Forecast
A forecast is used to calculate a service item (machine). The price for the basic machine and assets for configuration, applied sales discounts, external equipments, services and other charges are calculated so that you gain on overview over the numbers.
This chapter is divided into the following sections:
Setting up a Margin for Forecasts
This section describes how to set up a margin for forecasts. To do so, please proceed as follows:
- Use the quick search (ALT+Q) to find the Margins page.
- To create a new margin, click New in the menu bar.
- Complete the information according to the following table:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer Code | Select from the dropdown list in the Manufacturer Code field the code of the manufacturer for who you want to set up a margin that is to be used for forecasts of service items from this manufacturer. |
| Manufacturer Name | The manufacturer’s name is automatically added by the system if you select a value for Manufacturer Code from the dropdown list. |
| Category Code | Select from the dropdown list of the Category Code column the code of the service item category for which you want to deposit a margin. |
| Category Name | The category name is automatically added by the system if you select a value for Category Code from the dropdown list. |
| Subcategory Code | Select from the dropdown list of the Subcategory Code column the code of the service item subcategory for which you want to deposit a margin. |
| Subcategory Name | The subcategory name is automatically added by the system if you select a value for Subcategory Code from the dropdown list. |
| Model | Select from the dropdown list of the Model column the model of the service item for which you want to deposit a margin. |
| Model Name | The model name is automatically added by the system if you select a value for Model from the dropdown list. |
| Minimum Margin % | In this column, enter the minimum margin that should be used for the combination of manufacturer, service item category, service item subcategory and model for forecasts. |
| Default Margin % | In this column, enter the default margin that should used for the combination of manufacturer, service item category, service item subcategory and model for forecasts. |
You have succesfully set up one or more margins. You can see which margin is used for the forecast and which amounts result from it under the Configurations FastTab.
Creating a Forecast
This section describes how to create a forecast. The forecast is used in sales calculations to calculate the machine(s). Click here to find more information on creating sales calculations and adding forecasts.
On the forecast card, which you can access via the sales calculation, you can make the following settings in theGeneral FastTab:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| No. | This field is filled with a number from the set up number series by the system. |
| Description | Enter a description for the forecast in this field. |
| Return Type | Specify whether you would like to take a machine back from the customer. You can choose between Trade-In, Purchase or Agency Business. If you select trade-in, the system will create a credit memo, whereas if you select purchase the system will create an invoice. |
| Vendor Name | Select from the picklist of this field the vendor for the forecast. This value is normally already preset with the name of the vendor that you have entered in the window for the forecast template. |
| Purchase Order Type | Select the purchase order type for the forecast. This value is transferred to all purchase orders created using this forecast. |
| Responsibility Center | Specify a responsibility center for the forecast. This value is transferred to all purchase orders created using this forecast. You’ll find more information regarding the setup of responsibility centers under Setting up Responsibility Center. |
| Location Code | Enter the location code for the forecast template in this field. |
| Calculation Currency | This field is filled with the calculation currency code of the manufacturer, but can be changed manually. |
| Calculation Currency Exchange Rate | This field is filled with the currency exchange rate, but can be changed manually. |
| Service Item No. | In this field, enter a service item number, if you haven’t done so in the previous step. |
| Status (Purchase) | This field is not editable. It shows the purchase status of the service item. |
| Status (Sale) | This field is not editable. It shows the sales status of the service item. |
| Standard Equipment | This field is not editable and shows whether Standard Equipment was added to the forecast. |
| Status | This field is not editable. It displays the status of the forecast. The following statuses are possible: Open means that the forecast has not yet been checked or released. Released means that this forecast has been released and can be used. |
| Base Code | Use this field to enter the base code. |
| Show List Prices | Activate this toggle switch if you want list prices to be displayed in sales quotes created from sales calculations. When activated, any Configuration lines of the Comment or Option type will be automatically converted and displayed as Charge (Item) in the sales quote. |
| Show calculated Sales Prices | Activate this toggle switch if you want calculated sales prices to be shown in sales quotes created from sales calculations. This means that the Base Machine List Price and any lines of the Option type from the Configuration will be calculated based on the Margins and any Purchase Discounts. The new machine price will be displayed in the Calculated Machine Sales Price field. In the option lines, the new amounts will be displayed in the Calculated Sales Price and Calculated Sales Amount fields. Option lines will be automatically converted when creating sales quotes and displayed as Charge (Item) in the sales quote. |
| Fix Price allowed | Activate this toggle switch if it should be possible to define a fix price for this forecast. You can find more information on the use of fix prices for sales calculations here. |
| Base Machine Net Price | Use this field to enter the machine net price. This price represents the machine price without any external equipment or additional cost. |
Once you have filled the header of the forecast, you can calculate the service item. The forecast consists of the following areas that you can access via the Show button in the menu bar:
| Area | Description |
|---|---|
| Configuration | In this part of the forecast, all configurations of the basic machine are included. The prices are shown in the factbox Forecast Calculation below the Configurations line. Configurations mean equipment packages (work lights, climate control etc.) as well as devices (telematic system). These equipments/configurations have to be deposited for every machine model in the system. You can find more information about this in the chapter Configuration. |
| Purchase Discounts | In this area of the forecast you can set up purchase discounts. You can choose between standard discounts and customised discounts which are applied as fixed price discount or percentage discount. The base amount of the used discounts can also be changed. You can find more information about this in the chapter Purchase Discounts. |
| Sales Discounts | In this area of the forecast you can set up sales discounts. You can choose between standard discounts and customised discounts which are applied as fixed price discount or percentage discount. The base amount of the used discounts can also be changed. You can find more information on this under Purchase Discounts. |
| External Equipment | In the External Equipment area, the prices for attachments and components are calculated. External equipment means all parts that are not part of the basic machine from the manufacturer. Examples for external equipment may be a bucket (structural engineering) or front hydraulics (agricultural engineering) of a different manufacturer. You can also include necessary works (services) for the attachment of the external equipment in the forecast. You can find more information about this in the chapter External Equipment. |
| Services | Below the Services area, all works concerning the machine are listed. This means among other things the delivery check in the garage, conversion works (e.g. For external equipment) and final assemblies. You can also create standard jobs for these works which are calculated with fixed prices. You can find more information about this in the chapter Services. |
| Costs | In this area of the forecast you can find all entries that do not clearly belong to one of the other areas. One possible example may be approval costs or the transport to the company/farmer. You can find more information about this in the chapter Costs. |
Configuration
This section describes how to add a configuration of a service item to a forecast. The following description assumes that you have already opened a forecast. Please proceed as follows to enter a configuration:
- Switch the view to the Configuration tab. To do so, click on Show > Configuration in the menu bar.
- Navigate to the Configuration FastTab.
- Complete the following information to add configurations to a service item:
Note
If you edit the equipment of a service item in the forecast, the equipment stored on the service item card will be updated automatically.
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Type | Select one of the following options: Comment – Use this line type to add comments to the configuration. Item – Use this line type to include configurations as, e.g., a light package consisting of additional working lights for a agricultural or construction machine into the forecast template. Option – Use this line type for equipment that you want to include in the forecast in addition to the basic machine. Options can be added to configuration lines without specifying a quantity, price, or item charge, and can be printed on documents. To import options from an Excel list, click on the selection field in the No. column and then on the selection field in the menu bar. Select Import Options Excel to import equipment via Excel. If you have previously added translations for the options via the Translation action on the Options page, these will be applied when creating or updating the sales quote for customers with the corresponding language code, and the option will be displayed in the quote in the respective language. Attribute – Use this line type to add attributes to the configuration. |
| Search | Use this field to search based on the text entered and the selected item line type, and then insert a matching line from the results. You can use the prefix # to search specifically within item descriptions. |
| No. | Select the configuration number. |
| Description | This field will be filled automatically. |
| Attribute Value | This field will be filled automatically. |
| Unit Of Measure | This field will be filled automatically. |
| Quantity | Enter a quantity for the selected configuration type. |
| List Price | Enter a list price for the selected configuration type. |
| Purchase Price | Enter a purchase price for the selected configuration type. |
| Line Amount (List Price) | This field will be filled automatically by the system. |
| Item Charge | This field is automatically filled by the system with the default value from the Item Charge for Equipment field on the Sales & Receivables Setup page. You can manually select item charges for lines of the Option type from the dropdown list, if a Quantity is specified in the configuration line. |
| Calculate Discount | Select this checkbox if a discount should be calculated for the configuration. If you want to activate or deactivate this function globally for all configuration lines, click on Toggle on/off > Calc. Disc. in the menu bar of the Configurations FastTab. |
| Print Quantity/UOM | Select this checkbox to include the quantity and unit of measurement in sales documents generated from forecasts for options and items. If the checkbox is cleared, these values will not be displayed in the sales lines. If you want to activate or deactivate this function globally for all configuration lines, click on Toggle on/off > Print Quantity/UOM in the menu bar of the Configurations FastTab. |
| Show In Purchase Documents | Activate this toggle switch if the configuration line shall be printed in purchase documents. If the checkbox is cleared, it will not be displayed in the purchase lines. If you want to activate or deactivate this function globally for all configuration lines, click on Toggle on/off > Show In Purchase Documents in the menu bar of the Configurations FastTab. |
| Show In Sales Documents | Activate this toggle switch if the configuration line shall be printed in sales documents. If the checkbox is cleared, it will not be displayed in the sales lines. If you want to activate or deactivate this function globally for all configuration lines, click on Toggle on/off > Show In Sales Documents in the menu bar of the Configurations FastTab. |
| Comments Exist | This checkbox is automatically selected if a comment is stored for the configuration. To add a line of text that will be added as a comment line, click on Add Text Lines in the menu bar of the Configuration FastTab. You can then enter the text that will be added as a general comment line in the text editor. This line is transferred to sales and purchase documents and included in printouts. If you want to add an internal comment line that refers to another line, such as an item or service item line, select a line and click on Manage > Comments in the menu bar of the FastTab. To edit the comment in the text editor, e.g., if there are multiple comment lines, click on the selection field in the menu bar of the page and then on Add Text Lines. Internal comment lines are not displayed in the lines of the forecast and are also not printed on sales or purchase documents. |
| Show Comment Lines In Sales Documents | Select this checkbox if the stored comment lines should be printed in sales documents. If the checkbox is cleared, they will not be displayed in the sales lines. If you want to activate or deactivate this function globally for all configuration lines, click on Toggle on/off > Show Comment Lines In Sales Documents in the menu bar of the Configurations FastTab. |
| Manufacturer Configuration | This checkbox is automatically selected if the current configuration line was created on the basis of a manufacturer configuration. These lines cannot be changed or edited. If changes are necessary, you must create a new forecast with a new configuration. |
Tip
To define the order in which configurations should be sorted when they are transferred into purchase and sales documents, open the Sales & Receivables Setup page via the quick search (ALT+Q). Then, navigate to the Sales Calculation FastTab and select the desired sorting order in the Configuration Sort Order field. You can choose between Category Description and Line Number.
Purchase Discounts
This section describes how to add purchase discounts and discount schemes to a forecast. The following description assumes that you have already opened a forecast.
Note
For more information on default purchase discounts and how to define them, click here.
Please proceed as follows to enter the purchase discounts:
- Switch the view to the Purchase Discounts tab. To do so, click on Show > Purchase Discounts in the menu bar.
- To add a discount scheme to the forecast, select Manage Select Default Purchase Discount from the menu bar of the Purchase Discounts FastTab.
- The window Default Purchase Discounts is displayed. The list contains all discount schemes that can be used for this service item.
- Select a discount scheme from the list und click OK.
- The default purchase discounts are added to the forecast.
Note
You can also enter a discount manually. For this, click in the Discount Type column and select the discount from the dropdown list. For more information on purchase discounts, see the Default Purchase Discounts section.
You have added one or more purchase discounts to the forecast. You can find an overview of the accumulated discounts in the Total Discounts field beneath the tab.
Sales Discounts
This section describes how to add sales discounts and discount schemes to forecasts. The following description assumes that you have already opened a forecast.
Note
For more information on default purchase discounts and how to define them, click here.
Please proceed as follows to enter the sales discounts:
- Switch the view to the Sales Discounts by clicking on Show > Sales Discounts in the menu bar.
- To add a discount scheme to the forecast, click on Manage > Select Default Sales Discount in the menu bar of the Sales Discounts FastTab.
- The Default Sales Discounts window is displayed. The list contains all discount schemes that can be used for this service item.
- Select a discount scheme from the list und click OK.
- The default sales discounts are added to the forecast.
Note
You can also enter a discount manually. For this, click in the Discount Type column and select the discount from the dropdown list.
You have successfully added one or more sales discounts to the forecast. You can find an overview of the accumulated discounts in the Total Discounts field beneath the tab.
External Equipment
This section describes how to add external equipment to a forecast. The following description assumes that you have already opened a forecast.
Please proceed as follows to add external equipment:
- Switch to the External Equipment page. To do so, click on Show > External Equipment in the menu bar.
- Navigate to the External Equipments FastTab.
- Fill in the following fields to add external equipment:
Tip
Use the Search column to select Items by their item number or vendor item number.
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Type | Specify the type of the external equipment (Item, Service Item, or Comment). When you select a service item, assigned equipment lines will be added automatically as comment lines. |
| No. | Select the number of the (service) item from the dropdown list. |
| Vendor Item No. | Enter the vendor item number of the external equipment. This field is filled automatically by the system, if a vendor item number is stored on the item. |
| Status (Purchase) | This field specifies the purchase status of the external equipment. |
| Purchase Order Type | Select the purchase order type for the external equipment. This value is transferred to all purchase orders for external equipment that are created via this forecast. |
| Responsibility Center | Specify a responsibility center for the external equipment. This value is transferred to all purchase orders for external equipment that are created via this forecast. You’ll find more information regarding the setup of responsibility centers under Setting up Responsibility Center. |
| Location Code | Enter the location code to be used for external equipment orders. This value is transferred to all purchase orders for external equipment that are created via this forecast. |
| Linked to Service | This field shows if the item is linked to a service. You can find more information on how to link an item in a forecast to a service in the Service section. |
| Description | This field displays the description of the external equipment and is filled in automatically by the system. |
| Unit Of Measure | Use this field to enter the unit of measure of the item. This field may be filled by the system. |
| Quantity | This field shows the quantity of the item. If necessary, you can manually change the quantity. |
| List Price | This field shows the list price for the item or service item. |
| Discount % (List Price) | Enter the discount for the (service) item. |
| Purchase Price | This field shows the purchase price for the item or service item. |
| Line Amount | This field displays the amount for the external equipment line. The value is determined from amount × purchase price. |
| Margin % / Surcharge % | Specifies the margin or the surcharge in percent. |
| Margin/Surcharge | Specifies the amount of the margin or surcharge. |
| Calculate Separately | Clear this checkbox to not display the line amount separately for the external equipment line. The line amount is added to the configuration amount. |
| Show In Sales Documents | Select this checkbox to show the external equipment line in sales documents. |
| Comments Exist | This checkbox indicates if comments for this line exist. |
| Vendor Name | This field shows the vendor of the item. |
You have successfully added external equipment to the forecast. Every added item or service item updates the information Total List Price, Total Costs and Total Calculated Sales Price.
Tip
If you want to add a line of text that will be added as a general comment line, click on Manage > Add Text Lines in the menu bar of the FastTab. You can then enter the text that will be added as a general comment line in the text editor. This line is transferred to sales and purchase documents and included in printouts. If you want to add an internal remark line that refers to another line, such as an item or service item line, select a line and click on Manage > Comments in the menu bar of the FastTab. To edit the comment in the text editor, e.g., if there are multiple comment lines, click on the selection field in the menu bar of the page and then on Add Text Lines. Internal comment lines are not displayed in the lines of the forecast and are also not printed on sales or purchase documents.
Services
This section describes how to add services to a forecast. Services mean standard tasks which result as part of the delivery and selling of the service item. The following description assumes that you have already opened a forecast. Please proceed as follows to add services:
- Switch the view to the Services page. To do so, click on Show > Services in the menu bar.
- Navigate to the Services FastTab.
- Complete the following information to add services:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Standard Service Code | Here, select the standard service code for the service. |
| Default Worktime Amount | Enter the default worktime for the service. |
| Linked to External Equipment | This field shows whether the service is linked to any external equipment. |
| Responsibility Center | Specify a responsibility center for the service. This value is transferred to all service orders created using this forecast. You’ll find more information regarding the setup of responsibility centers under Setting up Responsibility Center. |
| Description | This field displays the description of the service. |
| Service Order Type | Enter a service order type for the service. This value is transferred to all service orders created using this forecast. |
| Location Code | Enter a location code for the service. This value is transferred to all service orders created using this forecast. |
| Calculate Separately | Clear this checkbox to not display the line amount separately for the service line. The line amount is added to the configurated machine price. |
| Show In Sales Documents | Activate this toggle switch if the configuration line shall be printed in sales documents. |
| Comments Exist | This checkbox indicates if comments for this line exist. |
You have successfully added a service to the forecast.
Costs
This section describes how to add additional costs to a forecast. The following description assumes that you have already opened a forecast. Please proceed as follows to enter costs:
- Switch the view to the Sales Discounts by clicking on Show > Costs in the menu bar.
- Complete the following information for the line:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Cost Type | Select the type of cost you would like to add to the forecast. |
| Description | Enter a clear description for the added costs. |
| Transfer to Purchase | Select this checkbox if the costs should be transferred to purchase documents. |
| Base Amount Type | Select the base amount type for the costs. |
| Amount | Enter the amount of the added costs. You can only enter a fixed amount if no base amount type has been selected. |
| Percentage | Enter a percentage for the costs. The amount in the FactBox of the forecast is then calculated using the entered base amount type. |
You have successfully added additional costs to the forecast. The configuration of the machine has been completed. You can now release the forecast or make further changes, e. g., add Standard Equipment. To release the forecast, click on Release in the menu bar. If you want to mark the forecast as an alternative forecast, e.g., to provide the customer with several options, click on Alternative in the menu bar. To create a Sales Quote for the machine, just return to the sales calculation page. Alternative forecasts won't be transferred to the sales quote.
Tip
To display an overview of all sales calculations, including the associated forecasts, use the quick search (ALT+Q) and select the Forecasts page. The page displays a list of all sales calculations, including the corresponding forecasts and their current status.
Adding Standard Equipment
This section describes how to add standard equipment to a forecast. The added standard equipment will be transferred to the corresponding documents as comment lines. The following description assumes that you have already opened a forecast. Please proceed as follows to add standard equipment:
Note
If you edit the standard equipment of a service item in the forecast, the standard equipment stored on the service item card will be updated automatically.
- In the menu bar of the forecast, click on Home > Open Standard Equipment.
- To add a new standard equipment, click on New in the menu bar and fill in the fields according to the following table:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Code | Enter a significant code for the standard equipment. If you use the standard equipment in purchase or sales documents, the value of this field will be transferred to the Vendor Item No. field. |
| Description | Enter a significant description for the standard equipment. |
| Print In Purchase Document | Activate the toggle switch if the standard equipment should be listed as a comment line in purchase documents created from forecasts. |
| Print In Sales Document | Activate the toggle switch if the standard equipment should be listed as a comment line in sales documents created from forecasts. |
You have successfully added standard equipment to the forecast. The standard equipment will be shown on the selected documents. Your changes are saved automatically.