 1 and then go to 2, 3, 4 etc.- leave a large gap, 100, 200, 300 and so on, so that you can easily insert any you have forgotten.) Pop Up Info: If you enter any text in here it will show as a pop up window every time you book the stock item. Use on Loading List: If there is a tick in the box this item will appear on a Loading / Picking List. You would leave it blank if the Stock Item was simply a Pack Description, or included elsewhere in a Pack. Track Hired Stock: This MUST be ticked if you want to see that you are overbooked in this item. You would leave it blank for any item that you do not need to be warned that you are short of, (either because you have thousands and never run out, or because it is an item that you do not bring back, and simply replace when you get low). Item Will Return To Stock: This should be only be left blank for items which you want to automatically reduce your stock of when the job has finished. E.g. Paper Napkins.. Don t Adjust Losses: Tick this if you don t want to adjust the balance of an item if they are damaged or not returned, Discountable: Ticking this box will allow an overall discount given in all Hire to be calculated on this item. Charge Damage Waiver: If an overall percentage is entered for insurance, it will only be calculated on items which have a tick in this box. 50 TSS Rental Software Solutions

51 Charge Dirty Wash: If you charge for washing an item, (e.g. plates, cutlery etc.), put a tick in this box so that all Hire can calculate the charge for you. Laundry Item: This is ticked if you are using the additional module that allows you to mark items going to and from the laundry when returned. Out-Of-Service Wash Days: This allows items that require maintaining or refurbishing, (e.g.: laundering), between hires to be automatically flagged as unavailable for hire for the necessary number of days at the hire end. Min Stock Balance: Can be entered for Information purposes only and can be used in reports should you wish to create them. Weight: If you enter the weight of an item into this box it can be used to calculate the weights of your loads. Weight Per: If you only know the weight of a multiple of the item, enter that quantity in this box. Boxed Qty: If items are only sent out in boxes then the qty in the box can be set here and when you book the stock it will prompt you to round up to the nearest full box quantity. Buffer Level: Can be set as an amount or percentage of the total balance to warn when you are booking close to the max limit but not over it. REMEMBER TO USE CONSISTENT UNITS OF WEIGHT - don t try and mix Metric and Imperial! Sales Nominal Code: Fill in this if you are using Final Account and require a detailed Nominal Breakdown of your sales invoices. Purchase Nominal Code: Fill in this if you are using Final Account and require a detailed Nominal Breakdown of your purchase invoices. TSS Rental Software Solutions 51

52 All of the prices have a Per next to them. This allows you to set a Price Per quantity of an item. E.g. If you give the customer a price of 1.70 Per 10 you can set this here for use later. The Cost figure is the purchase price of the item. The Rental figure is the price charged to the customer. A price is not allocated to every item; e.g. packs would use price bands whereas chairs would be charged per item. The Trade figure is the price you would charge a customer for a damaged item and selling price to trade customers. Retail Cost figure is the commercial selling price. Hire Cost figure is the depreciation figure per booking Pricing Formula and Price Code allow you to create one or more pricing structures for an Item, Pack or Top Code. To create a new one click on the icon next to The following screen will be shown, the codes will depend on the item you are creating the pricing for. A top code for a marquee will have show a code similar to the one shown above, where as if you are creating price bands for a single stock item you will not see all the bracketed options. Press the price bands. button then enter the rates in against the different 52 TSS Rental Software Solutions

53 The bands can be used to set different rates for different times of the year, different customers, or whatever you require. These bands are selectable when booking the job items or you can set a customer to use a specific price band all the time. If you are doing a complicated code like a marquee then the formulas that are entered will look something like the example below although there may be multiple lines. Below is an explanation of the formula: Rate1 being the price for the first bay and Rate2 being the price for every other bay no matter how long the tent. So substituting the information for an 18m tent you would get the result of: Line1= (18/3-1) Making the total price of 650. For single item you can just enter your prices and in the formula enter Line1=Rate1 etc. TSS Rental Software Solutions 53

54 This tab shows the usage of each item during the year, and can be compared to the previous year. Set the years you wish to see at the top and press the Icon against each one to generate the data. The figures are taken from what is booked on each day divided by the total available stock for that day multiplied by 100 to give the percentage. The accumulative line shows the totals used each day against the available amount for the year, thus given you an overall percentage total at the end of the year. This screen can be printed using the icon or saved as a.swf file using the icon. 54 TSS Rental Software Solutions

55 To alter, or set an initial balance for a stock item go to the transactions tab. You will see your current hire balance here and any adjustments that have been previously made. To increase the balance click on the icon or to decrease click on the. In this example we will add some stock. Set the date of the increase (this can be entered today but set for a future date and the stock will not show as available until that date) Put the quantity to increase by in the Qty box. Enter the price if you wish to keep a note of it (this is just for reference purposes only). Enter a quick reference in to serve as a reminder on screen as to why the amount has been added and a more detailed set of information if you need, these fields are shown on the transactions screen only so are just there to serve as reminders. TSS Rental Software Solutions 55

56 You will see the new balance displayed on the right of the screen; these are non editable boxes and are calculated from the current balance and the amount you enter into the quantity box. If you are happy with the information entered press the button. You will now see the new adjustment in the list. In this example the date was set in the future so you can see that although the current hire balance still says 38 there will be an addition on 06/07/2012 to add the extra 12 giving the new balance on that day of 50. This new balance can also be seen on the stock availability charts. 56 TSS Rental Software Solutions

57 Purchase Orders The purchase order area within all Hire can be used to manage all you purchase orders including the ones that are not linked to a contract, for example ordering of stationery. Below we will concentrate on creating an order from a job, but the procedure and screen are the same no matter which method you use. Click on the tab within the job. Here you will see all the purchase orders that have been created within the job. If you click on one you will see a summary of that order appear on the right. To create a new order press the icon at the top left. This will give you a list of available order types to select from. The main difference between them is the layout or wording on them. From within a job, use the Contract Specific General Order. Click on it and press screen. to open the new order on the summary By selecting the tab you then see the details tabs below that. On the tab click on the button, this will give the order the next sequential number. The Order Ref is a free type box for you to enter a short reference into. Order date will be filled with today s date automatically but you can alter this if you wish. TSS Rental Software Solutions 57

58 Next press the button, to bring up the contact search screen. Select the contact you require and the details will be filled in. Alternatively create a new contact if you need to order from a new supplier. Remember to set the type to SUPPLIER and not Customer / Enquiry, although you can set to both in needed. When you have finished on this screen go to the next tab. Here fill in all the dates and times that apply to this order. The Authorised By and Confirmed By are drop down fields set in the miscellaneous file maintenance. Authorised by is the person that raised the order and confirmed by is the person who will sign the order off. (The confirmed by selection can be password protected if you need it to be to stop unauthorised raising of orders.) Any other info that needs to be shown on the order can be entered into the free type Information box at the bottom The tab will be automatically filled in from the site/delivery details within the job. If you have not already entered the information in the job then you will need to do it manually now, or select your company address from the list. The next tab is the. Here you need to enter whatever you are ordering. You can set the items up as individual stock codes with nominal codes and departments associated with each if you need to or you can just create as many purchase order codes as you need, or you can simply press the + button and free type. Select the button at the bottom of the screen which corresponds to your order (the buttons on this screen are in the same position as the ones used for booking stock, although you can create different tabs for this section if needed). 58 TSS Rental Software Solutions

59 The description can be over typed to enter whatever you want to see on the order. You then enter the quantity, price and discount if applicable. Continue this for as many items as you are ordering from the one supplier. The at the top right will calculate your total for these items. The drop down box on this field allows you fill in the amount you are charging to the customer and thus see the profit you will make from the order. Now click on the tab. The order type is automatically select depending on the order type you chose at the start. You can now view the order on screen if you wish before printing, as previously described. If you have previewed on screen you will see an order that looks something like the one shown on the next page. [NB - If you need the order to appear as if it is in a different currency, the icon on the summary screen opens another section to allow you to change the currency from to whatever you need to show. (Currency defaults are set within the program).] TSS Rental Software Solutions 59

60 If you then need to print from the preview you can do so the icon at the top of the screen. ing from the reports screen is exactly the same as for any other report. Once you have closed the purchase order you can view the tab within the job. If you need to refresh the screen then press the icon at the top left. You will now see the order you have just raised and if you single click on t you can see the summary to the right of the screen. 60 TSS Rental Software Solutions

61 If you need to alter anything within the order double click on the name on the left of the screen. You will then see the summary screen again with all the details filled in. The order can be cancelled from here if needed by pressing the button. If you need to make an amendment to the order when it has already been sent to the supplier then click on the button to mark this as revision one (which will then be shown on the revised printout). If you marked any items for attention on the availability screen, as explained previously, you can also create an order for those items here. The button is turned on by default; this means that if you double click on one of the items it will add it in to the order items screen with a quantity of the total required on the job. If you press the to turn it off then the qty displayed will be the total overbooked amount. In the above example that would TSS Rental Software Solutions 61

62 either be the 600 that are booked to the job or the 20 that are showing as overbooked. When you allocate the item you can alter the quantity if you need to and add the price in. The item added will show as Part in the status box to indicate that there is a part order done. If you are ordering all of the amount here then you can use the drop down in that column to mark it as complete. The Qty Done is only displayed if you have first gone to the availability check and clicked on the button to store the data. There is another tab on the summary screen. This can be used to monitor if any messages have been sent internally, to maybe ask for authorisation to be made against the order. The messaging is explained in the main manual. On the main job summary screen on the tab you will now see the marked items with quantities ordered and the number of the purchase order they are on, you will also see if there are still outstanding amounts. Below this you will see any other items that are ordered on this job. 62 TSS Rental Software Solutions